Page 142 of Consume Me

“Shut up, you’re beaming. It’s like he stamped ‘Blake’s property’ on you,” Abi teases.

“Is it bad if I like it?” I ask, looking at my three friends.

“No. You do you, bestie, and he looks smitten,” Celine says. “Kaden and I are very territorial about each other, so I get it.” Those two would cross any boundary for one another.

“I need a bit of fresh air,” Bailey says, glancing at Hunter, who is talking to a girl who is all over him.

I mouth “air” to Blake and point at the front door.

“Don’t go far,” he mouths back.

I shake my head in response, and he watches me as we slip outside.

Bailey sighs, crossing her arms over her chest. Celine, Abi, and I keep quiet, hoping she will tell us what’s bothering her. It’s not that we haven’t tried to broach the subject, but she closes herself off, so we stopped pushing and decided to just be there for her instead.

Bailey looks in the distance and says so low I barely hear her, “Is it normal to feel jealous about someone who never was and never will be yours?”

“I wanted to kill Kaden and Abi, thinking they had something going on. Feelings are not rational,” Celine says, the corners of her mouth curling in understanding.

“But you two have been in love since forever …”

“I was possessive of Dane even knowing I could never go there. Look where that got me. There are women out there who would throw themselves at him, chanting his name when he’s racing. But he’s mine, and he loves me, so it makes it better.”

“Again, you love each other.”

Abi clamps her mouth shut and tilts her head to me for guidance.

“My brother is terrified to let someone in. You see him with girls, but they don’t mean anything…”

Bailey looks at me, a hurt expression contorting her face, and I know that I messed up pointing that out.

“I tried avoiding him. I tried arguing with him. I tried ignoring him, but he’s always there, making me insane,” she expels a long breath, surprising me, while the girls remain silent.

“I want to go back to the house. I have stuff to do, and he can do whatever the fuck he wants.”

I grab Bailey’s elbow and say, “Let me tell Blake that we’re going home.”

“I don’t want to ruin your night.”

“Babe, we girls will always have each other’s backs,” Abi says.

“The guys will follow us home, so it’s fine,” I tell her.

Celine waves a hand through the air. “They didn’t want to party, anyway. They can fight or play racing games while we have some girl time.”

“Believe me, they’ll like it more knowing we’re there than out and exposed,” I add, not wanting her to feel guilty. We had abit of fun and got to dress up, but Bailey’s emotional well-being matters more.

I push through the throng of people, but when Blake sees me, he comes to me.

“We’d like to go back home.”

“Did something happen?” Blake asks, looking me over.

“No, we’re just tired.”

He waves at the guys, and no one says a word as we head back to the house. They must sense something is off because no one comments when Abi grabs a bottle of vodka and some cranberry juice from the bar, and we retreat to our shared space.

“Thank you, girls,” she says in a meek voice.

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