by Mia Ford
“You’re right. I shouldn’t care.”
She’s walking away. Don’t let her walk away. You don’t want her to walk away. Not yet. My thoughts hissed.
“Wait!”
Telula stopped but didn’t turn around.
“I’m sorry. That was rude.”
She put her hands on her hips but I was still looking at her back.
"No one ever asked what my dad thought," I mumbled. "You just caught me off guard. It's like you sat me down for a pop quiz or something and I realized I didn't have a number two pencil."
Finally, she turned around and looked at me as if I’d sprouted a third eye.
I smirked confidently and shrugged my shoulders with relief as her smile tore away the weeds clogging my thoughts.
“Is one of these rooms your dad’s room?”
"Yes. The one at the end of the hall. Those double doors."
“You don’t mind people up in there doing Lord knows what unholy things?”
“Better there than in my room.”
Telula laughed.
“Prine, you are on a roll. I am shocked. You’ve shocked me again.”
“Why would you say that?” I chuckled confidently.
I lead her through the kitchen that was packed with people. The music thudded and people were dancing and talking. There were always a couple of criers. Those were girls sobbing uncontrollably because they saw their ex-boyfriends talking to another girl. That was a result of too much alcohol. Some folks you could tell in just a few more minutes would be puking their guts out. I just hoped they made it to the yard or the bathroom in time.
There were science projects going on in the den where some of the guys from the wrestling team were seeing who could drink fastest from their pitifully constructed beer bong. In the sunroom, the seventy-two-inch television was blasting Call of Duty as two of my buddies were engrossed in the game with an audience cheering them on.
The pool was as lively a place as any. Some people were smart enough to wear their bathing suits. For some other people, underwear was just as good.
I put my hands on Telula's shoulders and guided her ahead of me. I couldn't help but enjoy the feeling of everyone's eyes on us. It was like I'd suddenly become a mystery that none of them could solve. This group of people wasn't the brightest to start with.
"Go down that hallway and take a left," I instructed in her ear.
She nodded and continued ahead while I clapped a couple of guys on the back, gave a few girls friendly hugs.
That was when I made eye contact with Monica.
I winked at her but she didn’t smile. She just folded her arms in front of her chest and whispered something to the guy next to her. It wasn’t Matt. No shock there. I had seen him earlier pounding back the beers. They were going to avoid each other for starters. But before the night was over they will have either hooked up or had a huge fight that will make this party an epic event for anyone attending.
For now, I was the object of her anger, not Matt. I thought back to the gym the other day and couldn't help the sly grin that pulled my lips back. I let Monica see me look at her thighs then back up to her face. She didn't walk away. Instead, she rolled her eyes as if that would convince me she didn't care. Right. All I had to do was snap my fingers and she'd come running.
But I didn’t snap my fingers. Instead, I took Telula’s hand. You would have thought I grabbed hold of a live flame the way Monica’s eyes widened. As I said before she was as predictable as a sunrise. Monica would turn FBI grilling everyone and anyone for information on what I was doing with Telula Grant.
"Where are we going?" Telula asked. She was still holding my hand but rather limply like she was ready to pull away quickly.
“It’s a surprise.”
The noise of the party became more and more muffled, the further we went down the hallway.
“Do you want to take the elevator or the stairs?” I asked her.
She looked at me suspiciously.
“Stairs.”
I nodded and lead her down a winding set of stairs. At the bottom was a heavy wooden door that was also locked. Pulling my keys from my pocket I unlocked the door, reached in and flipped the lights on. I turned to see her reaction while I held the door open.
“What is this?” She asked carefully stepping over the threshold.
“Our garage.”
“Your garage is air conditioned? That’s crazy. Is that a Bentley? Wait, you have a Ferrari, too. What do you take to the grocery store?”
“We have a chef who handles all the shopping.”
“What?” She punched me in the shoulder. “You’re lying.”
“No. Seriously.”
“Well, you’re seriously missing out on one of the most enjoyable tasks of running a house. I love grocery shopping. If I had your money I’d be up to my eyeballs in Oreo cookies and Chef Boy-R-Dee Beefaroni.”
“What kind of money do you think I have?” I bit.
“Hey, don’t act like you don’t know you have money. That’s like me saying I don’t know how good I look in this skirt. If you didn’t want people to know you wouldn’t have parties.”
“Is that why you came?” I could hear the agitation in my voice. I didn’t want to fight with Telula but I couldn’t help myself. It was what I always did. As I watched her look at the cars and around the garage I could see the dollars being added up in her head.
“I came because you invited me. And I’ll go if you want me to.”
I didn’t want her to leave. She saw that when I blinked and looked past her shoulder like a smart comeback was hiding over there somewhere.
“Have you ever sat in a Bentley before?” I asked.
“Yeah, all the time.”
“Sure.” I scoffed taking her by the hand again and leading her to my father’s car. The back seats were real leather and there was enough room to lie down comfortably.
