Red (Siren Publishing Menage Amour)

by Eden French

  “No! I mean, that’s okay, we’re done here,” Celeste replied, smiling at her two friends. “Zev was just leaving. He was the last one.”

  Zev studied Celeste for a moment before looking over to Essie and James.

  “Yes, I was just heading out,” he said casually, though Celeste noticed something tight in his voice. It seemed almost strained. He took one step toward the door before stopping and turning back. “Celeste, I’m over at the SAE house. We’re having a party in a couple weeks for homecoming. You’re welcome to come. I’d love to see you there”—he paused—“bring some friends if you’d like. The more, the merrier. I’ll get an invite over to the art department.”

  Celeste stood speechless as he turned and left the room. Had she just been asked out by this god of a man? A man that for some unknown reason, made her insides squirm with just a look?

  “Please tell me we are going to that party.” Essie was in her face as soon as the door clicked shut behind Zev.

  “What?” Celeste responded confused. “Um, no. I mean, I don’t know.”

  “So what? One photo shoot and now you’re on a first name basis with Zev Reynolds and accepting dates with the guy?” James finally piped in. His voice was hard.

  “Oh, shut up, Hunter,” Essie spat, then turned to Celeste. “O.M.G. We have to go. Zev Reynolds just invited you…personally. Please tell me we’re going,” Essie pleaded.

  “Look,” Celeste replied in as calm of a fashion as she could, though she was completely shaken. “I just met the guy about fifteen minutes ago. Everyone needs to chill out, okay? Yes, James, I did introduce myself to Zev, so I guess we’re on a first name basis. But, I also did to Calen before him. It wasn’t personal; I was just being a good photographer trying to make my subjects comfortable. So, watch the tone.

  “And, Essie, I didn’t say I was going to any party. I don’t care who invited me. If I do decide to go, I’ll let you know. Until then, will the two of you stop your whining and interrogations and help me pack up all this crap. I still have to get to the studio and upload all of it.”

  Celeste looked from James to Essie. They appeared to hear her, though she was not one hundred percent sure they believed her. She could handle Essie’s pleading, but what was with James? Why did he care so much? It wasn’t as if they were involved. He never tried anything before, and there had been plenty of opportunities over the past two years. But, their relationship had never advanced one iota past friendship, it was always strictly platonic.

  Celeste shook her head. She didn’t want to think about that mess. Not now. Not until she absolutely had to. For the time being, the Zev conversation appeared to be over, and Celeste turned her attention to packing up the rest of the equipment. With the three of them there, it took hardly any time at all. She was glad to be back in the lab and uploading the photos within the hour.

  * * * *

  A few hours later, Celeste entered her apartment feeling emotionally drained. Heather was lounging on the couch, her feet propped up on the arm, watching the latest episode of Game of Thrones.

  “So, how was it?” she asked, not looking up from the television.

  Celeste put her bags down on the floor and walked over to the living room. She sat on the overstuffed orange chair she and Heather reupholstered last summer when they went through a DIY phase. It was grotesquely sewn together. They nicknamed it Frankenstein. She crossed her arms over her stomach and sat in the monstrosity, staring at the television screen. Heather looked up from her position on the couch to see Celeste’s face.

  “What happened?” Heather said, concern creeping into her tone. “You look different. Did something go wrong?”

  Celeste looked at Heather. Her roommate's long, fit body lay along the entire couch, the geometric design on her yoga pants matched the deep red fabric of the davenport.

  “Nothing went wrong,” Celeste began, unsure of how she was going to explain the strange encounter with the two men.

  “But something did happen?” Heather persisted, this time pushing from her relaxed position to sit up. She reached over to the coffee table and picked up the remote. Pausing the show, she turned and gave Celeste her full attention. “Whatever happened…spill it. One of those lacrosse douches wasn’t rude to you was he? Because if anyone even—”

  “No, no,” Celeste interrupted. “It was nothing like that. Actually, it was a bit of the opposite.”

