Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“Hold still, Liv.” Alice stood in front of me and styled my hair with her curling iron. “If you keep moving, I’m going to burn you.”
“Don’t you dare burn me,” I warned. “This is boring.”
“I’m nearly done.” She sighed. “Just be patient.”
“I’ve been sitting here for twenty minutes.” I sighed. “What sort of hairstyle are you creating?”
“A seductive, sensual one.” She grinned. “All the men in the club will be all over you.”
“All but one, you hope.” I laughed. “If I get them all, who are you going to have?”
“I’ll find someone.” She giggled and flicked back her long brown hair with blonde streaks.
“Oh boy.” I laughed. “And you’re sure my makeup doesn’t look too slutty?”
“Is there such a thing as too slutty?” she asked as she stared at my face.
“Yes.” I nodded. “I don’t want anyone to think they can offer me twenty dollars and take me behind the trash can for a blow job.”
“What about for a hundred?” She wiggled her eyebrows at me, and we both laughed.
“Tonight’s going to be fun.”
“We deserve some fun.” She stepped back and looked at me for a few seconds before grinning. “You look beautiful.”
“You think?” I jumped up and ran over to the mirror and stared at my reflection.
My long brown hair hung in loose waves, surrounding my face and down my back. My brown eyes sparkled with excitement, and my smoky eye makeup made me look like a sexy vixen.
“Do you think this lipstick is too red?” I asked as I pouted into the mirror.
“No way. Red is hot.”
“I suppose so.”
“And it matches your red dress perfectly. Slip it on now.”
“Okay.”
I hurried to the bed and picked up my newly ironed dress and quickly took my clothes off and pulled it on. I had to suck in my breath to get it past my waist and down my hips.
“This dress is a lot shorter than I remember it being.” I looked down at my exposed thighs and gulped. “I’m not sure about this, Alice. I’m not a stick, you know. Girls like me, with curves, shouldn’t wear skintight clothing.”
“Says who?” She shook her head. “You look hot, sexy, beautiful, amazing, and perfect.” She pointed her finger at me. “Fuck those skinny bitches. Every man wants a woman with curves.”
“I don’t know about that.” I laughed.
“Well, if he wants a stick, then he’s not for us.” She grinned and pulled on her short black dress.
“True.”
“Any guy looking for a stick will be disappointed with me.” I giggled. “I’ll never be a stick. My boobs are way too big.”
“Men love big boobs.”
“Well, mine haven’t helped me much yet.”
“They will tonight.” She gazed at my partially exposed boobs. “Vavoom, vavoom.”
“Thanks, Alice.” I shook my head.
“I’m ready, I think.” She pulled on her heels and then looked at me. “What about you?”
“Yeah, I guess I’m ready.” I nodded and grabbed a handbag from the closet and then slid my feet into my black stilettos. “I hope I don’t fall in these. My feet are already killing me,” I moaned.
“You’ll be fine. Just hold on to my arm.”
“I need alcohol.” I giggled as we made our way out of my bedroom.
“Me too.” She agreed. “I want to get drunk tonight.”
“I want to get slizzard,” I said.
“What’s slizzard?” she asked me in confusion, and I looked at her and laughed.
“I have no idea.” I shrugged. “I just heard that term recently and thought it sounded good.”
“It does. It sounds cool. Here’s to us getting slizzard.”
“Slizzard, baby.”
We linked arms and made our way to the front door.
“Liv.” Aiden’s voice boomed through the house as I opened the front door.
“Yes?” I stopped and rolled my eyes.
“Come into the living room, please.”
“Why?”
“We want to see you before you go out.”
“Ugh.” I looked at Alice, and we made a face at each other. “He is so frigging annoying. He needs to get married and have kids already. Oops.” I made a face as I looked at Alice.
“It’s fine.” She gave me a lopsided smile. “I’m sure he’ll make a good father.”
“Let’s face the army and then leave,” I said with an exasperated sigh, and we walked toward the living room.
“Good evening, everyone,” I said as we walked into the room.
All eyes fell to Alice and me, and I almost laughed at the different expressions on everyone’s faces.
Aiden looked stunned, Henry looked impressed, Gabby looked pissed, Chett looked bored, Scott looked excited, and Xander …
well, Xander looked brooding. I could feel his eyes surveying my entire body, and I had to tell myself to resist looking at him again.
“So, where are you two off to then?” Aiden stood up and walked over to us.
“A bar.”
“What bar?” he asked, this time his eyes looking slightly angry.
I wondered if he would ever get over the need to have to know everything.
“I think we’re going to Beach Lagoon,” I said finally.
“Okay, down on Fifth Street?” he asked.
“Yes, sir.” I nodded and then saluted him.
“Funny.”