“When I was a kid, sometimes I’d come down here and play James Bond in the back seat. Would you like a sip?”
I pulled out a flask from my back pocket and offered it to Telula. She looked at it, tilted her head to the left like to say I’m not that stupid and mouthed the word no.
"I'm not trying to trick you, Telula." I took a gulp myself. "It's just vodka."
“Sorry, but I can’t say I totally trust you. You are a pretty big jerk.”
“What?” I put my hand to my heart as if I’d been wounded. “I can’t believe you’d say that. I’ve got to sit down. It’s like you punched me in the gut.”
I crawled into the roomy backseat and gasped. Telula laughed. I really liked that sound.
Chapter 6 - Tilly
I couldn’t help it. I liked Lucas.
“All right, one sip and scoot over. I’ll be Miss Moneypenny.” I grabbed Lucas’s flask, took a small sip and let the warm feeling spread from my throat all the way down to my toes.
“Do you like James Bond movies?” Lucas asked as I climbed in next to him and pulled the door shut behind me. The bang bounced off the floor and walls for several seconds. Then it was quiet as a church again.
"Not too much. I can't imagine a guy who is so irresistible to women that they just drop their panties as soon as he walks in the door. The threat of torture or death from their own governments for giving up secrets isn't even a deterrent."
“What are you talking about?” Lucas took another sip and handed me the flask. “You’re looking at a guy like that right now.”
“What?” I started laughing almost spitting out my second gulp of vodka. “You really do think so don’t you.”
“You’d be surprised what women will do when they know you’ve got money.” Lucas’s face darkened. I wasn’t sure how much he’d had to drink before I got to the party. But as he spoke his eyes began to redden. I didn’t say anything. I just listened.
“What have girls done for you?”
“Well, it isn’t what they’ve done f
or me. It’s more like what they’ve done to me.” He chuckled but I could tell I was making him uncomfortable. Good. He should know how that feels.
"I'll bet a good bit of it is illegal in this state." I mused dropping the smile on my face. "What do you tell them when they do these things?"
“What do you mean?”
“Do you tell them you love them? Do you let them believe you are serious?”
“No. I’m always honest with them.” He cleared his throat. “Look. I’m eighteen years old. I have no idea what I want to do when I go to college. How could I possibly be serious about a girl? They know this. But they always think they can change me. That’s where they make their mistake. I’m not changing for any girl. She’ll have to change for me.”
“Is that so?” I whispered. I hadn’t eaten a thing at home. I was sure there would be food here but now that I think about it I think I only saw beer and bottles. The two swigs of vodka had gone right to my head.
I hoped the fact my mind was buzzing didn’t show in my eyes. I stared intently at Lucas as he told me how some of the girls he’d been with made it very clear they were hoping to secure their stake in his inheritance.
“Of course I’m going to have a lot of money. My dad is CEO of Cambridge Logistics. He’s connected to everyone from government officials to Hollywood to the United Nations. I mean, the president of Argentina asked him to be the godfather of one of his kids. That’s connected.”
"Yes, it is." I purred. "Did he do it?"
“Do what?”
“Was he godfather?”
“I have no idea. Probably. It’s good for business, right?”
I shrugged and took one more sip then handed Lucas back his flask. I scooted closer to him and watched his eyes as he spoke.
"I'll inherit all this someday. When that day comes Jenna will be out on her ass. I swear she will."
With just the mention of his father's girlfriend, I saw Lucas transform. He became that jerk I saw so often in school.
“Is she like the girls you know? The girls who will do whatever you want because they know you have money?”
“Jenna is a professional gold-digger. She caught my father hook-line-and-sinker. My mother wasn’t even dead for a whole year before she was sniffing around.”
“I’m sorry.” I put my hand on Lucas’s knee. Suddenly I felt very sad for him. If I’d lost my mother I would probably be a jerk, too. “When did she die?”
“Right before my freshman year. She had ovarian cancer.”
"You barely have time to say goodbye when a woman gets diagnosed with that," I mumbled. My mom had a friend who died the same way. She had been diagnosed and within three months she was gone. "I'm so sorry, Lucas. That's messed up."
Lucas looked at me. His eyes reddened but just as quickly as they did they focused hard on my face. I watched his Adam’s apple bounce as he swallowed hard. My mind swirled and I leaned in to kiss him. I didn’t want it to be his idea. I knew what I was doing as I pressed my lips gently against his. They were velvety soft and I waited for him to pull back quickly, sorry or embarrassed, but he didn’t. He kissed me back.
I moved my hand to his and held it tightly. When I inhaled I could smell his cologne that was some exotic spicy thing that was like a mixture of cloves and honey. It certainly wasn’t something you’d pick up at the drug store like the body spray I was wearing.
Finally, I pulled back and looked at his face.
“I’m not like those girls, Lucas.” I felt I had to say that. “I’m actually having a good time with you just sitting here in your father’s Bentley.”