  Heather’s face turned from building rage to excited interest in a split second. Celeste’s shoulders relaxed. Heather was a vocal activist in women’s rights on campus, and Celeste was always grateful to have such a strong and vocal advocate at her side. But she could also be quite intense and, seven times out of ten was ready to eviscerate the offending party without having all the information.

  Of course, given the recent past of the university’s athletic teams’ attitudes toward women, which was only now starting to take a turn for the better this current academic year, Celeste also knew Heather was only responding to what was, for all intents and purposes, a hostile campus climate. Still, Celeste was aware she had to be very clear when explaining her encounter to her roommate in order to avoid any misunderstandings.

  “What do you mean quite the opposite? Celeste, did you meet someone?” Heather’s voice lost all anger and was filled with the playful banter of a friend who wanted all the juicy details.

  “Well, you know, I took headshots of the entire lacrosse team, Heather. I met like twenty someones today,” Celeste said casually, trying to make her story less big of a deal.

  “But…” Heather urged.

  Celeste took a deep breath. “But there was this one. Well, honestly, there were two.”

  “What? Two! Oh, wow, C, this is better than Game of Thrones. I want all the deets.”

  Celeste’s smile took over her face. It had been quite a while since she and Heather had talked boys with her being the sharer of information. Typically, Heather was the boy magnet. She was what every twenty-two-year-old coed wanted to be when they reached their senior year: strong, confident, self-assured, and in control. Heather had clear boundaries, knew what she wanted, what was acceptable, and could express them to members of the opposite sex with assurance. Celeste had been keeping notes.

  Dating in college was something Celeste wasn’t afraid of, but it just wasn’t the highest of priorities. It was the dating out of college that was terrifying. At least, it was for Celeste. Celeste knew college dating was good practice for the real world, the world Celeste knew she would take by storm as a professional artist. She did not expect to find love, but she definitely expected a few dates. However, lately it seemed Heather was the only one practicing the intricacies of dating in their apartment.

  It wasn’t that Celeste shunned boys either. She was very interested in them. She was just one hundred and ten percent focused on getting herself together professionally. Dating and boys, though desirable, was something that could wait. But now there was Calen…and Zev.

  Celeste curled her toes in her shoes as she thought back to the photo shoot. Both guys made her feel something totally different, though each one had their own impact. Calen was open and welcoming, easy to talk to, and handsome. He was a late summer afternoon when the bright sun is just setting, and a cool breeze is enough to calm down the heat. He was the goodness of the day, the peacefulness of the season. He was the wind through her hair.

  And, then there was Zev. Dark, quiet, mysterious Zev. He was the dark, cloudy day that blew the shutters closed. No, he was the room you huddled in on that type of day. The one lit only by firelight. No, scratch that. Zev was the goddamn fire. He consumed her.

  Celeste felt her belly clench.

  “Okay,” Heather continued. “I’ve just sat here and watched your face go through like seventy different emotions. You either start talking or I will force it out of you.”

  Celeste snapped out of her thoughts and looked at her friend who was quickly losing patience with her.

  “Fine,” Celes
te began. “It’s really not that big of a deal, but I was taking headshots, calling them into the room one at a time. Nothing extraordinary, really. But then I got down to the last two.”

  “What’s their names?” Heather interrupted. “Who is it? Oh my God, why can’t I remember anyone on the lacrosse team right now? You’re killing me, C, who was it?”

  Celeste gave a mischievous smile. She rather enjoyed being on the giving end of this conversation. Quite the role reversal. “Well, I called the first guy in, and I mean”—she released a long breath—“man, he was good looking. Light brown hair…longish. In good shape, obviously, he is on a college team. And, these green eyes, Heath, man they totally sparkled out of his face. Didn’t even look real.

  “Anyway, I was going to start taking the shots when I noticed he hadn’t put on his tie, it was just hanging over his shoulder. So, I asked him about it. He was acting all nervous and was trying to put it on, but was totally screwing it up, so I asked if I could help him with it.”

