Drinking Age #2
He shrugs and pulls open the door. I instantly regret not grabbing a gun before coming up here.
The first person I see is Duke Dolce dancing with some kid on his feet, both of them cracking up.
I recognize him even with a mask over his face.
The Dolces have featured in too many of my nightmares for a mask to hide their identity from me.
“Preston,” Dolly cries, rushing over and throwing her arms around me like she hasn’t seen me in weeks, even though she only left my bedside this morning.
She’s also wearing a mask. In fact, everyone in the room seems to be wearing them—everything from white phantom masks to black, silver, and gold masquerade ones.
“What is this?” I ask, tugging at the elastic on the pink and silver mask covering her face. She’s wearing a pink satin gown to go with it, though most of the other guests are in black or neutral colors.
“It’s a masquerade ball,” she says, pulling back and searching my eyes. “For your homecoming. Do you like it?”
“I don’t know,” I say, glancing around. My nerves settle when I spot Royal Dolce with his sister at a table near the windows, which are covered with the mirrored side of the blinds.
“I can’t take full credit,” Dolly says. “I got the idea from Sullivan and his friends, and I had a ton of help planning and putting it together—Magnolia, Harper, Crystal, Dixie, and Kamlai all helped a ton.”
“Kamlai?” I ask, raising a brow. “Not Mrs. Potter?”
“I’m sorry I get jealous about her,” Dolly says, biting her plump lip and imploring me with her eyes.
“Don’t be,” I say, pulling her against my side. “It’s hot. Jealousy implies you already knew I was yours and you were defending your territory.”
“You make me sound like a dog,” she protests.
“You are excellent at begging,” I murmur into her hair. “I might even fuck you doggy style if you beg pretty enough tonight.”
She swallows and pulls away to look at me, her hand skimming over my chest. “Can you do that yet?”
“Guess we’ll find out,” I say. “I’d rather my heart explode than go one more night without pounding your fat little cunt into submission.”
“Preston,” she scolds, her cheeks reddening.
“Would it be rude to drag you into the bedroom and fuck you right now?” I ask.
“Yes,” she says, stepping away from the door as it opens.
Colt and Harper step inside, along with a blonde in ripped jeans and a leather jacket, all three of them reeking of smoke.
I barely recognize the other girl as Gloria, who was more of the schoolgirl skirt and stiletto type when I was at Willow Heights.
The new look is not an improvement in my eyes, though she looks like Colt’s wet dream.
I turn back to Dolly. “Did you invite the whole town?”
“Pretty much,” she says. “Your cousin and his friends were pretending to be you to scare me that night, but it got me thinking. I know you don’t like going out in public much, but I’m not built for a life of solitude.
I don’t want to be the wife of that eccentric hermit in his castle outside town.
I spent enough time alone as a kid, and part of what I loved about you was your big family. ”
“You loved me as a kid?” I ask, smiling and sliding an arm around her waist.
She loops her hands behind my neck and smiles back at me. “Of course I did. And this way, we can both be comfortable. You don’t have to go out in town if everyone comes to us. And everyone’s wearing a mask. No staring. You’re one of them again.”
“I don’t deserve you.”
“None of that,” she says, leaning forward to touch her nose to mine. “But you can try a compliment instead.”
I grip her soft hips, holding her close. “You’re so fucking thoughtful it puts the rest of the world to shame.”
“That’s better,” she says with a little smile, brushing her mask against mine.
“Get a room,” Colt says, jostling us away from the door until we pull apart. I keep hold of Dolly’s hand as we turn to the party. She’s not getting away again.
But maybe it’s time to let her leave this place more often, to trust that when I let her go, she’ll come back.
Hell, maybe it’s time I leave sometimes too.
If the Dolces aren’t out for my blood, I don’t have to stay here all the time.
Dolly’s always been social, someone who likes to be surrounded by friends. I can’t deny her that.
This evening is proof that she knows everyone needs that, even me.
I’ve hidden behind a mask for so long that I retreated into it.
Now that I can walk through town again without fear, now that I have Dolly Beckett to walk by my side, maybe it’s time I left the solitude of this place.
As Father Salvatore says, even Dracula has to leave his castle now and then.
Dolly wraps her arm around my hips and leans into me.
The song ends, and the kid hops off Duke’s feet.
He nudges her toward Charlie, who’s standing watching, his lip tucked in and his fingers knotted in front of him.
