by TJ Dallas
“You’re only as old as you feel,” Emilia replied with a wink.
I started collecting my belongings but soon frowned, rifling through my pockets a second time. I was positive I’d brought my bar blade, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. Maybe I left it upstairs. I stood up, pulling my chair out to search under the table.
“Bella?” Harry said with a sigh.
“Mmm?” Bella averted her gaze, refusing to catch Harry’s eye. I looked between them.
“Give her the bar blade back.”
My eyes widened as Bella blushed, plucking the bar blade out from the bottom of her sleeve. “Sorry.”
I warned you, Harry thought.
How did she do that?
She has her ways.
Bella chewed the inside of her cheek as I picked up the bar blade and tugged my jacket on.
Barely a split-second later, Bella stared at the floor as she held out her hand. My keys dangled from the end of her finger, and she couldn’t have gone a deeper maroon. My eyebrows raised in astonishment, and Emilia tried to repress a giggle.
You’ll get used to it, pet. She can’t help herself.
I shook my head, dumbfounded, but couldn’t disguise a smile. “Have I got everything now, Bella? Good. I’ll see you all soon.”
2
Lara
“Don’t forget that we need to be back at the Cardinal for 8 p.m.” Zoe rolled her eyes when I looked up, confusion spreading across my face. “The photoshoot? How many times have I told you?”
Harry had hired a new photographer for the club, and he was coming in tonight for a practice shoot. Harry wanted everyone to be there for some individual head shots and group photos, as well as a few impromptu candid shots, to test out his skills.
“Oh yeah. Sorry. Do we need to wear our uniform?” I asked.
“No, Harry’s happy for us to wear whatever we like. None of the photos are official or anything. They’re just a run-through of a few different things so she can see how good he is.”
I nodded, rising from the sofa. “I’m going to hop in the shower then. I’ve got a date tonight.”
I was putting a lot of effort in for tonight. We hadn’t had a date night in a while, and it was our two-year anniversary, so I wanted to impress. It was the first time Zoe would see me in a dress.
Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped when I opened the bedroom door thirty minutes later. I twirled as her gaze took me in. I wore a black, pink, and yellow floral-print dress which ended just above my knees. It had narrow straps and tiny cuffs around my upper arms, and I’d paired it with an elegant pair of black heels. Well, I hadn’t paired it. Bryan from the club had trawled the internet on my behalf, searching for the perfect outfit; he may be a transman, but he was still top of his fashion class at university. He’d altered the dress for me, and it fit perfectly.
“Holy shit, Lara!” Zoe still hadn’t closed her mouth, and I’m confident to say she’d swooned appropriately.
“Let me grab my bag, two seconds.” I picked up a new clutch which coordinated with the colours in my dress. Thank you, Bryan. “OK, I’m ready.”
I felt Zoe’s intense stare on my back as I stepped out of our flat, holding the front door behind me. She locked up and darted ahead to open the door of the taxi.
I grinned at the chivalry, but it matched her attire to the letter. Zoe had gone the opposite way from me tonight, and she looked dashing in a white shirt, a black tie, and black trousers. She’d been to the hairdressers this morning, and her hair was shorter; shaved at the back of her neck, but longer on top, which curled down the side of her face to her jaw. She’d purchased new earrings too, little silver and black studs that twinkled when they caught the light.
I tried my best to act as ladylike as possible when I sat down, trying to keep my knees together. This is tougher than it looks.
We arrived at the restaurant just after 6 p.m., and a waiter showed us to our seats. Zoe had gone all out for our date night, and she’d managed to get us a table at a very fancy, high-end Italian restaurant, deep in the heart of Edinburgh. We had glasses of sparkling water, a bottle of champagne on ice with accompanying flutes, breadsticks, and far too many pieces of tableware for me to know what to do with, all set out on the table waiting for us. We clinked our glasses together.
“To our anniversary,” I said, holding up my glass. Zoe toasted against it and caught my gaze as we took a tentative sip. The bubbly was refreshing, and it slid down my throat. Zoe smiled, reaching across the table for my hand.