  “His name, C. What was his name?” Heather’s voice was irritated. Her face was a deep scarlet.

  “I’ll get to that. Anyway, so he said I could, and I fixed the knot and straightened it out. As I was taking the shots we were talking, he was super easy to talk to. But, his voice was what struck me. It just…sounded nice. Like I could listen to it forever. Does that sound stupid?”

  “Maybe,” Heather replied. “Depends on who it is? Will you tell me the goddamn name, for the love of God?”

  Celeste burst out laughing. She couldn’t take it anymore.

  “Okay, fine! It was some guy named Calen Red—”

  “Reddington, are you talking about Calen Reddington?” Heather asked, her voice dropping.

  “Yeah, you know him?” Celeste questioned.

  “Well, I don’t actually know him, this campus is pretty big, but I have definitely heard of him. Mostly because his ex-girlfriend, Kimberly Whitley, and a couple of her friends were in my women’s literature survey class last spring. It was a pretty small class. Apparently, she left him for some med student or something. I overheard a lot of their conversations, you know how sorority girls like to gather and gaggle. Anyway, from what I hear, he’s quite the catch. I could tell by the way some of the other girls in class reacted when they found out about the breakup. I could tell he wouldn’t be single for long if they had anything to do about it.”

  “Well, I don’t know anything about his status, but I do know that I think there was a connection between us. It was fun to talk to him, you know,” Celeste responded. “And, those eyes…” Celeste let her voice fade.

  “Did you get his number?” Heather asked.

  “Well, not really. It’s just that as we were talking, the last player walked in and our conversation was interrupted.” Celeste realized for the first time she was disappointed by that.

  She looked at Heather to get a feeling of what she was thinking. Suddenly, Heather’s face went slack. Her tone turned just a bit pink.

  “What is it?” Celeste asked her friend.

  “I just remembered who it was I knew of that was on the lacrosse team. Who was the other guy, Celeste? The other player, the one that interrupted?”

  Celeste’s face turned red. Heat rose in her cheeks, and she knew this display of emotion was because of the impression the last lacrosse player that had walked into the room had left on her.

  “Zev Reynolds.” Her voice was a whisper.

  Heather’s eyes grew round as saucers. “I knew it! I can’t believe it, but I knew it! Tell me everything. Immediately!”

  “Well, maybe now would be a good time to let you know he invited us to a party at his fraternity. You wanna go?”

  Heather nearly fell off the couch.

  Chapter Five

  Calen stood at the kitchen island making a turkey sandwich, the various ingredients spread out before him. He had been in a mood since the afternoon of the headshots, though he wasn’t exactly sure why he felt the way he did. Sure, he had been attracted to Celeste, but so what? She was an attractive woman. He was sure there were many other guys on and off campus attracted to her, as well.

  He grabbed a butter knife and angrily spread mayonnaise onto the bread. It wasn’t as if he had any claim on the girl. For all he knew, she was already dating someone. But he had been so sure he had felt a connection.

  “Hmm,” he snorted to himself.

  A serious connection was highly unlikely given the way she ogled Zev when he walked into the room. And Zev? He had been no better than Celeste. Calen clenched his jaw remembering how his friend returned Celeste’s gaze.

  “Dammit!” Calen cursed as the bread tore beneath the knife.

  He tossed the knife on the counter and threw the bread in the trash.

  Get control of yourself, Red.

  His heart pounded. He had never had such a visceral response to losing a girl to Zev. And yes, it had happened. But perhaps, it didn’t matter before because he had been with Kimberly, and Zev had never really seemed that interested in those other girls either.

  But now, his heart was free to pursue other options, free to feel those feelings again. Was his anger rooted in the fact that the one girl who seemed to catch his interest in months, happened to also be the first time he had ever seen Zev interested in a girl, as well? It seemed a simple explanation.

  Could all this feeling, this hot emotion burning his center, be the product of plain old jealousy?

