Page 80 of Battle Lines

“Or the living room.” Unruffled, she continued, “Oh, in the back of a car or the front. How about against the hood?”

Real humor threaded through me. It was hard to stay irritated with Tally, and she damn well knew it. “That’s more your speed than mine.”

“If that Hardigan fellow isn’t really giving it to you hard and swift, you need to dump him. No one should look that fierce and not be able to pay up in bed.”

I almost choked on my champagne. “We’re done discussing this.”

“You say potato,” she sing-songed, even though her smile was more affectionate. We moved through the room, navigating the crowds while drinking, chatting, and dissecting the various collections. The tinkling of glasses, laughter, and, beneath it all, modern music to provide a soundtrack for the event.

On the surface, it was almost a Bacchanalian revel. Yet it was merely a veneer for the circle of hell where they all sharpened their knives, plotted takeovers, affairs, and how they could beg, borrow, or steal what they wanted. Hence, why I needed to be here. The best deals were often cut where no one expected them to even be served.

“I say you’re crazy, but luckily for you I love crazy.” Which was the absolute truth. Tally reminded me that life wasn’t all business and darkness. She lived every day with the kind of impulsive zest I wish I could embrace. Not once had she ever let me down. Right now, I could try to pull apart the insanity of Ezra and Adam’s mercurial, shifting moods and Adam’s sudden declaration and she’d listen.

As much as I wanted to discuss it, I needed to figure out my own thoughts where they were concernedfirst. Karagiani continued to move in our wake. He’d dressed for the event, blending in but didn’t chat, drink, eat, or smile. So, he was noticeable. At least, in as much as he attracted curious glances.

"I'm going to Paris in a week," Tally said as we made our way to the far side of the Wintergreen stage. Up close, the clothes weren’t much better, but they were definitely airy and light. I supposed that was something. The hum of continued conversations ebbed and flowed around us. "Come with me," she invited, linking her fingers with mine. "Seriously, just throw some stuff in an overnight bag. We'll pretend it's a slumber party and shop our way through Paris fashion. Springtime in Paris gets all the credit, but autumn’s really pretty too."

I shook my head. If I were observing the rules of polite society, I would have laughed or at the very least, chuckled. We didn't need rules. And I couldn't admit the very real reason I couldn't go. Some tales didn't need to be shared and I'd prefer to keep Tally out of the line of fire. As one of my best friends, her safety meant far more to me than anything. I hadn’t been able to protect Emersyn.

"I thought you had been planning to take Jameson? Rogerson? Dickerson..." I ticked off the names of the last three boyfriends who'd actually made it in her sphere long enough to earn the title of boyfriend. Not that any of them lasted much longer than that.

"Ugh, I'm done with boys. I'm marrying you and we're going to run away from our families after they disown us and we can live a Bohemian lifestyle on the coast of Malta with the untouchable trusts left by our grandparents."

Okay. Now I laughed. The pleased smirk on Tally's face promised that was exactly her intention. From her flawless cosmetics to her chocolate eyes and deep, dark brown hair—that she had streaked with blond so it looked as dramatic as she did—, she was the epitome of grace and elegance. Tally's grandmother came from Morocco, or so she used to tease us when we were kids, and she earned all of her best features from the most wonderful person in her family.

Having met her Nonny, I had only one quibble with that assessment. She was the second-best person after Tally herself.

“That’s a truly magnificent offer,” I promised her. “But alas—”

“So thereissomething between you and Milo?” The last she kept in a quiet voice, as though determined to not let it carry. The hopeful excitement in her eyes was genuine and filled me with warmth.

“Yes,” I admitted, pressing a finger to my lips. “Definitely something. And I’m not ready to label it or declare it beyond the fact that he is living with me and I trust him.”

“That’s huge,” Tally said.

“I know.” I did know. Grandfather even seemed to like him. That was even bigger. “That’s all I’m willing to comment on now.”

“Accepted,” Tally said. “So, no Paris?”

I grinned. “No Paris.”

She mock sighed. “I shall have to make the most of the city of lights without you.”

“I’m positive you can manage.”

Her laughter dried up almost too swiftly. “Maternal alert.”

“Run while you can.”

“I love you,” she reminded me. “But your mother…”

“Agreed.” I clasped her hand and then kissed her cheek as she kissed mine. “Talk soon.”

Tally beat a hasty retreat. I knew why she didn’t want to be around Melissa. It was almost for the same reason I’d rather avoid her. She and Tally’s mother were barely civil to her, and Melissa took great joy in trying to rake Tally over the coals for whatever perceived disagreement the two women were involved in.

“Elaine,” Melissa Benedict Reed enunciated my name like it was a foreign language course.

Who knew, maybe it was.

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