Althena Book 2

65. After Party

I text Lila. I have no idea how this is going to go.

Me: -What are you doing?-

Lila: -Nothing. Feeling stupid.-

-Clayton likes you.-

-He likes boobs. Not me.-

-He's being an asshole. He's in the worst mood. I asked him and he said he likes you. He feels stupid and actually said, he'll never touch another girl if you like him.-

-For real?-

-No lie. He really does like you. He said he's ready for a commitment. I told him he's not. That's something the 2 of you have to sort out though. I can't help with that part.-

-Yea, that's a big step.-

-Come back. You can at least talk a little bit. We can hang out the rest of the time and check on the boys occasionally. Make sure they're not doing anything stupid.-

-Is he drunk?-

-No. He's miserable.-

-Is this some kind of weird game?-

-Nope. He likes you. You like him. Only you 2 can decide what to do about it. You're going to have to talk.-

-Did you tell him I ran away?-

-No. They all think you're with your cousin at a planned event.-

-I will sneak back and see what he's doing.-

-Hurry your ass up. We're leaving in 10 minutes.-

-s**t. Send helicopter.-

-Deal. It's on the way.-

I call the helicopter and send it back. Then I read on my book app for a while.

Clayton and Cyrus run in at the same time.

"Does she like me?"

"We're leaving in 2 minutes. Of course, she likes you. Can you not see the way she looks at you?" Cyrus stares at him.

"She caught me with another girl. I f****d up."

"Yea, you did. But you aren't with her. I don't know how this works. We don't date. But you can't cheat on someone you're not with. You have to be with her before you can cheat on her. You're not in a relationship with her are you?"

"No. I f*****g wish."

Monte runs in. "What the hell is going..." Then he stops and stares at us.

"We're having a party, Monte. Clayton, go sit with Akmae and Conner. Talk to them about what an i***t you are. Don't do anything else that will hurt the person who you want a relationship with. Until she tells you yes or no, you behave like you're in a relationship."

"Ok." He runs for it.

"Cyrus, I don't care what you have to do. Don't let this boat leave the dock yet. I need at least 5 minutes."

"She's on her way?" He smirks.

"Yes, but don't tell Clayton. We're going to spy on the assholes and make sure they don't do anything stupid."

Monte loses it. "High school drama strikes the boat. I'll go open the bay door. It'll take them at least that long to figure out what happened."

"Thank you."

Cyrus nods. "I had no idea how to stall the boat." He walks me to the dock level and we watch the helicopter land. Then she comes running.

"I'm so glad you came back. I'm losing my mind with all these people I don't know."

She smiles. "This better not be a joke."

"I would never."

Cyrus shuts the gate for passengers. "It's not a joke. That boy is love sick."

Monte comes up to us talking on the radio. "The gate is locked. Must have been a wire issue. We're clear for undocking."

We move away from the dock and Lila jumps up and down. "I brought boat clothes. Didn't have time to put them on."

"I claimed a room already. We can go there."

"What is everyone wearing?"

"The boys are trying to get the girls to go topless. Hopefully, they haven't succeeded. I'll have to kill Conner."

Cyrus laughs and ushers us in. "Wear whatever you're comfortable in."

We go into the room and Cyrus follows us.

"I told Clayton to act like he has a girlfriend until you 2 can sort this out. Not to do anything that would hurt you. So, we're going to spy on them."

"What do you think they're doing?"

"Probably looking at boobs."

Cyrus smiles. "Looking doesn't count. We look at everything. No touching." Then he kisses my head. "I'm going back up. You have fun."

"Coming from the guy she kissed and told she loves in front of her mates earlier. What did they say?"

"Nothing. We laughed. She was in a hurry and not paying attention." He gives me a peck on the lips. "I love you too."

I smile and wrap my arms around him. "Mine."

"Mine." He kisses my head.

Lila rolls her eyes. "At least you got everything worked out. Now leave so I can change."

"I'll be on deck." He shuts the door behind him.

"Do you think I should agree to a relationship with him?"

"Not tonight. He's already drinking. I mean, he's not drunk or anything. I would hang out with him like normal tonight. Talk a little bit. Of course, wear a bikini and be as sexy as possible. Then tomorrow, when you're both good and sober, talk more seriously over lunch or something."

"Yea, I don't like the idea of making decisions when drinking, either."