“I love you,” she said, squeezing gently.
“I love you too.”
Her eyes sparkled, and there was a tender moment when I thought she’d say something else, but the waiter interrupted us with two menus. He rattled off the specials, and Zoe started giggling as I caught her eye, a look of perplexity on my face. How many specials are there?
She stifled a smirk, and the waiter eventually vanished. I took another sip of champagne and crossed my legs.
Zoe was watching me, and I tilted my head as I asked, “You OK?”
She nodded, but a pale pink rose on her cheeks. “I’m fine. It’s hot in here, that’s all.”
I was a tad on the cold side, but I was also the one wearing a thin summery dress. Zoe was the one in trousers and a shirt, so maybe it was warm. “Anything I can do to help?”
“Nah. Unless you can prop open the front door to get a breeze through here?”
“I could put my elbow through this tiny window. We’ll feign ignorance if anybody notices.” I grinned, motioning to my left.
Zoe laughed, and her shoulders softened. I was silent as she took another sip of her champagne, which turned into her downing the rest of the glass. I frowned as I picked up the bottle to refill it for her.
She smiled. “Thank you.”
We went quiet again, just looking at each other. Zoe started fidgeting with her cufflinks, and I jumped as the waiter appeared from nowhere with our starters.
The meal was wonderful. The food was delicious, and I could see why the restaurant stood head and shoulders above the rest. I thoroughly enjoyed chicken breast stuffed with sun blush tomatoes and mozzarella, wrapped in Parma ham with a creamy tomato sauce, and Zoe devoured a pork fillet cooked in a masala wine jus, topped with pate and pancetta.
We reminisced about our times together, laughing at silly jokes and cringing at embarrassing stories. We finished the bottle of champagne, and I offered to buy another, but Zoe waved me away, swallowing her last mouthful. “Oh, I couldn’t,” she said, placing the cutlery on her empty plate.
“You enjoy that, babe? Have you got room for dessert?”
She looked at her watch. “I’d love to, but it’s already seven thirty,” she replied, giggling. “I don’t think it would impress Harry if we were late because of ice cream. We can get a dessert at Georgia’s after the shoot if you want.”
I shook my head. “I’m all right, thanks. I’ve eaten too much, anyway.”
I waited at the table while Zoe paid our bill, and I rummaged around in my clutch for some spare coins to leave as a tip. Zoe came back to the table, shoving her phone into her pocket and holding out her arm.
“Taxi will be here in five minutes. Shall we?”
There was more traffic than expected, and we pulled up outside the Cardinal at ten past eight. I handed the taxi driver a twenty and told him to keep the change. Zoe opened the door for me and took my hand as I stepped out of the car.
“I hope we don’t have to stay long,” I mumbled, heading towards the front door.
“Why?”
“Well, you’re looking very sexy, and there are other places I’d rather be.” I lowered my voice as we passed a group of people leaving the lobby. “The bedroom, or the shower. Or the living room floor. Or the back seat of your car.” I realised the champagne had gone straight to my head
as I reeled off the list.
Zoe leaned closer to my ear as I trailed off. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. “I’m sure we can arrange that,” she purred, and I felt my core tighten. I had a hundred and one different ways of utilising that tie around her neck, all racing through my mind at a million miles an hour. My pulse spiked. One of those ways was as a gag, stifling her screams as I made her come with double digits and a well-placed tongue.
We entered the lift, and I was ready to pounce on her when someone ran up behind us, holding out their arm to stop the doors from closing.
“Oh hi, sorry,” Riley said, grinning as she squeezed herself in. “I’m running late, and if I can at least appear with you two, Harry might not shout at me too much.”
I laughed at her logic, but I couldn’t deny that I understood it. Riley was late for everything, and I doubted that Harry would have been surprised at her tardiness this evening.
Riley looked lovely tonight, in a pair of dark trousers, a blue top, and a short cream jacket. She blushed when she caught me staring. Even though I’d known Riley for two years, she still got shy around me, and I wasn’t sure why. I knew she had anxiety, and she wasn’t the most outspoken in many social situations, but she was clever. She’s probably thinking up excuses for when Harry catches us wandering in late, I thought.
