Page 112 of Sinful Desires

I followed behind her, thrilled at the prospect of there being alcohol. Something to numb this feeling. Hell, I’d try cocaine at this point. Anything not to feel like this.

Pausing mid-stride, Gia looked around the room with furrowed eyebrows. Her low lip slipped between her teeth as she chewed on it.

“Where’s Mr. Monroe and Ms. Raleigh?” she questioned.

I shrugged. “I thought they went home.”

Her gaze slid to mine, a crease in her forehead as she looked at me like I was stupid. I didn’t have it in me to care though. At least the faculty wouldn’t be in the way, and we could do whatever the hell we wanted.

However, the way Gia was behaving about this led me to believe it wasn’t normal. Goosebumps prickled against my skin as the overwhelming sensation of something being off about this entire thing consumed me.

“It’s probably nothing,” I assured her. And myself.

After a few moments, her posture relaxed, and she nodded. It was Halloween and it was nighttime. Of course, emotions would be high. There was nothing for us to worry about. Monroe and Raleigh probably decided to go fuck or something.

Gia led me to a small table hidden near the back of the room—an area that couldn’t be seen due to the shadows surrounding it. On top of the table was a variety of different alcoholic beverages. I didn’t hesitate before fixing a cup of fireball and offering the bottle to Gia.

“I’m good on that,” she retorted, reaching for the Jack Daniels instead. Shrugging, I returned the bottle to the table and took a sip of my beverage, relishing the burn that erupted in my chest. “Wanna go dance?”

The thought of dancing had my stomach churning. “I’m all danced out.” I placed the drink to my lips and chugged, begging the alcohol to do its job.

She huffed. “Fine. Let’s go over there then.” I followed where she was pointing, my gaze settling over the lounge area where a group of people had taken up residency. My gaze clashed with Foster’s, bile burning the back of my throat as he stared back.

I knew he wasn’t the one to blame. Foster had been surprisingly nice after everything happened with Hunter, but he wasn’t innocent either. I’ve seen the darkness lurking behind his mask of indifference. All four of them were messed up in their own way. It was best if I just stayed out of their way—at least for now.

Before I could protest, Gia was slipping her hand in mine and tugging me along. Anxiety bubbled inside me as it tended to do more often than not lately. My throat constricted and my skin heated as we closed in on the group surrounding the little table.

Being strong was something I prided myself on. It was my armor. And yesterday, it was taken from me. Wetting my lips, my eyes darted to the gray sofa where Gia’s mystery man was sitting.

Of course, she wanted to come over here.

I ended up squished between Gia and the arm of the couch, while her dude sat opposite her. Across from us was Foster in a recliner, nursing a bottle of beer.

“Fancy seeing you here,” a familiar voice drawled, capturing my attention. The words hadn’t been directed at me. It was Gia he was talking to.

I knew it.

I predicted her and Jax had some kind of flirty thing going on as soon as I saw them together. Her skin tone was too dark to tell whether she was blushing or not, but the smile tugging at her mouth was also a pretty good indicator.

“I could say the same,” she replied smoothly.

Cringing from the corny banter, I tuned them out before taking another drink. By now, my cup was a quarter of the way from being empty and I knew I’d be back for seconds in no time.

Leaning back in my seat, I made myself comfortable. Well, as comfortable as I could be while on a crowded couch. My gaze swept across the room, intentionally avoiding Foster as I observed my surroundings. It didn’t take long for that same prickling sensation to consume my body as the feeling that something was wrong burrowed through me again.

Where were the rest of the assholes who had a hand in ruining my life? Raven was still MIA with Hunter, and the other two were nowhere to be seen either. Did they go with them?

Unease coiled around my gut. Hunter wouldn’t have needed backup unless…he knew.

“Aspen?”

My gaze darted to Gia, a look of concern on her face as she assessed me.

“What?” I choked out on a whisper, not wanting to startle anyone else. For all I knew, Collin and Myles weren’t even with them. It could be purely coincidental. There was no sense in causing a scene when I didn’t even know for sure.

“We’re playing two truths and a lie, you down?”

I wasn’t new to drinking games, and it might help get my mind off things. At least temporarily. Originally, all I wanted to do was sulk by myself, but I promised the girls I’d try. So here I was.

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