Page 23 of Vicious Kingdom

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“I don’t want to go out,” I lamented. Folding my hands over my stomach, I leaned back in the chair.

Pizza grease stained one of the few untouched spots of my ruined skirt.

“Oh, come on!” Dominic insisted. “We’re going to meet up with Theo, Callah, and Brady to pregame.”

“My car’s back at the jobsite,” I protested.

But Kristy cut me off. “Tall, dark, and handsome will be there.”

I gave the woman a skeptical look. We’d known each other since diapers. She no doubt counted me as one of her friends, even though we both knew she wouldn’t drop anything to come help if I needed it.

“Who?” I pushed, not wanting to take the bait. “Wait, are you talking aboutLeonard?You think he’s handsome?”

“Well, duh? Did you get a load of those cheekbones? Greek god alert!” Kevin chimed in.

“Roman god,” I corrected, but then tensed.

That was a slip.

A small, teeny, tiny slip.

These academically shallow idiots, however, didn’t catch the detail.

“You’re saying you’re not into him?” Kristy pressed, leaning forward, eyes wide.

“She has David with a heart emoji,” Dominic pointed out.

I kept my stare on the other woman. “You have my blessing, Kristy.”

It would be fun to watch her crash and burn. I was a little devil when it came to war games.

“Well, we’re going to need to find fresh clothes.” Kristy plucked at her spotless tee. “I’m in no condition to go to the Basin after working all day.”

I grabbed another slice of pie. Pepperoni grease slid down my hand, onto my wrist, and dropped on my skirt. I wasn’t hungry, but food was a blissful solace. And I would need that to face a night dancing around Leo.

Chapter 10 – Annaliese

The party scene at the Basin was electric. Lights flashed overhead, the bass was boosted, and the floor vibrated under the writhing bodies.

Callah handed me a cocktail, her hazel eyes glassy from the drinks she’d already consumed.

The scotch from dinner, the two drinks during pregame, and the first cocktail I’d had here made the pizza in my stomach churn.

I discreetly rubbed my tummy. The motion pulled the shimmering material of my dress higher.

It was tight. It wasshort.Cut low—so low—on the top, that if the straps didn’t cinch around my upper arms, it would fall off.

But the vixen red color gave me the edge I needed.

There were still primer stains on my arms, despite the vigorous scrubbing in Kristy’s bathroom.

“Looking gooooddd, sllluuuttt!” Callah chinked her glass against mine.

Good lord.

It wasn’t even midnight.