“I mean it. The two of you are being horrible to each other. And why?” He indicated me, too.
Jake expelled a breath of air and leaned back.
Erica narrowed her eyes. She mumbled, “Wanker, whasss your poind?”
“Great. The slurring is upon us,” Jake grumbled.
Wanker started to turn on him.
I beat him this time. I hissed at Jake, “Stop it. Susan screwed her over, and she’s only mad at you because you screwed me over, remember?”
That shut him up.
Erica thrust a fist in the air. “Yeah!”
Wanker told her, “Drop that hand right now.”
She did. Her hand landed with a thud on the table, and she seemed mesmerized by Wanker’s take-charge attitude. I had to admit, I was impressed, too.
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table, and he shoved his glasses up with one savage movement. He pointed at the table. “Now,”—he hit the table with his finger, like Erica had done when we approached—“I have no idea what happened. She still hasn’t explained it to me, but I vote we go home, and we all partake in a rather passionate round of Go Fish.”
“Yeah!” Erica’s fist went back in the air. She lowered it right away. “No, we can’t. Susan’s here. I’m spying on her.”
That got all our attention.
Jake sat upright.
I froze.
Wanker’s glasses slid down his nose, and he left them there.
“Wait.” Jake leaned across the table. “Susan’s here?”
“Yeah.” Erica pointed to the second level. “She came here with that killer guy and some others.”
“Where?” I was close to hyperventilating. Kian was here?
“In a private box up there. That guy was snuck inside through the back. He’s famous. People would go apeshit if they knew he was here.”
“Are you sure he’s here?” I had to make sure.
“I think so. I mean, he might’ve left already.”
If he did, a thought occurred to me, has he texted me?
I felt the outline of my phone in my bag. I wanted to pull it out and double check. Was Kian here? Or did he leave? I had no clue how I felt about either. I just wanted to know if he’d texted me.
Erica said, “Susan came in with a bunch of head honchos from the paper. They have a private box here. I’ve heard things at the paper, that they use it with their biggest sponsors or whoever. I thought it was just all talk at the office, but when I saw that she’d come here with all the editorial staff, I knew it had to be true.”
“But you didn’t see”—she’d called him killer guy—“killer guy with them?”
“No.” A long, drawn-out breath of air left her. “But I overheard his driver say that their next stop was here. He was talking to one of Kian’s lawyer guys.”
Jake scowled.
I chewed on my lip. My stomach was in knots.
“I know they’re up there.” Erica pointed above us. “Go, and make your presence known. I have no doubt that Susan will welcome you with open arms.”
Me? No. There was no reason. Wait. She was talking to Jake.
Jake fixed her with a dark look. “For the tenth and umpteenth time, I’m not with Susan. I’m not with Tara either.” He pointed to me. “I’m with her now.”
Erica’s head swiveled to me. Her eyebrows lifted.
Wanker’s head dropped to his hand, and he began shaking it back and forth. “Oh God, no.”
Jake continued, with an extra bite to his voice, “Get used to it, Erica. I’m not going anywhere.” He paused. “I’m her accountability partner. You know what that means?”
“You want to get into her pants.” Erica rolled her eyes. “Everyone knows that.”
“Wha—,” Jake’s mouth fell open, then closed. He tugged on his shirt collar, leaning forward over the table. “No. I mean, yes, but we’re holding each other accountable. That means we’re friends, and you can’t do anything about it. From here on out, I’m going to be around a whole lot more.” He looked so proud as he said that, until we heard someone else speak up from beside the table.
“Is that right?” A soft and feminine voice spoke up behind my shoulder.
I closed my eyes. This was the worst timing ever.
Jake tensed and cursed under his breath.
Wanker continued to shake his head.
And Erica sat rigid for one second, and then she launched herself in the air, going over me. “You!” she screeched. “You kicked me off the story!”
Susan stepped backward, and the person who spoke was standing right next to her. It was Tara. Her face was pale, and a flash of pain flared in her eyes.
Tara and Susan weren’t alone. A whole group of friends stood behind them.
Susan was dressed to the nines.
I took in the sleek black dress that looked like it had been created just for her body. A pendant was woven into the material resting between her breasts, and her clutch matched the pendant’s turquoise color perfectly. She was the image of sophistication and wealth. Her blonde hair was swept to the side where a mass of curls rested on her shoulder.
