Page 18 of The Enemy

“If you’re going to behave that way, don’t even bother showing up tomorrow at the company party.”

She didn’t say anything back to him, but a while later, I could have sworn I heard her mutter,“You’ve never been proud of me.”

For someone whom I swore held no meaning to me, her words made my stomach sink. At that moment, I knew why I had been keeping her at arm's length.

Lourdes could have the power to bring me to my knees.

FIVE

LOURDES

Twenty-one years old

Stupid holiday party.

I had the perfect outfit picked out months ago—a cute little dress Clove and I found when we went to Paris in the spring. Now, I was second-guessing myself, all thanks to my grandfather.

“Lou, honey, you need to hurry up. Our car will be here in an hour.” Martin snapped his fingers at me.

All I could do was smile at him. We loved each other, but none of us ever went too deep into the bullshit our families put us through. Same shit, just a different family. Since Martin, Clove, and I were the single ones, we still got ready together for the events we attended. Plus, it helped that Martin was a fantastic stylist.

“Did Evangeline say what time she’ll be there? I haven’t seen her in months,” Clove commented.

“No, she warned me to tell you guys to be nice to her husband.”

Clove gasped. “It’s not my fault he can’t take a joke!”

“You insinuated an orgy with all of us. The man is very religious. He probably thinks we are all here fucking each other.”

Martin gagged at the idea of fucking women, I was sure, and not because he didn’t like us.

“Fine, I’ll try,” Clove muttered.

Evangeline had been promised to her fiancé since our senior year of high school. Her parents still believed in an arranged marriage. It was the best way to protect their assets, especially since Evangeline was their only child.

“I hope your sexy brother brings his friends,” Martin sighed dreamily.

As if I needed another reminder that the asshole would be there. I had barely left last night’s dinner in one piece.

After we moved things to the dining room, Neo became chatty. It was odd, but I was grateful because it prevented my grandfather or Pricilla from jabbing at me. Neo was smooth and kept the conversation light. They mostly talked about Wall Street and company ventures that Priscilla smugly reminded me I didn’t know anything about. I smiled and replied that I didn’t need to know about them since I still had shares.

She had amassed herself money, but nothing compared to what my trust fund entailed. Her late husband didn’t leave her much, and Neo got nowhere near enough as his two siblings did.

In the end, I settled on a black long-sleeved velvet dress with a square neckline and a slit on the side. The mermaid gown I had gotten in Paris sat in the back of my closet.

“What happened to the other dress?” Clove asked as I returned with my gown on.

“It was too tight,” I muttered.

Both of them gave me a sad smile, which I knew was most likely due to my body insecurities or something Pricilla said. There was nothing wrong with the dress I was currently wearing; it was beautiful, but it was in my comfort zone. Just when Iwanted to wear something a bit bolder and daring, I lost my confidence.

Despite yesterday’s dinner,I was having a good time at the party. The place was crawling with people, so I had yet to run into Pricilla and my father. My grandfather was off somewhere reminiscing about the good ol’ days, and I doubt he would care if he saw me.

While Clove caught up with Evangeline, Martin and I were at the bar.

“You gotta go say hi,” Martin told me as he nudged my shoulder.

“Say hi to who?” I asked as I sipped my drink.

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