Fuck me. I should’ve known my failed tryst with Laura would make its way back to Caroline. It doesn’t bother me, and that’s a good thing, because she’ll have her fun regardless. Maybe now I won’t have to buy her anything for her birthday next weekend; my presumed humiliation will serve as my gift.
“Wait, I don’t get it,” Liam pipes up, chewing on the ice from his water.
“Should we call Laura for an explanation?” she questions sarcastically to my unamused face. “No, it’s fine. It’s like I told her, erectile dysfunction happens to every guy. They’re just usually like, old. But you’ve always been a trailblazer, Grey. The way I see it, you’re just embodying daddy syndrome, in like a ‘method acting’ way.”
My shoulders shake with my laughter as I break and toss a packet of sugar at her, but Liam’s eyes are so wide they may fall out of his head.
“Dude. You…” He motions, curling his finger down.
I lean in, elbow on the table, and stare at them both seriously, playing along.
“Here’s the thing. I couldn’t even convince my dick to fuck her. Both heads were in agreement.”
Liam tries not to laugh directly to my face, so much so that Caroline finally crumbles and falls into a fit of giggles. I sit back and let them have their fun because it’s better than admitting to the truth—that I gave up on getting hard until I dry fucked a girl who refused to choose me, then went home and beat off twice to the memory of her panting. I move for a change of topic, turning my attention to the plate of mini toast.
“All right, shut up. Can we stop talking about my dick and get back to the party? I’m sure whatever you have planned, Caroline, will be outrageous. Evan should love the bill. Speaking of, have you heard—”
“No, not yet,” she snaps, cutting me off and turning her head away.
Shit.
“I was going to say lawyers, Caroline.” Her eyes won’t meet mine, but they don’t have to. I already know why she’s upset. She thought I was going to say parents. “I’m sure there are papers to sign for whatever inheritance will be released to you.”
“Mmhmm. Where is that waitress? Does she mean for us to starve?”
Caroline’s voice is curt, but if you listen carefully, she’s also sad. My eyes shift to Liam, who looks as pissed as I feel. Neither of the piss-poor excuses impersonating parents have called yet. Some would excuse my father—not me, but some—because he’s her stepfather. But her mother, the opportunistic widow, has zero excuses.
Her daughter turns eighteen in less than a week, and that boozed-up hag is probably on some yacht spending money that isn’t hers. She should be here, prepping and sharing in the excitement of her only child’s birthday, but I don’t anticipate either will even call.
I grab my glass and lift it, Liam following.
“A toast. To Caroline.”
Her big eyes look at me, sadness hiding behind the dedication to keeping it there.
“May everybody remember their inferiority and never ever question who’s queen. Here’s to the road to eighteen, and your freedom, but most importantly your reign.”
She gives an elegant clap and smiles as Liam kisses her cheek. He hands her the champagne flute, and our glasses clink together.
Caroline sips her champagne and sets her glass down, sighing before looking around. “Since it seems as if we may be waiting until tomorrow for the wait staff, I’m telling Kai to join us.”
The waitress walks over as Caroline begins typing, so I order first, letting Liam do so for himself and Caroline. Liam cocks his head to the side to try and see what she’s typing, but Caroline elbows him, making me laugh.
“Are you writing a novel?” I wonder aloud to her downcast head.
“Seems as if my plans have changed. I’m going shopping and then out for dinner. It’s a state of emergency.”
“What does that mean?” Liam grins, looking at me.
She looks up, twisting her body to face both of us.
“It means Kai has taken it upon himself to make Donovan his ‘operation: be happy’ project, and I’m being dragged along for the ride. Exactly what did you two say or do to her?”
The mood immediately drops. Liam and I look in different directions, unwilling to answer. Fuck me. I don’t like this. I don’t know what Liam said to her behind that tree outside of what I’d expect from him, but I can guarantee it wasn’t anything like what went down between me and her.
“Interesting,” she muses over our silence, before looking back to her phone.
Liam’s questioning eyes lock to mine, but he speaks to Caroline. “What did Kai say?”
Caroline doesn’t bother to look up when answering, but it’s better she doesn’t, because then she’d have to witness the silent contemptuous accusations being thrown from Liam to me.
“Only that Donovan is upset about her friendship slash the ruined state of it with you two jerks, and that she needs a change of scenery. Would you like to explain what that should mean?”
Caroline finally looks up, switching her gaze back and forth between me and Liam for an explanation, but I’m not giving her one. And by the looks of it, neither is he. I flip my fork over and over, gritting my teeth together as Liam shakes his head at me. He knows this is my fault, but it’s actually his. Her bullshit loyalty to him is the problem.
“What? Speak,” I challenge, resting my elbow on the back of my chair.
Liam smacks the table, and the approaching waitress clinks the plates as she startles, but he ignores her to sneer at me. He’s being protective. How cute. But he doesn’t get to tell me shit when it comes to Donovan. A plate is set in front of me, and I look up, nodding in appreciation as the waitress asks if everything is acceptable. I pick up my pasta spoon and fork and level my attention on Liam before diving in to my food.
“Are you done?”
He pushes his plate away as Caroline’s eyes widen. She’s never seen us fight. It’s only happened twice, and truth is, after the first time, there’s never been anything important enough. Until now.
“You don’t deserve her.”
“Maybe not.” I let out a breath dropping my utensils. “But I’m the one who gets her.”
If he were to ask me if we’re good, I’m not sure I’d be able to give him the same answer as last night. Don’t push this, Liam. Everything changed the moment I touched her. There’s no going back. Donovan can’t belong to both of us anymore because she’s mine.
Liam taps his glass on the table, staring at me, feeding off my anger. He opens his mouth to speak, then closes it again. We aren’t headed anywhere good right now. My leg is bouncing, like a countdown for my explosion.
“Keep it up, dick,” he sneers.
Caroline’s laugh steals both of our attention, making us break from our stare down. She takes another sip of her champagne, arms crossed, saturated in amusement.
“You guys are so embarrassingly stupid.”
She points a perfectly manicured finger at me. “Did you think you’d give her an ultimatum and she’d cave? That’s what you did, isn’t it?”
I don’t answer, surprised by her two fucking cents. With a roll of her eyes, she switches to Liam. “And you promised bullshit unending patience thinking that would win her over? Because you’re the nice guy…only to her, that is.”