I cringed as I relived the first time I’d been late for Harry, which annoyingly had been my job interview with her. I hoped she didn’t remember. Knowing her sense of humour, she’d love to pull that story out of the hat to embarrass me.
The doors opened on the seventh floor. While there wasn’t any music playing, we heard a large group of people, bantering, laughing, and gossiping. I saw Riley take a deep breath, closing her eyes as she prepared herself. Large groups of people and small talk wore Riley out, and she would always sleep for days afterwards.
Zoe sensed her uneasiness and skipped around me to extend her arm. Riley smiled, accepting the proffered crutch as Zoe held out her other arm for me. Zoe enjoyed being the centre of attention more than I did, and I knew she’d love to make an entrance with a woman on each arm.
We stepped through the doors, and my eyes scanned the crowd. If Harry wasn’t paying attention, we might be able to slip in unnoticed. I spotted Cody and Michael in the corner, and they waved us over.
“Harry’s in her office, so you timed that perfectly.” Cody clapped his hands together. “If she says anything, we’ll say that you’ve been here the whole time, and how can she be so rude as to accuse all five of us of lying.”
I laughed, setting my clutch on the bar and climbing onto a bar stool. I looked around. Georgia and Ambrosia were standing in front of a vast screen. Ambrosia, who was Georgia and Galen’s daughter, was eight months old now, and she looked adorable in a pair of stripy leggings and a pink T-shirt with strawberries on it. She had a matching pink bow around her head, and she giggled as Galen, a man I’d never met, leaned down and placed a kiss on her cheek. He was fit and toned, his muscles bulging in his stiff white shirt. His skin was clear, his short black hair thick and wavy.
From what I recalled, Galen was another of the Virtues, who were the opposite Seven from Harry and the others. I forced down a peculiar feeling inside me as I thought about them. Dylan had been one of the Virtues.
I scoured the rest of the crowd. Surely he wasn’t here? Harry would hit the roof if he was.
She’d threatened to kill him if she ever saw him again, after what he’d tried to do to me. Or what he’d tried to cause me to do to myself. Or rather, what I’d done before Harry had stopped me.
At the end of last year, Dylan had guided me to attempt suicide. He had interfered with my head, getting me evicted from my flat, without a car of my own, and he’d told my parents where I was. They had walked in while I was on my knees, getting fucked by a one-night stand I’d picked up in a bar. The reason it wasn’t Zoe was because Dylan had enlisted Madison’s help to ruin that too; Madison had filled me full of intentional jealousy, and I’d slapped Zoe, convinced I’d just witnessed her cheating.
Harry and the others realised what had happened, and Harry had said she wouldn’t let Dylan anywhere near me again. He can’t be here?
He isn’t, Riley thought, cutting off my depressing chain of thought. Don’t worry. Harry will always keep her word. She would kill him before he gets anywhere near you again.
I let out the breath I was holding. My heart had started hammering in my chest, but I felt it slow down as soon as Riley placed a hand on my shoulder. Thank you.
I looked back towards Galen, intent on facing that trigger head-on. I’d been told that Galen was Temperance; his influence on the world was to stop people overeating and overindulging. I took note of his toned physique and clear skin as I studied him, and had to agree that he looked a pinnacle of good health. The corners of his eyes crinkled when he smiled, and Georgia and Ambrosia certainly looked comfortable and relaxed in his presence.
The camera flashed, and I caught the look of adoration in his eyes as he looked at his daughter. Georgia caught it too. He kissed the top of her head as the camera flashed again, and Ambrosia squealed in delight. They smiled as the photographer moved forward to rearrange their positions. Maybe not all of the Virtues were dangerous, I thought.
