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Adriana snuggles by his side and says goodbye to everyone. Then she quickly pulls me aside. “Are you okay, Lex?”

“Yes, I am. Please take Elijah home and do whatever it is you young kids do these days.”

“Well, actually we were thinking—”

“Adriana, it’s an expression. I don’t want to know.”

She hugs me tight. “I love you, big brother.”

“Love you, too, lil’ sis.”

She may be a royal pain in my ass, but I can’t have asked for a better sister. I don’t know how I’d function without her sometimes. She also comes to the rescue whenever I need her, and she’s the only one who will put up with all my shit. I’ve been an asshole to her, something I now regret.

“Charlie, you wanna come home with us?” Nikki asks.

“Uh, no thanks. You kinky fuckers will kill my buzz.”

“I’ll take you home,” I offer.

“I think she’s safer with us,” Nikki argues.

“Since she’s my friend, I’m sure I can get her home safely.” I stress the ‘friend’ part since Nikki is such a fucking bitch.

“Babe, he can take her. So, tomorrow night, yeah? Yankee Stadium?”

“I’ll send a car to your place, and we can go together.”

“Sweet, bro.”

They say goodbye, and I take Charlotte’s hand as she struggles to walk. Her eyes are glassy, but she still looks so beautiful. I just pray she won’t puke all over me.

“I can take myself home, you know. This isn’t the first time I’ve partied like it’s 1999.”

I don’t say anything. There’s no point. We walk outside, and I hail a cab. I manage to get her inside after an incoherent argument about being an independent woman, giving the driver her address, and we are on our way.

It’s only a fifteen-minute cab ride, and part of me feels curious. I’ll finally see the place she lives in. I know that no matter what I see it will represent her. It may have been only fifteen minutes, but she’s passed out by the time we arrive. I carry her out of the cab and to the entrance of her building. Her doorman is a pleasant old man who greets me as I step out.

“Ahh, Miss Mason… what trouble has she gotten herself into?”

“I’m sorry, sir. Would you mind letting us in? I don’t feel comfortable rummaging through Charlotte’s purse. You know women these days with all the junk they carry. Plus, I don’t want to wake her.”

“Here’s the spare. Would you kindly bring it back down on your way out?” He hands me the key. He must know her well, I think.

“Thank you. Of course, I will.”

We arrive at her floor. I manage to open her front door and switch on a light. Before I can stop and take it all in, I find my way through the hallway until I reach what I assume is her bedroom. Opening the door, my assumption is correct.

Her perfectly made bed sits in the middle of the room as I gently lay her down, sliding her shoes off and covering her with the blanket. She lays peacefully, curled in a ball. Her gentle breathing is the only sound inside the room. She looks peaceful, breathtaking, and I dare not wake her for my own selfish reasons.

There’s a faint sound of a cat, and in the shadows, it appears from behind the curtain and climbs onto the bed beside her. I decide not to pet it, just in case it attacks me for being a stranger in her home.

My eyes move around the room. It feels warm, decoratively speaking. She has a large vanity with all these perfumes and girly shit perfectly positioned and neatly organized. Shit, she’s just as fucking anal as me. On her nightstand is a lamp, dock, and a book. The room is slightly lit, so I open the page that’s bookmarked.

Fuck, it’s like porn. I chuckle slightly, placing the book down before it causes a problem I’m unable to satisfy.

I place her purse on her nightstand and take out her phone in case she need

s it, noticing a text on the screen.