Behind her, Tara must’ve changed from the party at Jake’s till now. She didn’t look as sleek and elegant as Susan, but she was close. She wore a flowing blue shirt that was light enough so that a black camisole could be seen underneath, and her black leather skirt had a slit up to the top of her left thigh. She stood there, looking like she was posing for a modeling shoot, with her leg pushed out so that most of it was visible to us.
I didn’t recognize the others.
Erica was up from the booth, pointing at Susan. “You’re a horrible coworker.”
Susan rolled her eyes, looking with disdain at her. “Your job was to ask him background questions. That was it, and before you get all bent out of shape, I was promoted. The senior writer wasn’t objective, so then it became my project. My. Project. You were brought on because his team requested you.” She pressed her lips together. “And we both know you went behind my back for that to get done.”
Wait…
Erica drew to her fullest height. “I had nothing to do with that. I never emailed them or called or whatever you’re accusing me of. I swear. They requested me because they must’ve done their homework and figured out how much of a vapid bitch you were.”
Erica was requested?
“Hey.” Jake stood. “Whoa.”
Susan shot him daggers instead. “We don’t need your interference, Jake. Thank you. You’ve done enough damage for the day.”
She glanced over her shoulder to Tara, who had moved back a step. Tara’s head lowered.
Susan added, “You didn’t have to invite her over, you know.” With the scathing tone, it was obvious whom she meant by ‘her.’ Me. But my head was whirling to pay attention.
Kian’s team requested my roommate for the story?
No. That couldn’t be. That doesn’t make sense.
Jake glanced at me. “I didn’t, but that doesn’t mean she’s not welcome. Jo can come over whenever she wants to see me.” He said to Tara, “We’re not together anymore. I don’t owe you anything.”
“Except for some decency,” Susan shot at him. “And I wasn’t talking about Jo. You invited Tara to your party, and then you left with her after she ditched on helping Erica with the interview, with whatever she did to help. I have no clue what that was or even why she was there.”
“Don’t attack my roommate and she was there because I needed help.” If looks could kill, Susan would be bleeding all over the floor. Erica added, “She had a panic attack.”
“She went to Jake’s party. She ditched you.”
No.
I was becoming aware of the looks coming my way. This was going to get twisted, but I was reeling. Kian had actually requested Erica. But what did that mean? I had talked to him. He said he didn’t know her.
“When?” My voice stood out from the others.
They were hot and angry but not me
. I was strangely…calm.
“I did the math. The time frame from when you disappeared from the interview and showed up at Jake’s wasn’t even an hour overlap. You were dressed like that at the hotel, so I’m assuming you went straight to Jake’s.” Susan sneered, raking me up and down.
“No, no.” I needed to deal with that, too, but I couldn’t focus. I had to know. “When did they request Erica to be on the story?”
Say within the last week. Please say within the last week.
Susan snorted, rolling her eyes. “Who cares? She was requested. Yes.” She sent that last word to my roommate. “You were. I never promised you’d be on camera. You were assigned to ask him background questions, and you did.”
“From behind the camera,” Erica argued.
Susan pretended a yawn and shrugged. “My promise was fulfilled. I never said you’d be on camera. You just assumed.”
“And you didn’t correct me.”
“I didn’t have to. No one thought you’d be on camera. Why would you have been? I mean, look at you.”
I tensed. The argument was getting dirty. I felt the insult coming for Erica. Everyone did, too. They all seemed to freeze as Susan gestured up and down Erica’s form.
“You have to look good on camera. The camera has to love you. I’m not saying this to be mean, but the camera doesn’t love you.”
“Hey.” Jake stepped forward, frowning. “That was uncalled for, Susan.” He looked at Tara. “You’re going to let her outright insult someone? I didn’t think you were like that.”
Tara lifted a dainty shoulder before folding her arms over her chest. “Like you said, we’re not together. I don’t owe you anything, and I really don’t owe your new girlfriend’s roommate anything either.”
Girlfriend? We’re accountability partners.
Erica seemed paralyzed. She couldn’t look away from Susan, who was still glaring down at her. I waited, expecting some cutting remark from my roommate, but it didn’t come. I moved closer to peer at her. She was fighting back tears. A wave of fury rolled through me, and I lifted my head, ready to blast into Susan. Fuck whatever else was going on. She couldn’t talk to someone like that.
Wanker took off his glasses, drawing everyone’s attention. He was the tallest, and he straightened to his fullest height of six-three. He cleared his throat as he put his glasses back on and slid them up to the top of his nose with his middle finger. He held it there before extending his middle finger toward Susan.
