“Don’t think about it. I did what anyone in my position would have.”
“That’s a lie and you know it.”
And thus, our friendship was born.
I find Elly and her date admiring a very famous painting of a landscape hung above the fireplace in the formal living room. I’m not surprised because I did the same thing when I first saw it and immediately recognized the artist’s timeless work.
I stop and admire the bold colors jumping out of the canvas once again. “Insane, huh?”
Elly turns to look at me, and the expression on her face makes me want to laugh. It’s hard to impress my best friend, and I think Lawrence just managed to do so. Really, it’s so typical of him and so unfair.
“Please tell me that it isn’t real, Blaire,” Elly says, awe and disbelief warring in her voice. But she interrupts me before I have a chance to reply. “Seriously? The dude owns a fucking Monet?” She pauses, shaking her head. “I can’t believe it.”
My gaze lands momentarily on the beautiful man standing next to her, before bouncing back to a flabbergasted Elly. He seems bemused by her reaction as well. “Believe it, my friend, because he does. He’s what you’d call a collector.”
“How billionaire and cliché of him.”
“Isn’t it?” I walk up to her and give her a big hug. Gosh, I’ve missed this woman. “And you haven’t seen the half of it.”
I let her go and watch her scan the room as she absorbs the grandeur of Lawrence’s house. The rich silks parading as curtains, the mandatory Persian rug, the brilliant finish on the wood furniture, the Tiffany lamp adorning one coffee table, and the list goes on. It should be vulgar, but it isn’t—it’s elegant and timeless. Truly, it’s the kind of elegance that you can’t buy—one must be born into it. And really, there’s no money like family money. “So this is how the one percent lives, huh? It’s obscene.”
“Ridiculous, but you’re impressed.”
She sighs and rolls her eyes at the same time. “I hate to admit it, but yeah, it’s hard not to be. Honestly. I was impressed the moment you sent Ronan to pick us up in a Rolls Royce.” The mention and familiarity of Ronan’s name on her lips takes me by surprise, but Elly doesn’t seem to notice.
“And I’m being very rude.” She grabs my hands and guides me toward her handsome companion who remained standing by the fireplace. “Blaire meet Alessandro and Alessandro meet Blaire.”
I take him in as we shake hands. Elly sure knows how to pick them. The man looks like the mistake I wish I’d made but never did. Piercing dark eyes that look like bottomless pits of sin, hair as black as my soul, and a body made for pleasure. Forget about sex on legs, he’s an orgasm waiting to happen.
“It’s great to finally meet you,” I say.
He smiles a slow smile that is half smirk and half seduction. Jesus. “Same here. Elly has told me a lot about you.”
“Oh God. That doesn’t sound too promising.”
Elly laughs as she takes hold of his hand, intertwining their fingers. “Alessandro, babe, would you mind getting the gift we brought for Blaire? I left it outside by the door.”
Beautiful Alessandro grabs her by the back of her neck, pulling her forward and kissing her deeply and intensely. As their tongues tangle, I find myself blushing. I’m no prude, far from it actually, but the sheer level of intimacy and passion shared in that one kiss easily conjures images of them fucking, and even I have my limits.
Uncomfortable, I clear my throat. Alessandro pulls away from her. “Don’t get into too much trouble.”
Elly grins. “Us? Never.”
He places a hand on the curve of her hip, pressing his fingers there, and walks away. As she’s watching him leave the room, I hear my best friend—steadfast, no bullshit Elly—sigh and flutter her eyelashes like a cartoon. What the fuck?
“Who is this woman and what happened to my best friend?”
“He happened.” She nods toward the door.
“Dude, if he kisses like that I can only imagine how he eats your *,” I tease.
“Ewww, Blaire!” she exclaims, laughing.
I wink at her and chuckle. “Well?”
She smiles big before covering her face with her hands. “Oh God, you have no idea … I get all twitchy just thinking about it.”
“You slut.”
“It’s his tongue … What can I say? It should be a national treasure.”
We laugh and fall onto the couch. She pulls my hair to the side and begins to braid it. “All joking aside …”
“Yeah?”
“How are you? Are you happy? Is this what you want?”
I look up at the ceiling before focusing on her face once more. “What is happiness? To me, it’s a sporadic feeling that never lasts.” I think of Lawrence and our time together and how he left this morning to go away without even bothering to say one word to my face, showing me exactly what I am to him. I think of my magical summer with Ronan and how he looked at me the last time I saw him.
“No, Elly, I don’t want happiness. I want safety, so yes … this is what I want.”