Sin With Me

31

Marcus heaves a sigh. “You know what your problem is, Grace?”

I snort, closing one eye because the yard has, just slightly, begun to spin. “How much time do you have?”

He takes my empty glass from my hand. “You think that because something terrible happened to you once, it’s bound to happen to you again. And that’s just not the reality of how life works.”

When I glare at him, he doesn’t back down. “Hey, I’m your friend now. I can speak the truth without worrying it’ll cost me sex.”

“I would never withhold s*x as a punishment!” I say, offended.

He ignores me. “The odds are exactly as good that you could fall in love and get married—”

“Married!” I exclaim, laughing.

“—as they are that you could get shot in a convenience store holdup, or win the lottery, or trip and hit your head on a rock and die, or find out you were adopted, or become president, or be the first person to cure cancer.”

I blink. “I think that’s completely wrong. Where are you getting these statistics?”

“My point is that life is random. The universe didn’t pick you out specifically for a tragedy, like, ‘Oh, it’s Tuesday the twenty-fourth, time to f**k with Grace Stanton.’ Bad s**t happens. Good s**t happens. Life happens. You can’t take any one thing and point to it as proof that life is any one way or the other. Life just is. And it keeps going.”

He leans closer and drops his voice. “Until you’re dead, and then you don’t have any more chances to see what might happen with a man who looks at you like the sun is shining right out of your damn head.”

He kisses me on the temple and strolls away, heading toward the three girls on the opposite side of the pool.

“d**k,” I mutter, because I really hate it when other people are right.

“Lovey! Omigod, what’re you doing standing here all by your lonesome?”

Kenji appears out of nowhere in a purple sequined unitard, white platform boots, and a long feathered cape, screeching and frantically waving his arms at me like a night owl protecting her nest. I put a hand to my forehead and wince.

“Oh, nothing. Just having my ass handed to me by someone who knows me well enough to make it hurt.”

“Ugh. Don’t you hate that?” He stands on his tiptoes and kisses me on both cheeks. When he pulls back and looks at my expression, he cries, “Who died?”

“No one died.”

“Then what the hell happened to your face, girlfriend, because you look like you just found out your mama was married to her brother!”

When all else fails, Kenji can always be relied upon to add a dose of humor to the situation.

“Someone just told me some really harsh life truths that I’m wishing I could unhear.”

Kenji lifts a hand to his mouth. His eyes go wide. “Oh my God. Did One Direction break up?”

“Please go away now.”

“There you are!” Kat comes up and pinches my arm. “I’ve been looking all over for you!”

“I was just here.” I gesture morosely to nothing in particular. “Hanging out. Dealing with life’s vagaries the only way a reasonable person can: with alcohol.”

Kat and Kenji share a look. “Where’s Marcus?” asks Kat.

“Off in search of greener pastures.” I nod in the direction of the three little piggies. Marcus has joined their clique across the pool. From the looks of things, he’ll be having a foursome tonight.

Looking at them, Kenji says, “Sweet baby Jesus. That blonde is frightening. Is she cross-eyed?”

“As a Siamese cat!” I say cheerfully, then grab Kat’s drink from her hand, down it, and cough. She’s drinking whiskey, straight.

More correctly, I’m drinking whiskey straight.

“Wait—why is he over there with those girls and you’re over here with a face like Trojan discontinued their line of ribbed-for-her-pleasure condoms?” Kat asks.

Smug as s**t, Kenji says to me, “Told you.”

“The next person who tells me what anyone’s face looks like will be losing his head!” I glare at Kat. “Or hers!”

Then Barney walks up with his slight limp that somehow manages to make him look sexy and mysterious and says, “Ladies.” He looks at Kenji. “Oh. I didn’t realize it was a costume party.”

Kenji smiles. “Every party is a costume party, lovey. Every day is a stage. Every time you walk out your front door you’re choosing what to tell the world with what you wear.”

Barney looks him up and down. “And today you chose to tell the world you’re starring in the remake of The Rocky Horror Picture Show?”

Kenji smacks him on his arm. “You beast! I’m wearing Alexander McQueen! You wouldn’t know fashion if it hit you upside the head with a brick!”

“Lucky me,” quips Barney, and then turns his gaze to me. “Angelface. Good to see you.”

“Barney. It’s good to be seen.”

He squints at me.

I sigh. “Please don’t say it.”

“Say what?”

Kenji explains, “She’s having some kind of existential crisis which evidently took a s**t all over her face.”

Barney’s expression turns worried. He steps closer and touches my arm. “You okay?”

I don’t miss the look Kat and Kenji exchange, all arched eyebrows and pursed lips, but I’m way past caring. “Define ‘okay.’”

“Sweetie, we’re gonna get you another drink.” Kat grabs my empty glass and pulls Kenji away by his arm. She winks at me, looks at Barney, and wiggles her eyebrows up and down. “Be back soon!”

God, my friends are hopeless.