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“And that’s just off the top of my head,” Tommie said.
He came up with a lot more examples. Some of them made him cringe, some of them made him laugh, but most of all they made Elena feel part of the club. She wouldn’t trade her girl for the world. If she had to do it all over again, she would still choose to become a young mom while still a teen herself. But right now, at this moment, a part of her came alive she hadn’t known had craved human contact, friendship, and all that came with it. These people were close, and she felt honored to be a part of that.
As the night continued, Elena drank more. Not being used to alcohol it didn’t take long for her to become tipsy. She became engrossed in her new drinking buddies’ stories.
Tommie had been disowned by his parents after he came out of the closet. Katya was the fun-loving pixie who had survived cancer after being orphaned at a young age. Tess, the IT geek as she’d dubbed herself, well, she was of a whole new order. Elena was convinced the girl was one lab accident away from becoming a supervillain and taking over the world.
She raised her glass toward Tess. “May you change the world, one IP address at a time!”
Tess gave her a high five, splashing green liquid all over their table. “To world peace!”
“I’d vote for you,” Elena slurred. “Not for the douchebag professor ex. Then again, at least he just stole your work. Lorenzo stole my life! Bastard.”
“Bastard!” they agreed in chorus.
Strengthened by their support and feeling relaxed after another Cosmo, she continued, “He blackmailed me into marrying him. Then he basically took over my life. I was under surveillance at all times. I had to eat what he said, dress the way he liked, and could only talk to people he approved of.” She sighed, thinking back on those days. “Stupid me thought that if I told him I was pregnant by another guy, he’d let me go.” She hiccupped and looked each member of her posse deep in their eyes. “He did not let me go,” she clarified, in case they hadn’t yet figured that part out.
Katya looked shocked. “I had no idea...I mean, I suspected something was off. The way you look at Viking, only a blind man wouldn’t notice that you’re in love with him. Sadly, men are stupid. Especially when they’re mad.”
Seeing the girls and Tommie stare at her in sympathy, it felt as if someone splashed her with ice-cold water.
Elena held up her hand. “Please stop.” She should probably stop drinking. And she would. Right after this delicious creamy glass of Baileys. “You can’t tell him. None of you. Ever.”
Katya’s eyes softened. “Your secret is safe with us. We would never betray your trust like that. But have you considered just telling him, explaining why you—”
“No. And I won’t. I mean, yes, of course, I considered it.” She couldn’t hold in a bitter laugh. “I’ve pictured our reunion a million times. Me coming clean, him begging me for forgiveness. But that’s the Disney version. In real life, once Viking gets mad he loses all control. I can’t risk him spilling my secret to use it against the Morellis.” The Morelli clan was large. Their tentacles reached all the way from the West Coast to the East coast. They’d be the last ones standing after a nuclear attack, outliving the cockroaches. What if Lorenzo made good on his promise, even from the grave?
“Well, that sucks,” Tess said and downed another drink. “But, don’t worry buttercup. Our lips are sealed. Also, I don’t think I’m gonna remember anything by morning.”
Elena liked that thought. Amnesia by alcohol sounded pretty good right now. After finishing her drink, she hardly remembered what they’d been talking about.
When Lady Gaga’s “Just Dance” blasted through the speakers, Katya’s eyes lit up.
“Yes! Let’s just dance,” she all but squealed.
The floor beneath Elena seemed to wobble. Odd. Slowly putting one foot before the other, she made her way onto the dance floor.
She chose to believe in Gaga. Everything was going to be okay. She just had to dance. Before she knew it, she was surrounded by a sea of bodies grinding into her. From the corner of her eye, she caught some guy making a pass at Katya. Then Baran gave him a right hook and the sleaze-ball went down. Good for him.
Sometime during the night someone yanked on her arm and tried to pull her with them. Her head was heavy and her eyes drooped. She couldn’t see who the shadowy figure was. All she knew was that he was killing her buzz.
“Go away,” she rumbled. A weird sensation assailed her while she tried to pull herself free. She raised a hand to her temple when the world around her started to spin. Finally, the arm let her go, and the shadowy person disappeared.
Closing her eyes, she surrendered herself to the rhythm of the night. For just one night she could forget about everything. When she reopened them, she was staring into the most beautiful pale blue eyes she’d ever seen.
In the sea of colorfully-dressed people on their nights out, Viking stood out in his sober clothes of black jeans and gray tee.
When someone bumped into her back, his eyes glowed. He yanked her toward his chest.
He looked so sexy. She wanted to eat him up.
“What the hell am I going to do with you?” he growled.
“I hope doing me is the operative word here.”
A cinder lighted up his eyes. “You’re drunk, aren’t you?”
She patted his chest. “I love your pecs. They’re so firm and strong. I want to lick them.”