He’s the only one I’ll tolerate, Harry replied. And that’s only because he’s the father of my niece. But I swear if—
She fell silent, and I spun around. She stood behind me, her eyes wide and her lips parted. I swallowed hard as her gaze swept unashamedly down my body, coming back up to linger between my exposed collarbone and the necklace at my throat. It took her a moment to gather herself, but she exhaled a slow breath, and I struggled to stop my cheeks from reddening. I’d forgotten that Zoe wasn’t the only one who hadn’t seen me in a dress before.
“Fucking hell, pet. You could have warned me.” She lay a hand over her heart, feigning a heart attack.
“Well, this is what happens when you interrupt our date night.” I pulled Zoe to my side, and Harry had to drag her eyes away from me to look at her. Her eyebrows lifted.
“My, my,” she purred. “Aren’t we the power couple of the evening?” She winked, taking another deep breath. “Zoe, you look delicious. I’d say that you almost look better in that tie than I do.”
Zoe grinned, flattening the tie against her torso.
“Is that Harry’s tie?” I asked.
“She let me borrow it,” she replied, shrugging.
I giggled, kissed her cheek, and momentarily wondered if that’s why it looked so good. “I think you look better in it,” I whispered.
“I heard that,” Harry muttered, and I stuck my tongue out.
She clapped her hands together, turning away. “Right, we need to get into position. Jay’s doing the group photos now, so if everyone—you included, Riley—if everyone can stand together please?”
She gestured for everyone to squeeze in, backing up to get a better view. Jay approached her, speaking in hushed tones and showing her the photos he’d already taken on the back of his camera. Harry nodded, examining each one and occasionally pointing when one caught her eye. She looked impressed, so I suspected his audition was going well.
Jay started pointing to various people and shuffling them up and back, or forward and down. He had a nice Australian accent, and I heard Bella and Riley complimenting it while craning their necks to get a better look at him. I often forgot that most of the managers were bisexual, and it still took me by surprise when I overheard them discussing good-looking guys. It was ironic considering I’d been with men, but since I’d started at the Cardinal, I couldn’t see myself with another man. Heaven forbid, if anything happened between me and Zoe, I don’t think I could see myself with anybody else.
After a lot of shuffling around, we were in place, and Jay seemed satisfied. The managers in attendance (everyone except Madison) were grou
ped at the back, with Harry in the centre. The rest of us were settled in front of them, taking up three large rows. I’d somehow ended up in the front row near the middle. Zoe squeezed my hand, and I crossed my legs, sitting up straighter.
Jay fiddled with his tripod and then held up his fingers, giving a slow countdown. At zero, he made a fist, and a bright flash blinded me. I blinked, trying to regain focus.
“No one move,” Harry said, jumping down from the back to jog over to Jay. He loaded up the photograph, and Harry peered closer. “OK, another one.” She ran back up and took her position.
Jay did another three countdowns, and I started to get a cramp in my leg. On the fifth attempt, Harry shouted, “Lara, check that one for me, will you? You’re closer than I am, and I’m getting old. If anyone else has their eyes shut, you’re getting fired.” There was a round of chuckles.
I stood up, glad for the opportunity to stretch my legs. Jay was tall, and he had to stoop to show me the image. I held a hand up to shield the glare from the club lights, squinting at the screen.
My breath caught in my lungs, and I gasped, lifting a hand to my mouth as I spun around.
Zoe was behind me, down on one knee with the cheekiest grin I’d ever seen. My heart pounded in my ribcage, and I couldn’t have stated my name if anyone had asked me. The small box in her hand displayed a striking white gold diamond ring, and I couldn’t take my eyes from it as the room fell silent.
“Lara. I can’t promise—” She paused, taking a slow breath and trying to stop her voice from shaking. I think she’d suddenly remembered how many people were in the room.
I didn’t care. I could only see her, and I took a step closer.
“I can’t promise that life will be easy, or that it’ll be full of sunshine and rainbows.” She smiled. “I can’t promise that we won’t have rough times, or that we won’t get sad once in a while, and I can’t promise that we’ll live out a perfect fairy tale in a castle. But I can promise you this.” She took another deep breath, and I heard the muffled click of a camera behind me.