“This,” he said, moving it closer to her face, “is how I feel about you right now.”
Her mouth opened. No sound came out. She closed it back up, blinking a few times.
A small grin grew on Erica’s face.
I grinned, too.
Wanker added, still holding that middle finger to her face, “You can have a work disagreement. That is fine, but you hit below the belt with your last insult. And, my dear,” He took his glasses off again and looked her up and down before putting them back on, “don’t fool yourself. You might look pleasant on camera, but you’re not in the same league as others here.”
Erica nudged me with her elbow. “He means you and Tara.”
I didn’t care who he meant.
“Looks don’t matter,” I said to Susan, “Maybe you’ll go to the top, but you’ll do it by being a horrible, ruthless person. Erica’s a better person than you any day of the week.”
“Don’t insult my friend.” Tara sidled up to Susan’s side.
“She shouldn’t have insulted mine,” I sent back.
“Hey, uh…whoa.” Jake moved between us again. His arms lifted like he was going to break up a fight.
Erica rolled her eyes and knocked down one of his arms. “Chill, lover boy. They’re not going to come to blows. We’re not that low.”
Jake met my gaze. We were both remembering another time when I launched myself at an old lady.
I cleared my throat. “I think we should all go our separate ways—”
Erica interrupted, “Is he still here?”
I went still again. Erica wasn’t talking about Jake or Wanker.
Susan shook her head. “He left through the back.”
“Oh.” Erica glanced down to the floor.
“Well.” Susan seared all of us one last time with her gaze. “I think this is a good time for us to go our respective ways. You’re right. Insults are below us, all of us. Erica, we can discuss your complaint further at work tomorrow afternoon. We’re all celebrating tonight, and we all have reason to. Your name will still be attached to the story, even though you weren’t on camera.”
Erica’s throat was moving up and down, and she bit down on her lip. She was holding a comment back. Susan waited, but Erica kept it in, and then they moved past us, one by one. As Tara passed Jake, she looked right at him, but he turned away. He didn’t meet her eyes. She switched her gaze to mine next, and I felt a warning passing from her to me. I didn’t know what kind of warning it was, and I didn’t care. I didn’t owe Tara anything.
When they were gone, no one said a word.
Thirty seconds passed until Erica slouched back down in the booth, and Jake looked at me. I avoided his gaze, focusing on my roommate for that moment.
Wanker broke the silence. He cursed under his breath. “Well, you heard the blasted woman. Let’s all get drunk. Champagne or straight to the wine bottles?”
Erica looked up. A small smile teased the corner of her mouth.
Jake laughed, leaning over to clap Wanker on the shoulder. “You put Susan in her place.”
“I did, didn’t I?” Wanker’s shoulders stretched out. He nodded to himself. “I’d like a merlot myself.”
“Not many cross her and get away unscathed.” Jake lifted his arm for a waitress. “Your next three drinks are on me. I’ve wanted to put Susan in her place for years now.”
“She does think she’s all holier-than-thou, doesn’t she?” Erica murmured. “I hate her. I hate her so much, and I hate that she’s right. She never promised that I’d be on camera. I just assumed. I can’t even fight that.”
“That’s a big deal, right? For you to be on camera for this interview?” Jake asked.
Erica nodded. “A huge deal. This guy is national news, and he’s only agreed to three interviews. We were one of them. She’s going to shop that interview around, and this could make her career.” She seemed to shrink as she added, “It could’ve made my career, too, but not now. My name will be on the credits, but that’s it.”
“I’m sorry. That seriously sucks, Erica.” Wanker and I nodded, agreeing with Jake.
I sighed. “I’m ready to get drunk now.”
Erica’s head bobbed up and down. “Bring on the shots. My feistiness is gone. I want to wallow. Wallow with me, friends.”
I slid out from the booth. “Save me some of those shots. I have to go to the restroom first.”
“You pee, you lose.” Erica grinned at me. “Tell your bladder to man up. It’s first come, first served with this company tonight.”
I laughed. For whatever reason, Erica wasn’t mad at me. I wasn’t sure what I would say, but I wasn’t going to question it. “I’ll be right back.”
Susan and Tara’s herd went to the right side of the club, so I headed for the left side. I was passing through a hallway to the back restrooms that most people didn’t know about because they were obstructed by the back stairs when I was grabbed from behind and pulled into a dark closet.
I tried to scream, but a hand clamped over my mouth.
A voice whispered against my ear, “It’s me.”
It was Kian.
I stopped breathing for a second as so many sensations washed