Lukas sidled close, nudging his nose close to my ear. “Imma kish you, ’kay?” he slurred, and with that, I was officially done.
“No, thanks!” I pushed back hard against his chest, and he stumbled back into two girls who toppled over in their too-high heels, who then shoved him back in my direction. He deflated like a punctured tent, flopping himself against me and leaning into my side for support.
“Leo, don’t be such a tease!” I could smell the alcohol on his breath, his face uncomfortably close to mine. If he went in for a kiss, I could elbow him in the ribs. Or knee him in the groin? Before I could decide, he jerked away as if from an invisible force. “Frex you!” he shouted, but not at me, I realized. At Elliot. Who had pulled him off me.
The scene came to me in flashes as the strobe lights fanned down over the crowd. Lukas struggling against Elliot’s grip on his arms. Elliot shouting something at him as he pulled him farther away from me. Lukas breaking free, slamming his fists into Elliot’s chest, barely moving El an inch. He was taller and stronger.
The crowd fell back, putting us in the middle of a circle none of us cared to be in. Electricity crackled in the air with the anticipation of a fight. But even though Lukas squared off, fists raised to chest level, feet bouncing like a boxer, Elliot refused to take that bait. I held my breath as he gave Lukas one last appraising look, shook his head, and turned to leave.
I inched back, equal parts glad they didn’t come to blows and crestfallen that Elliot had left me with Lukas. What had that been? If the point was saving me, why not finish the job properly? Whisk me away, like a knight in shining armor, and make sure I was okay?
Because he didn’t care about me anymore, not like that, I realized. I craned my neck above the crowd, falling back into their messy dance clusters, seeing Elliot go over to Carina, duck his head to say something close to her ear. He must have come over at Carina’s urging. It was my sister who had watched out for me. I felt a surge of sisterly love, replacing the sour tinge of bitter disappointment.
“Leo, what just happened?” Evgenia appeared beside me, eyeing Lukas accusingly. He was still standing several feet away, pouting like a five-year-old, but not coming any closer. I allowed myself to be led off the dance floor, Evgenia going into mother-hen mode. “I’m sorry. I was caught up with a . . . new friend, and I heard the commotion . . .”
Once we made our way to the sidelines, I took note of her smudged lipstick. Good for her. I leaned against the wall and craned my neck back, letting a cool stream of air from the vents wash over me.
“It’s nothing,” I said. “Lukas was too drunk and tried to kiss me. Well, wanted to. I shut it down.” Now I was feeling a bit defensive. Had I really needed saving? I’d been doing just fine. “Elliot misunderstood.”
“Did he? Lukas has been pretty pushy with you all night,” she said. “I should have been there.” Then she enveloped me in a hug, which at first I found confusing but then melted into. It was exactly what I needed.
“I think I just need to go to bed, but I don’t want to leave Carina.”
“Carina? I don’t want to leave you! We need to decompress a bit, I think. Hold on.”
Evgenia disappeared into the crowd, which had grown considerably since we’d arrived, and I hung back in the shadows to wait for her. Then Klara clopped by in her heels, probably on her way back from the bathroom. Remembering that I needed to talk to her, I called her over.
“What’s gotten into you?” I asked the question that had been bugging me all evening. “You went from zero to sixty with Elliot. It’s a little weird.”
“Why is it weird?” Her words were a little too loud and enunciated. She’d had too much to drink.
“Well, he’s my ex, for one,” I continued against my better judgment. “And you didn’t even want to go to the Valg a week ago, and now you’re all in and gunning for him, of all people. Not being subtle about it, either.”
She gave an exasperated sigh, like I was such a bother to her. “Leo, he doesn’t even like you anymore. You said so yourself to me.”
I stammered incoherently, rendered speechless by her throwing my own words back at me.
“You know how hard it is to find a guy who’s nice, pretty solid all around. Not trying to use me for my family name. I need this.”
“But why Elliot? And who’s to say he wouldn’t use you? He’s pretty political.”
“He runs his own business. We’d be on equal footing.”
“I cannot believe you.”
My cousin merely shrugged. “Would you rather have him land with your sister? I saw you losing your mind at dinner.” Klara was sharper than I’d given her credit for.
“I—” There was no good way to follow on that.
Evgenia picked that moment to return, her satisfied look melting into one of concern at the sight of us. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing!” Klara chirped, promptly swanning off and leaving me wholly unsatisfied.
“I’ll tell you about it later,” I mumbled under my breath.
“Well, I’ve got it all sorted,” she said, forging on. “I’m taking you home with me, and Nora will make sure Carina gets back to your place safe and snug and a bit more sober. I instructed Elliot to start feeding her water, and scolded him soundly for not yet having done so.”
“Wait, what do you mean by ‘taking me home with you’?” I asked.
“We’re going to have a sleepover. Girls’ night. You and me.”
“Aren’t we too old for that?”
“Never!” Evgenia hooked her arm through mine and started pulling me toward the door before I could protest further.
Eleven
The club was located aft near the docking area, so it took only a few minutes to get home. Proper home, the one I almost missed; Sofi welcomed us with her aging chrome and dim lighting.
“Now, I think you actually would know the best sleeping arrangements in this case,” Evgenia said as we got to her room. Well, Carina’s room. “Are there spare linens so you can kip on the floor? Do you want to crash in a spare room? Are there any?”
There were the staff quarters, which I had no desire to revisit, let alone sleep in. My choices there were limited to Elliot’s old room, his father’s quarters, or a couch in the crew mess. No, thank you. And the Orlovs, plus Elliot, were using all the viable bedrooms. While there were additional quarters tucked away from when the Kolburg family was a bit more generous, allowing a cousin or three on board, I’d decommissioned them years ago to save energy resources. Opening them up, making the beds, heating them . . . it wasn’t worth the hassle, and I wasn’t in the right state to manage it, anyway. The floor looked great.
“I’ll grab a spare duvet and pillow,” I said, leaving Evgenia and heading on instinct down the hall from Carina’s room to mine, where I kept extra bedding.
I crammed my fingers against the bio-lock, fumbling the first time and missing a finger—I clearly was still a bit tipsy—and then autopilot carried me across the room, past my inviting bed, to my closet. Another bio-lock there—an extra layer of security I added to keep Father and Carina out—and I walked inside. I stopped short, frowning at the space that used to hold my dresses now full of trousers, shirts, and waistcoats. A fresh wave of mortification rolled over me that Elliot was sleeping in my room, had access to my things. I checked my underwear drawer, just for good measure. Empty. I was being silly. I shook it off, turning and going a few more steps in to the back shelf where I kept the linens.