“If Mom and Dad don’t find the need to stay up and ask me, why do you care?”
Aiden stared at me for a few seconds and then turned to Alice. “You look very nice this evening.”
She blushed as she answered him, “Thanks.”
“Are you going to be warm enough in that dress?”
He stared at her long expanse of naked legs and bare shoulders, and she nodded.
“I’m pretty sure the alcohol will keep me warm.”
“Who’s the DD?” He looked back at me with a frown.
“We’re going to take an Uber there and back.” I tried not to roll my eyes. “We’re not irresponsible, you know. We did make it to twenty-two with some brains.”
“I just wanted to make sure you didn’t want a ride there and back.”
“I can drive you if you want.” Xander spoke up and stood up.
“Oh, you don’t need to do that.” Gabby sounded annoyed as she glared at me.
So much for her I’m sorry schtick. I had known she wouldn’t be able to fake a sweet personality for long.
“I don’t want you girls to get taken advantage of.” Xander stood next to Aiden and stared into my eyes.
This time, I couldn’t avoid his eyes. His irises looked furious as he gazed at me. I wasn’t sure what his problem was, but I couldn’t stop myself from shivering as I stood next to him. I could feel the electricity flowing between us, and I took a step back.
“I think we’ll be fine.” I licked my lips nervously.
“Yeah, we’ll be fine,” Alice repeated, and I could see her and Aiden giving each other small looks back and forth.
“Trust me, Xander, Alice and Liv won’t have any problems.” Gabby jumped up and walked over to us. “They’re both pros at looking like sluts and not getting bothered.”
“Gabby,” Aiden admonished her.
“What?” She shrugged. “It’s true.” She looked at Alice and me and then at Xander and Aiden. “I mean, come on. You don’t go out in heels as high as those, with dresses as short as that, and not expect that some creep is going to try and slip his hand between your legs or down your top.”
“Gabby, shut up,” Scott shouted. “What is your problem?”
“Maybe it’s pregnancy brain?” Henry said and gave me a small smile.
“Yeah, but she hasn’t been pregnant all her life,” I muttered. “That doesn’t excuse her lifelong bitchiness.”
“Liv.” Aiden gave me a look.
I turned to Alice. “Ready?”
“Yes.” She nodded eagerly. “Let’s go.”
“Wait a second.” Aiden caught her wrist. “Can I speak to you for a second, please?”
“Uh, okay.” She looked over at me and made a face and followed him to the corner of the room.
“I need to speak to Liv as well,” Xander said to Gabby, and he grabbed my upper arm roughly and pulled me outside of the room with him. I wonder if Gabby finds this odd.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Where do you think you’re going in that outfit?”
“To a club.”
“It’s not appropriate.” He shook his head as he glared at me.
“Appropriate for what?”
“It sends the wrong signals.” He gazed down at my heaving breasts.
“What signals are you talking about?”
“The I’m looking to get fucked signal,” he muttered as he took a step toward me and pushed me back against the wall.
“Who says I don’t want to give off that signal?” I said with a gasp as he grabbed my hands and pressed them back against the wall, next to my head.
“Is that what you want?” He leaned in and kissed my neck softly.
“Xander.” I gulped as he kissed down my neck to my collarbone and the top of my breasts. “Stop it. Anyone could come out of the room and see us.”
“What do you care?”
“Xander, don’t,” I moaned as his hand ran down the side of my body and stopped on my thigh.
“Don’t what?” He pushed his hardness into my stomach and moved back and forth. “Don’t show you what you’re doing to me in that sexy, almost-nonexistent outfit?”
“Was there anything else you needed to say to me?” I turned my head away from him as he leaned forward to kiss my lips.
“Why are you trying to bewitch me?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Nothing.” He sighed and stepped back. “Why did you have to be Gabby’s sister?”
“Why did you have to be her fiancé?”
“You don’t understand.” He frowned. “This isn’t just for me. This is to help protect someone I love.”
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
“It doesn’t matter.” He shrugged. “It is what it is.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.” He nodded, and I saw his eyes fall to my breasts.
“Are you marrying her so you can gain your inheritance?” I said softly. “Does that have anything to do with it?”
“Why do you care?” he asked me angrily.
That made me even madder. I couldn’t believe he’d had the gall to ask me why I cared when he was still trying to get into my pants. Didn’t he realize how fucked up this situation was? What sort of girl did he think I was if he thought this was okay? What part of this situation was okay in any way?
“I don’t care, Xander,” I huffed out. “Just leave me the fuck alone, okay? You’re the one who keeps coming after me.
I’m not the one coming after you. I’m done with your bullshit, okay?
It’s not cool for you to keep trying to get into my pants and then question me when I try to figure out what’s going on with you and Gabby. ”
“You didn’t care who I was or what I was doing last weekend.”