Page 70 of The Temptation
With a final pat on the top of the headstone, I rose and hurried to the car. Sebastian had turned on the engine and had the heater on full blast.
“Are we heading back to the airport?” I inquired as I buckled in.
Sebastian put the SUV into drive. “Can’t.”
“Huh?” Rome gasped.
“Parker’s birthday is tomorrow, and he has invited all our boyfriends over for a pre-birthday slumber party. We’re not allowed to return home until tomorrow,” Declan explained. His voice turned ominous as he added, “But wemustbe home tomorrow. Also, you will all be coming to my house on Saturday for our joint birthday party for Parker and Joy.”
Domestic-bliss Declan was fucking adorable.
“Besides,” Sebastian drawled, “Pierce needs this time to plan how he’s going to climb back into Simon’s good graces after everything he’s put him through.”
Fuck, he’s right.
24
SIMON MILLER
Parker’s announcementthat he was having a boyfriend sleepover while Sebastian, Declan, Rome, and Pierce were out of town was the only thing that saved my sanity.
It had been tempting to accompany them up to visit Sawyer’s grave, but I was afraid that if I was there, Pierce might censor himself, and he needed to let out all the emotions he’d been bottling up for years.
But that didn’t mean I wanted to remain cooped up in Pierce’s house, staring at the walls, unable to write music because thoughts of Pierce and my stupid brother consumed my brain.
Fuck his dead ass. Screwing up my chance to have a happily ever after with the sexiest man alive.
I could hear his ridiculous guffaws from the afterlife.
Just after sunset, Pierce’s driver, Edward, dropped me off at Declan and Parker’s house with a backpack stuffed with clothes and some of Pierce’s pilfered toiletries. As soon as the door opened, I was hit in the face with loud music and laughter. And yet, Declan’s butler and all-around assistant, Franks, looked unruffled by the chaos.
“Hi, Franks. Sounds like the party has started,” I greeted him as I stepped out of the cold.
“Yes, Mr. Graham and Mr. Rose arrived a few moments ago, and Master Parker has greeted them with shots of tequila.”
A chuckle left me as I handed over my bag and coat to Franks. “Thanks. I can find my own way.”
“I believe they’ve moved to the kitchen. Master Parker has requested Chef Donovan make what he is calling ‘fancy-pants junk food.’”
Okay, this was already sounding like it was going to be an even better night than I’d been expecting. At least Parker still knew how to party. God knew I didn’t. There had been none of that during my college career, and my agent had turned into my handler and personal killjoy when I was traveling. I could use a good party. The one thing that might have made it better was having Pierce there. We could have gotten drunk and sneaked off to some shadowy corner to make out.
In the kitchen, I found Parker, Liam, and Byron gathered around a counter heavily laden with some very delicious snack foods. There wasn’t a chip or Cheez Doodle in sight, but there were incredibly cheesy nachos covered in what looked to be brisket and deep-fried ravioli bites. But I went straight for the incredible cheese platter with crackers and thin slices of prosciutto.
“Simon!” Parker shouted. “You made it!”
“Can’t talk. Eating cheese,” I said as I stuffed a chunk of Havarti into my mouth.
“No! He’s got to do a shot too!” Liam ordered.
“What’s your poison? Tequila? Bourbon? Whiskey? Vodka? Gin?”
“Don’t care. Give me something that goes well with cheese.”
Parker disappeared and reappeared a minute later with a shot glass. I threw it back before I could even think about whatI was doing. It tasted like I had just drunk turpentine. My entire body locked up and suddenly shuddered, and everyone laughed.
“Here. Eat this Camembert. It’ll wash the taste away.” Byron handed me the lovely cheese spread on an artisanal cracker. He was right. It made all the nastiness go away.
“What’ll you have? We have wine, beer, and I know how to mix up a few cocktails,” Parker offered.