"I know he likes you. You like him. I've never seen him in a committed relationship, so I can't give you any advice. You'll have to sort it out as you go."

"Fair enough."

We step out of the room in bikinis, high heels, and sexy make-up on. We even did our hair for this.

"What's wrong?"

"The boys are probably staring at boobs, and it's going to piss me off."

"If they are, just take your top off. We have boobs too. We can show them."

"That is so very true."

We get up to the back deck. Conner, Akmae, Clayton, and a couple of other guys are sitting there talking. A few girls are dancing by the rail.

Conner gives me a double take. "Hot damn."

Clayton jumps up. "Lila, can we talk?"

"Not tonight. I don't talk and drink. It makes things complicated, and I don't even have a drink yet." She half bends over and sits her phone on the table.

Akmae pushes Clayton onto a couch and cracks up laughing. "Neither of them can think." He hands us each a glass of wine.

"Thank you." I sit by Conner and snuggle against him.

Lila sits between me and Clayton. "This is good. Thank you."

"Are you hungry?" Clayton seems to have found words again. "We have steak upstairs."

"Maybe later. I'm still full from dinner." She kisses his lips lightly. "Happy Birthday."

He hugs her and smiles. Then he puts his arm around her.

"What kind of presents did you get?"

"Everything from VIP boxes at concerts to a safari."

"What was your favorite?"

"A kiss." He kisses Lila's head.

"Oh I forgot." Akmae hands him a box. "It's not a kiss."

"Thank the goddess for that." Clayton laughs and opens it. "Are you serious?"

"Yea, I found them and booked for both of us. I knew you were talking about it."

"What?" I lean over and try to see.

"Motorcycle lessons."

Akmae nods. "They said high profile doesn't matter. They have a fake city built that we can practice in."

"This is awesome. Thank you."

"I want to go too." Conner pouts and crosses his arms.

Akmae hands him a paper. "It's over in the North District. It's the only class in Darkburn that has a fake city. The rest expect us to drive around the streets. Took forever to find it."

"Can I do it?"

I laugh and give him a kiss. "Only if you let me ride with you."

"Once I learn, we can talk about that."

"I think you'll need a year's experience before you can legally ride with people. It's not something you want to do right away." Akmae grabs another beer.

Drogon sits with us. "You guys have your own little group going on. What's that?"

"Motorcycle lessons."

"I want to do that."

I roll my eyes. "They're all going to follow you."

Clayton smirks. "You girls can do it too."

Lila and I look at each other. She smiles. "We'll think about it. I've never seen you drink, Drogon."

"I shouldn't drink with teenagers. I need to follow the law and set a good example. But you're so calm tonight."

"Why are we boring?" Clayton opens another beer.

Conner sits back. "We've been working ourselves to death lately."

Lila nods. "We're busy constantly. It's nice just to sit here."

3 hours later, we're still sitting here drinking.

I stand up and fall on Drogon. "Sorry, forgot I had shoes on."

"It happens. You alright?"

"Yea, I'm getting hungry."

"Tacos sound good." Lila puts her feet on the couch in front of her and lets her legs fall over Clayton.

He rubs her knee. He's in heaven.

Conner lays over on the couch. "I want a burger."

Akmae stands up then tries to get his balance for 2 minutes. "We should sit in the hot tub."

Drogon rubs my boob. Then he kisses my neck. "Now I want something else."

Mike comes walking up to us. "Are you joking? Why is it always tacos at 1 in the morning? You can wait until we dock."

Conner snores.

Mike rolls his eyes and walks away.

"We can take the little boat to get tacos. We'll be back before they know we're gone."

Drogon looks around. "We are in the inlet. Taco places should be all around us."

The 5 of us go down to the little boat. Conner stays asleep. I push the button to open the wall, then we get in the little boat.

Monte, Cyrus, and Mike come running in. "What are you doing?"

"Going to get tacos."

Monte laughs and picks me up off of the boat. "The ship is dead in the water when this door is open. You can't get tacos right now. We'll dock in an hour, and I'll get you some tacos."

"Fine."

Mike closes the door and we go back. We sit in the hot tub with some other people. Clayton talks to them and keeps his arm around Lila. I have no idea how that's going to work out, but they are cute together.

I snuggle against Drogon and enjoy the warm water.