Page 39 of The Wrong Prom Date

“What about your mother’s plans?” Zeke murmured to me as the two of us followed after the huge bodyguard. “Do you think you’ve done enough to keep her happy?”

I shrugged. “The party’s huge, which is what she wanted, and I’ve already had my picture taken a million times tonight. She can figure something else out if she’s not satisfied.” Her happiness was the least of my worries right now. I liked to think she’d be glad I was getting out of the party so I would be safe, but because I hadn’t been photographed doing anything outrageous, it was more likely she’d be disappointed.

As we entered the house, a whole slew of new faces greeted us, many of them shouting my name in excitement.

“Liam! Great party,” one guy called.

“Liam, can I get your autograph?” yelled a girl.

“Liam, over here!”

“Liam, can I get a picture?”

The requests were endless, and I wanted nothing more than to disappear. It was impossible to completely vanish though because the house was crammed with people and there was no escaping them. It had grown so congested that even Boss was struggling to clear a path. People were pressed in so tight that there was nowhere to move, and I was struggling to keep close to Boss as he attempted to push through the crowd. It was hot and suffocating amidst all these people, and I desperately wished I’d thought to bring a baseball cap as everyone I passed recognized me instantly and tried to grab my attention.

I was almost to the front door when the music screeched to a stop and a shout rang out through the room. I turned as a group of people fell back against me, pushing me up against the wall. For once, the crowd wasn’t swarming me though; they were trying to get away from a fight that had broken out near the DJ booth. His equipment was lying broken on the floor, and a group of guys were throwing punches at each other as the people around them scrambled to get away.

I wanted to get away too, but I noticed Teagan standing pressed against the far wall. The fight was right in front of her, and there was no avenue for her escape. My stomach dropped as I saw the fear in her wide eyes, and I instinctively started moving toward her, my heart racing with a surprising amount of concern.

People yelled my name as I pushed through the crowd, but I ignored them as I used my body weight to carve a path toward the fight. Those who weren’t trying to get away from the scrap had formed a circle around the brawling guys and were cheering them on. I didn’t recognize anyone in the circle, but then again, I was barely focused on them as I made a beeline for Teagan.

Her face had gone pale, and she had shrunk in on herself as she kept looking for a way to get herself to safety. None of her friends were anywhere to be seen, and I had to wonder why she was there alone. When I finally reached the fight, I didn’t bother trying to walk around it. Instead, I barged my way right through the brawl to get to Teagan.

The guys were all so fixated on each other that they barely noticed me pass by them, and Teagan’s eyes widened at my arrival. For once, there wasn’t the usual irritation in her gaze as she looked at me. Instead, she looked worried. “What are you doing?” she yelled at me.

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m getting you away from these idiots!”

I didn’t wait for her response as I tucked her under my arm and started back across the room. Somehow, I’d managed to avoid the fight on my way to Teagan, but as I returned, one of the guys zeroed his focus on me.

“Whatchu lookin’ at?” the guy slurred before he staggered in my direction and threw his fist toward my face.

I stepped in front of Teagan, pushing her behind me as I raised an arm to block the punch. The guy’s attack was sloppy and lacked any impact. I suspected it had something to do with how drunk he was. He was barely able to keep to his feet, and his eyes were glazed with alcohol.

I easily deflected his punch, and his own momentum sent him stumbling to the ground. “Don’t even try it,” I growled before I wrapped my arm around Teagan once more and led her from the room.

I had no idea where Boss and Zeke had disappeared to, and I hoped they’d be outside waiting for me. Normally, I could pick Boss out of a crowd a mile away, but given the chaos in the room, it was hard to see anyone—even my bodyguard.

The pandemonium only grew worse as we neared the front door. People were constantly streaming in through the entrance, making it almost impossible for us to leave. It didn’t help when a large group of girls recognized me and started screaming my name and pressing in on us as they scrambled to get closer to me.

Teagan looked terrified, and I felt a wave of guilt for leading her into this mess. She would have probably been safer standing on the edge of the fight ,because if these fans didn’t calm down, we were going to be trampled.

“We need to get out of here,” I said, frantically looking for some way through the crowd. It was worse than a mosh pit at a concert though. There was no going backward, and it was too hard to move forward, so we were wedged in the middle of the mayhem with no escape.

“Where’s your security?” Teagan asked.

“I lost them.” I pulled Teagan in closer to me as a wave of people surged in through the front door, jostling us as they rushed into the house. If I hadn’t been holding Teagan so tightly, I had no doubt she would have been swept from her feet. “Are you okay?” I asked, as I steadied her.

She nodded, but I couldn’t help but feel angry with myself. Teagan had nearly been hurt for the second time tonight, and it was my fault for hosting this stupid party to begin with. “This is getting dangerous. We need to clear everyone out of here.”

Teagan stared into my eyes for several long moments, her forehead creased with concern. Suddenly, her gaze lit up, and a small smile curved the corner of her lips. She turned from me and didn’t hesitate as she started shouting at the top of her lungs. “Cops! The cops are here!”

The girls closest to us started frowning. “What? There’s no cops,” one of them said. But the rest of the room responded to Teagan’s warning immediately. People started to scream, and the whole crowd started running to the nearest exit. Complete mayhem had broken out as people charged for the front door. It was like getting caught up in a stampede, and I grabbed hold of Teagan’s hand as we raced along with them. No one seemed to care that Liam Black was running at their side. Not with the threat of cops in the vicinity.

The cool night air hit me as we left the house, but there was no relief in the front yard. It was just as chaotic as the house had been. For a moment, I worried we’d have problems getting to the street, but as soon as the huge group of people gathered outside saw everyone streaming from the house, they quickly understood what was happening and started to follow suit.

There was a mad rush as people sprinted for the road and it was a miracle Teagan and I weren’t trampled in the panic. We followed along with the crowd, and when we reached the street, we didn’t stop running. We kept on going, turning down street after street until we reached a road that was empty of people. The sounds of the party had lowered to a muted noise in the distance, and it felt like we were finally safe.

Teagan was puffing heavily from our run, but I’d barely broken a sweat despite the distance we’d covered. It was probably a sign I worked out far too much.

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