Page 49 of Grace of Spades
Grace
If I'm going to die, I'm at least having pizza and get my new tattoo first. Fuck 'em all!
We order a great big pizza and I play the stupid bitch role. Again.
"So... Mel. I haven't seen you in forever. How's life going?" I ask with a smile.
"Oh! It's good. I got into college. So I've been studying loads...." I knew I could count on her to keep the conversation going. That girl can out-talk an auctioneer.
"Grace, when is your tattoo appointment again?" Christian asks. Mother fucker.
"Um..." I check my phone. "Half an hour." Yay, half an hour of this.
"You're getting another tattoo?" Jai asks at the same time as Liam. Keep your fucking head, Grace!
"She is! She's getting it on her hip!" Kennedy informs them. I'm taking her out with me.
"Nice. What are you getting?" Alek asks.
"I don't know. My buddy needs a canvas and here I am. He does wicked work so I trust him." I shrug.
"Is this the guy who did your crow?" Jai asks. I'm going to kill The Heirs too. I'm going to take down everyone at this table with me, hell, throw in Ray to make a clean job of it.
"Yep," I say and catch Keir's raised eyebrow.
"How do you know about her crow?" Christian asks. Oh fuck.
"I know a lot about Grace." Jai taunts.
"Nope." I slam my hands down on the table. "We're not fucking doing this. I'm out." And I get up and leave. Kennedy, Mel, and Alek rush to follow me out.
"Grace, come on. It's fine." Kennedy pleads tugging me to face her.
"No, it's not. I can't do this shit. You invited all of them. They can't... I can't... we can't... this can't happen. You need to butt out of this. Please." I beg.
"Okay, I'm sorry. I'll stop, I was just trying to help. Are you okay?"
"Not at the moment," I admit. I am well aware I sound a bit manic but I feel like manic is the correct response to this shit show of a situation. Ashituationif you will.
"I'll take care of her, you girls go inside," Alek assures them. They look at me and I nod and watch them walk away back to the restaurant.
"I'm going to die," I whisper.
"Honestly? I think you're the only one that's safe." He chuckles.
"This is not funny. What am I going to do?" I ask.
"Well, what's the whole situation? Maybe I can help." He offers. I take a deep breath and start explaining.
"I met Jai last weekend I didn't know who he was. I thought he was just some cute guy so I took him to a party and we hooked up. Then my parents died and I got sent to live with my uncle whose personal assistant is Christian who I've been turning down every time he asks me out. I've been trying to steer clear of Liam and Keir too but The Heads keep calling Ace to help out. And now Keir knows and everyone is here and now I am going to die."
"Well shit. That is a conundrum." He admits. "Let me see what they're thinking. Go to your tattoo appointment and Keir and Iwill meet you there at the very least. Where are we heading?"
"Monaco Tattoos," I say.
"Okay. I'll send out the girls. Try to relax, okay?" He says giving me a very awkward hug. Back pats are important to men, I've found, and this one is full of them.
I watch him leave and my mind starts racing again. What the fuck have I been doing? I need to shut all of this down. Maybe I'll find some random guy to fuck. No, that's a terrible idea. For both the random guy and my self-respect. No, we're already in this situation. I need insurance, so I make a few calls before Kennedy and Mel wander out to find me.
