“Piano is classy, Adele.” I’d gotten her full attention now, the magazine forgotten on her skirt-covered lap. She wore her usual attire—a tight pencil skirt with a button-up tucked into the waist that showed off her sleek curves. She garnered every straight male’s attention with the swivel of her hips no matter where we were. But she never flaunted, flirted, or gave any of them a hint of hope. “How are you going to get a man otherwise? Most men of prestige expect their women to have talents that go beyond the kitchen.”
My face instantly contorted with disbelief. “Maybe with my fast wit and brain? It isn’t the fifties anymore, Sophie. Women can be individuals.”
Her eyes rolled, something she did often when I opened my mouth to point out how derogatory she was to her own sex. “Trust me, darling, men don’t want wit.”
“On the contrary,” a new voice cut in from the doorway. Looking over my shoulder, I smiled wide at Lawrence McKinley’s casual stance against the doorframe of the parlor.
“Oh, hush.” Aunt Sophie stood, a smile on her own face that contradicted her tone. “I wish you wouldn’t encourage Adele on her silly thoughts. Come, give me a hug.”
Lawrence was a friend since we were in diapers. We did everything together from bathing to schooling. We fought like siblings growing up, but things changed during our experimental pre-teen phases, which lead to us being each other’s first everything a few years later. Too young, I realized now, but I didn’t regret it. Even though we were still good friends, we never turned into more for a lot of reasons. Mainly because of his obsession with his male teammates, and mine with a certain forty-year-old business mogul.
My best friend wrapped Sophie in his freakishly long arms that were muscular from the sports he played. Football was his favorite, but baseball was what he was best at, which was what he got a scholarship for at Bentley University, a private school in the city. “I find Adele’s thoughts anything but silly. You should see the way men look at her on campus. I doubt they’d care if she couldn’t play the piano to save her life.”
“Hey!” He wasn’t wrong, but I couldn’t help but frown over his bluntness.
He walked over to me and pressed a kiss to my temple like he always did in greeting. If it weren’t that, he’d pick me up and spin me around until I got dizzy. “You know I love you, Della, but you’re not a musician. Never were.”
Standing, I playfully shoved him away. “I know that but you’re my friend. You’re supposed to lie and tell me how talented I am.”
His laugh was deep, rumbling his broad shoulders until I couldn’t help but join in. “As your best friend I’m obligated to tell you the truth. You suck. Now painting? You’re better than anybody at that. Have you seen her work, Sophie?”
“I have. Don’t get me wrong, they’re good. But—” I tuned her out while she explained why painting wasn’t classy, clean, or good enough for me to do. It didn’t matter what she thought. I found painting relaxing. Like dance was, once upon a time. I’d only just started listening again when Sophie shook her head at us. “I never understood how you two never dated. We all thought you’d be engaged by now.”
Perhaps Lawrence’s bisexuality wasn’t obvious to those who didn’t spend enough time around him, but to me it was plain as day. It didn’t matter who a person was, he had eyes for anyone good looking. That had been me once, but even after our teenage transgressions we knew it wasn’t enough. He was my friend, the very best, but nothing more. He’d asked me if it was because of Theo, how I looked at my father’s friend, because even he knew it was more than a crush.
“Now who’s silly,” I replied softly, looking at Sophie. “We’re still young. Just because you were married at my age doesn’t mean I want to be, and I doubt Ren does either.”
“That’s because you haven’t even tried.”
Ren dropped an arm around my shoulders, tugging me into his side. “I tried setting her up with one of my teammates, but she said he wasn’t her type.”
“Alec spends more time talking about himself than anything else. Do you really blame me for not wanting to be subjected to that?”
Sophie waved her hand in the air. “You don’t want to be with a college boy anyway. They’re too immature. It’d suit you better to be with somebody older.”
My mind instantly went to Theo, and Ren must have known it based on the way his lips quirked up at the corners. He used to tease me about my “stupid girly crush” when I admitted that I liked Theo West. As time went on and I got older, we both realized it was more than that. He was older than my twenty-two years, but he was a few years younger than my father. I’d kept that in mind whenever my conscience told me it wouldn’t work. I’d seen how his eyes wandered over the past few years like they never had before, and if the early morning he’d stormed into my apartment so long ago now wasn’t an indication, he’d certainly felt something for me that I held onto no matter what he told me. “I’m not dating right now. I’ve only got a semester left of school. I want that to be my focus.”
“Of course,” my knowing best friend played along, causing me to elbow his stomach. He moved his arm and winked. “We should probably go. Or did you forget you agreed to go to the house with me tonight?”
Sophie frowned at him. “That frat you’re part of? I’m not sure Adele should go there after the brawl that happened last time.”
“It was hardly a brawl,” I argued lightly. Two guys were arguing over a girl and it got a bit messy. Beer went everywhere, including all over me. I’d broken a heel. Somebody accidently yanked my hair trying to catch themselves when the men bumped into the crowd. It was an interesting night to say the least.
“She’ll be safe, Sophie. I promise.”
“I feel like I need to protect her now…”
That my father couldn’t. My father might not have been fond of me going to these “social events” with Lawrence, but he knew I’d be smart and cared for. I was never one to make reckless decisions, especially if it meant risking my father’s reputation. Not that it mattered. He did that just fine himself.
“I’ve got her back, Soph.” Ren was the only one who could call her that. My aunt always had wandering eyes whenever he was around, which was more times than not. I found it more amusing than weird, because neither one would do a thing about it. Ren was a smooth talker most of the time, so Sophie had a sweet spot for him.
We walked out shortly after I changed into something more “frat appropriate” which, in Lawrence’s mind, was a yellow sundress that hit mid-thigh, strappy heels, and a layer of makeup that I only applied whenever I went out to college events. While I normally preferred clothes that covered me, bare feet, and little to no makeup, it was fun to put on a front that I could wash off as soon as I locked myself away at night.
The drive to the frat house was short, only ten minutes. As soon as Lawrence pulled his Jeep into his usual parking spot in the back, he jumped out and jogged around to my side and opened the door with a grin on his face. “My lady.”
Rolling my eyes, I got out and adjusted my dress. “You’re in a much better mood than last time I agreed to one of these. Did you finally get laid?”