Page 104 of Vicious Sentiments

Is he jealous? Or am I reading things wrong because of the alcohol. Either way, no one but me notices and I try to ignore it.

“Wait! I have to give Marney her present.” She swoops under Dillon’s arm and comes running up to me. She sidles in next to Cape, not batting an eye about our public display of affection, or the fact that it’s Cape and not Julian.

She shoves on Cape’s thigh repeatedly, and he grunts.

“Okay. Okay.” He shifts and digs in his pocket, holding me tight so I don’t fall off of him.

When I look at Marney in confusion, she giggles. “I don’t have pockets.”

“You didn’t have to get me anything,” I say as Cape pulls out a velvet satchel in the palm of his hand and Marney snatches it from him.

She hurriedly pulls the strings and tips it over into her hand. Two rose gold bracelets spill out and she tosses the bag to the side.

“So we each have one.” She beams and holds them up.

They are thin chains with two pendants each. The pendants have little diamonds and an engraving I can’t read.

“Yours saysfriends like sistersand mine sayssisters like friends.”

My mouth hangs open as she paws at my wrist and wraps it around, getting close to snap the clasp.

“Marney…” My eyes start to water and I have no idea what to say. She thinks of me as a sister? The chain barely holds any weight on my wrist, but I suddenly feel heavier, fuller, more complete.

“You’re like the big sister I’ve always wanted,” she says. “I know I’m being super immature, and it’s probably so cringe, but I’m really glad you’re here.”

The tears roll over when she lets go and holds hers out to me. I take it, feeling like it’s not really me but some very lucky version of myself.

She holds out her wrist and I attach it. She has no idea how muchthis means to me. I used to think that maybe if I had a sister, things would have been different, that I wouldn’t have felt so hopeless if I had someone to confide in. I never had a girlfriend or anyone to share the tribulations of being a girl with.

This delicate chain—that probably cost a fortune—feels like a link between us, a bond that I didn’t need a bracelet for because her thought of me like this would be enough.

“It’s not cringe,” my voice breaks. “It’s the most thoughtful gift I’ve ever received”

She purses her lips at my tears. “You’re going to makemecry.”

“No, don’t.” I pull her in for a hug. “If you start then I will really start and then we’re crying in a nightclub.”

She laughs and squeezes me. “You don’t have to wear it all the time if you don’t want to.”

I pull away and look her in the eyes. “I’mnevertaking it off.”

“Well, how am I supposed to top that?” Julian has come around to stand over us.

“You don’t!” Marney sticks out her tongue and stands.

Within thirty minutes of Marney and Dillon leaving, the club becomes even more of a madhouse than I thought possible. The other VIP booths around us fill up, and pretty soon I can’t tell who belongs to which table.

The table nearest to us is nothing but men. They hoot and holler and pop the bottles on their table, spraying and spilling every which way. And pretty soon they pull out a multitude of white baggies. Cocaine litters their table as they all go in together, snorting lines and getting even louder.

Cape has stuck me on the right of him so I’m bordered on each side by him and Julian. I’ve cut myself off from the purple cocktails, and Julian goes through the six bottles on our table, having me taste each one. They all taste like alcohol, and I can’t differentiate between one Ilike and one I don’t like. Eventually Julian gives up and hands me his drink, the amber liquid. It somehow tastes stronger than the stuff on the table and burns a lot more going down but is somehow smooth after? It must be expensive. and I try to pass it back, but he pushes it back towards me and leans into my ear.

“It might help.”

I turn to look at his profile. “With what?”

“With what we’re going to do to you tonight,” he purrs.

My skin immediately heats and my voice comes out breathy, “What… What are we going to do?” I ask.

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