The girl, who must be around seven, goes over and holds out a hand.
Charlie turns his head away, suddenly bashful, and hides his face in his mother’s dress.
Kamlai pushes him forward a step, but he grabs her legs, clinging on.
A couple people have gathered around them, encouraging him, but he won’t budge.
Crystal strolls over, their toddler clinging to her hand. She crouches and speaks to Charlie, who stubbornly refuses to look up. The kid who was dancing with Duke goes off with Knight, and Crystal stands and starts talking to Kamlai.
“Shit,” I say. “When did this turn into the parents’ party?”
“When you turned the Den of Iniquity into a bedroom for your wife,” Colt says, slinging an arm around my neck.
“Or when we became parents,” Devlin says, starting across the floor toward Crystal.
“Speak for yourselves,” Colt calls after him. “No one’s breaking this colt anytime soon.”
“Ugh, could you be any more of a tool?” Gloria huffs. “And before you say you’re hung like a stallion or some other creepy horse metaphor, we all know the truth. Big talk comes from guys with little dicks.”
“Can you believe this chick?” Colt asks, hooking a thumb toward Gloria. “She can’t stop talking about my dick. She literally brings it up every time I see her. Talk about obsessed.”
“Ew,” Gloria squeals. “You wish.”
“So, Preston,” Colt says, ignoring her entirely. “Help me find a chick who’d be down for a threesome.”
Gloria’s mouth falls open in a look of pure indignation that he’d dare openly and blatantly disrespect her without worrying about the consequences.
He doesn’t even notice, but I do. For the first time since I sent Devlin home, I’m not so focused on Dolly that I can’t see anything else.
The full picture of the changes we set in motion begins to materialize in front of me as I take in the look on the Queen B’s face.
She’s used to Colt being the school pariah while she steps on him with her stilettos, looks down her nose at him, or demands he grovel for looking at her wrong.
Now that the Darlings are making a comeback in this town, it’ll be reflected in the schools, too.
People like Gloria, who were on the throne at Willow Heights, aren’t going to be too happy with the change.
Especially when they realize the person they’ve been shitting on for two years is now in a position to deal out payback.
“Let’s get a table,” Dolly says from my other side.
“Wait,” Colt says. “Preston, you were always good at spotting chicks with little enough self-respect to let us run trains on them. The guest list for this wasn’t too exclusive, since your circle’s gotten a little…
Questionable… In the past few years. See anyone who looks desperate enough to eat pussy for a chance to get railed by a Darling? ”
“Yeah,” I say, nodding to the dance floor. “Her.”
I take Dolly’s hand and pull her away before Colt can get me in any more trouble. When I glance at Dolly, though, she doesn’t even look pissed. She coughs into her hand, suppressing a smile as Colt yells a curse after us when he sees that I pointed him to his own girlfriend.
“You’re terrible,” she says as I pull out a chair at one of the high, round tables set up along the far end of the room.
“I’m honest,” I say, getting her settled on the chair before taking one of my own. “I know she’s your cousin, and Colt’s a dog, but come on, Doll. Any girl who lets herself be treated that way for that long doesn’t need sympathy. She needs therapy.”
“She’s in love,” Dolly protests.
“She’s an opportunist,” I say, watching her motion Colt to join her even though she’s grinding her ass on one of my Delacroix cousins.
“How can you say that?” Dolly asks. “She’s been loyal to your family since day one.”
“You’re right,” I say, watching her dance between Colt and Gideon. “She’s a Darling loyalist, so she’s got my vote. In fact, she’s been a hell of a lot more loyal than you. Doesn’t change the fact that Colt never would have dated her if he had other options.”
“You don’t know that.”
I give her a look. “The Dolces banned us from speaking to every single girl they might want to fuck at some point, which left us exactly one option. She was all too happy with that arrangement.”
“Oh my god, you fucked her, didn’t you?” Dolly asks, drawing back.
I shrug. “I fucked everyone. Put a bag over her head, and she’s a wet place to stick a dick when you’re horny. Beyond that, she’s not my type.”
“Because she’s a big girl?” Dolly asks, glaring at me.
“Because she’s pathetic.”
I wave a waiter over and order two glasses of sparkling cider.
“You do realize I’m going to get fat when I’m pregnant,” Dolly says, playing with her champagne glass. “Some people already think I’m too big.”
“Shut up,” I growl. “You’re not allowed to talk that way about my future wife.”
“It’s true,” she insists.