“Yeah.” He sat back looking at me. I felt my cheek blush while he stared then he smiled again.
“You should do that more often.”
“Do what?” He leaned toward me.
“Smile.”
I couldn’t help myself. When he smiled wide and genuinely I returned it back then fell forward into a passionate kiss. Our tongues met and I willingly pushed my body up to his.
His body was muscular probably from playing tennis on his own private court or working out in his own private gym located at some other corner of the estate.
Off in the distance, I could hear the thump, thump, thump of the music but it was way off somewhere. We were here together in this weird world of red leather seats and windows that were slowly steaming up.
"You should probably get back upstairs," I whispered in his ear.
“Why would I want to do that?”
“Your house could be on fire or someone could be hurt and you wouldn’t know it. Then you’d hate me forever because I got you in trouble.”
“Do you want to go back? We can if you want to.” He swallowed again.
I thought about that for a long time. Did I want to go back to the party? Did I want to look for Sandy and get going? Did I want everyone to see me with Lucas like some kind of prize turkey in a shoot? No. I didn’t want to go back to that world where I was poor and Lucas was rich and people would stare at us.
“This can’t go anywhere.” I murmured.
“What do you mean?”
“Nothing.” I stammered. “I’m just a little lost right now. And I think I forgot to leave that trail of breadcrumbs.” My joke fell flat. I was the only one who tittered at it.
“You’re not lost, Telula. I’m here.”
“My friends call me Tilly.”
“Tilly.” He whispered into my neck making my whole body shiver with a delicious delight that heated up my thighs and made my heart pound so hard I felt it in my ears. “Stay with me. Just a little longer.”
It was easy to say yes. But what was I really saying yes to?
"Maybe we should go back upstairs." I pulled back. My eyes started to sting a little at the thought of returning to all that noise and mess tore at me. "If I were you I'd be terrified at what I might find up there." I thought of Sandy's threats to cause just enough damage to feel she'd have her revenge.
"I don't want to go back." Lucas's voice sounded tight. Like a kid resisting his parent's orders to go to bed. "It's just the same thing that always happens. A couple of statues will get broken. A couple of people will have puked here or there. There will be spilled beer and food and hundreds of empty cups and plates and shit all over the place. None of them will ever do anything differently."
“So why did you tell them to come over?” I prodded.
“Because they are my friends.”
“All of them?”
His eyes looked to the left.
“And because when my dad’s girlfriend comes home she’ll have a hissy fit. You should see her when she gets angry. It’s hilarious. She always threatens to throw me out of the house if any of her stuff is missing. That’s why I always lock my dad’s bedroom door. See what I mean?”
“Not really.” I shook my head sadly.
“She’s got a plan in her head but I always beat her at it. As long as none of her jewelry, none of her clothes, none of her stuff is ruined she really doesn’t care. My dad will replace everything else.” Lucas smiled grimly.
“Why don’t you leave?” I asked innocently. “Tell Jenna and your dad you’ve had it and you don’t need them. Start your life on your own terms.”
“Maybe I will.” He replied. But I could tell he wasn’t serious. I couldn’t say I blamed him totally. A million dollar home with maids and chefs and everything you’d ever need was a pretty hard habit to quit.
“Well, I do appreciate your showing me around.” I tugged at the hem of my skirt again.
“You’re not leaving, are you?”
“Yeah. I better go.” I better go before I do something I’ll regret. How could I have kissed Lucas Prine? What was I thinking? This was going to be plastered all over tomorrow’s Riverbank High School Gossip Chain and everyone will be thinking the same thing. That I’m just after his money. I can just hear it now. Little Orphan Tilly Thinks She can Land Herself the Neighborhood Daddy Warbu
cks.
“Don’t go, Tilly.” Lucas purred. When he leaned in to kiss me I didn’t move forward. My head was screaming for me to be careful, to remember what kind of guy he was. But before I could stop myself my hands were pressed against his chest and I was fumbling with the buttons of his shirt.
Chapter 7 - Sandy
“Hey!”
"Sandy, I think that girl is trying to get your attention." Sean jerked his chin up and looked at me. I turned around and saw a very drunk, very upset Monica Smith staring down at me.
It wasn't the first time I had issues with Monica and as usual, she had her entourage with her just in case she. There was Casey Reed, Shelly Pinkowski, and Tara McCoy. These three traveled in a pack all the time. In four years Monica never said a kind word about me. She rarely said anything to my face but word gets around in a high school. Her minions make sure of it. So I heard that she didn't like me because I was friends with Tilly and both of us came from a whole lot of nothing.
"This is really inconvenient, Monica, because as much as I hate to admit it, I am having a really nice time."
“What did you say?” She slurred.
“What is it that you want, honey?” I looked at Sean who was watching the rest of the group to make sure there wasn’t going to be some kind of ambush. He might not have been the biggest dog in the park but I’ll swear he was the most faithful.
