Chapter 23
CHAPTER 23
Fifteen Years Ago
1:26 a.m.
Grace
“What’s the matter?” Grace asked, staring at Sarah, who leaned against the wall, pressing a hand against her forehead.
“I don’t know,” Sarah said. “Feel kind of weird.”
“Weird how?” Grace asked, scanning the crowd, looking for Chris. She hadn’t seen her boyfriend in a few hours, although she wasn’t too worried. She liked Chris a lot, probably even loved him, but she wasn’t one of those girlfriends who wanted to know his every move or where he was at all times of the day.
She wasn’t like Mia, who clung to Alex like her life depended on it.
Grace didn’t find Chris interesting enough to be that invested in the minute-by-minute minutia of his existence .
“Weird like …” Sarah exhaled, shaking her head. “I don’t know … like everything is spinning.”
“It’s the lights and the music,” Grace explained, swaying to the thumping rhythm. “Makes you feel like you have synesthesia.”
Sarah frowned. “What is that?”
Shimming and snapping her fingers, Grace said, “It’s where you, like, see sound or taste sight or hear smells.”
“That’s not how I feel …” Sarah said, her words slightly slurred.
“You feel sick?”
“Not really,” Sarah said. “I just think … I need to lie down … “
“Are you sure?” Grace asked. “Maybe you just need some water or something.”
Sarah shook her head. “No, I’m feeling really dizzy…”
Grace exhaled, looking away as she rolled her eyes. The bitch was dizzy because she’d been slamming shots all night. Anybody’s head would be swimming after downing that much tequila. Leave it to Sarah to be a diva and decide she wasn’t feeling well.
“Can you help me find a place where I can sit down?”
“Yeah, I guess …” Grace said. Did she look like an fucking nursemaid? She hadn’t come to the party to babysit Sarah. She wanted to dance and get drunk. Maybe do a few lines of coke, a drug she enjoyed but could rarely afford, so if some rich bitch was offering, she planned to take advantage. And despite her feelings for Chris, she wanted to hook up with another guy .
Grace had lost her V-card with Chris, and so far, he’d been the only guy she’d been with, and each time, she had a feeling something was missing. Sex with Chris was lacking something. She never felt completely fulfilled. She hoped to get it on with a football player who had huge junk and knew how to use it.
Surveying the crowd, Grace frowned. More people had shown up since they’d arrived. Where the hell could Sarah lie down? Well, they were in a mansion. A chalet, to be precise. The place had three floors. Had to be some bedrooms upstairs where Sarah could lie down. Get some rest. Recover, then come back down to the party. Who would know?
Grabbing Sarah’s hand, Grace said, “Come with me.” As they pushed through the crowd, Grace used her plus-sized frame to jostle people out of her way. She wasn’t a salmon fighting to go upstream. She was Moses parting the Red Sea. They reached the stairway across the room then headed up the steps. On the landing, Grace pulled Sarah down the wide hall in front of them. Grace looked around, agog and astonished. Did people really live like this? In houses with priceless antiques and fucking Caravaggio paintings on the wall?
After hurrying past several closed doors, Grace came to one that was slightly ajar. She pushed the door open and dragged Sarah inside.