  Calen took a deep breath and rubbed his brow with his fingers. Surely, by now, he could let this girl go. There would be others. After all, as far as he knew, Zev had never had a steady girlfriend. For him to show that much interest in someone, well, it meant this could be the one for him.

  Still, what if Celeste was his one? The one he was supposed to be with forever. Calen thought back to the photo shoot. He had been so nervous as she adjusted his tie. He remembered how his heart beat uncontrollably. He was sure she’d see it pounding through his shirt.

  He thought about how for the past two weeks, he had debated and debated with himself about wandering over to the arts building in hopes of bumping into her but had decided against it. What good would that do? Would he secretly try to steal her away from Zev? Not that Zev had put any claim of interest on her either. After the shoot, he had come to the car, and they’d headed back to the house. Sure, Zev had been unusually quiet, but he had not mentioned Celeste or any possible interest in her to Calen. Calen’s thoughts flashed to Celeste’s face. He remembered how she had looked at him after she knotted his tie. They had been standing so close.

  Why hadn’t he gone to the arts building?

  Calen brought his hand up to his chest and realized his heart was thumping again. Just the memory of the girl affected his physiology. He had never felt so impacted by a person before, even Kimberly. What was wrong with him?

  Losing his appetite, Calen began cleaning up the kitchen. As he was washing the butter knife, Zev walked into the room.

  “Hey, Red, what’s up?” he said as he walked over to their officer’s fridge and pulled out a beer. He walked over to the kitchen island and hopped up. His bare feet poking out of flannel pajama bottoms. He wore nothing else. “You ready for the party tonight?”

  Calen raised an eyebrow. He knew he shouldn’t be jealous of his friend, but as Zev sat on the island looking like a modern-day Adonis, he had to fight hard to push it down and sound casual.

  “Yep. You?”

  Zev took a long pull from the bottle. He placed it down on the island next to his leg and looked thoughtful.

  “Yeah, I guess I am. I mean, it should be no big deal, just another SAE homecoming, right?”

  Calen noticed the awkwardness in his friend’s tone.

  “Then why does it seem like something’s going on?” he asked, turning off the water and drying his hands on the kitchen towel.

  “I don’t know. I’m just…anxious, I guess.” Zev hopped down off the counter, grabbed the beer, and headed out of the
kitchen.

  Anxious? Calen narrowed his eyes. Since when was Zev Reynolds anxious about anything? Not willing to let that comment go, Calen called out after him.

  “What could you possibly be anxious about?” His voice was laced with sarcasm.

  Zev stopped at the kitchen entrance and turned around.

  “Probably because I invited Celeste to come, and I haven’t heard if she’ll be here or not.”

  Calen’s jaw dropped. Zev invited her to the party?

  Seeing Calen’s face, Zev added, “Don’t worry, I put her name on my list. It’ll be all official.”

  Calen stood stunned as Zev took another swig of his beer and walked slowly from the kitchen, leaving him alone in the empty space.

  * * * *

  Zev was worried. He hadn’t intended to meet anyone of his kind here at Perrault, but nevertheless, there she had been. Her pull awakened his senses well before he had actually seen her. She had felt it, too, he was almost certain of it.

  What he wasn’t certain of, and what had been both the cause of his anxiety and his most current obsession, was if she knew what she truly was. Zev found himself thinking about it day and night, during class, and while at the gym. Did Celeste know where she came from? About her heritage? Did she know he was the same?

  It was only by accident Zev had discovered his true lineage. He had been looking for a book on genealogy for a high school project in his father’s library and happened upon their family tome. It had taken a lot of explaining, from both parents, and a demonstration, but ultimately, Zev accepted his family’s curse.

  Since then, he had heard of other families like his, but he had never encountered any. It wasn’t as if there was a yearly convention or something. As far as these matters went, privacy and secrecy were two of the most important tenets. Especially if anyone ever had to actually act on their nature. But, now he had seen Celeste. He had met her. He knew she felt drawn to him, he could feel his biological pull in the same way. She was one of the pack.