Page 62 of Whiskey Sour
“It’s okay, Cassy,” I assure him, reaching up to encircle his wrists. “You can tell me what’s wrong, you know? I just want to help.”
Licking his lips, his eyes zero in on mine, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he thinks through his next words. I’ve always said Cassius was considerate of his thoughts and actions, but he’s never been so bewildered by them. That’s what he is. I don’t know what else to call the way his eyes widen or how his fingers tremble against me. He opens his mouth, but nothing but a sharp exhale comes out.
I shift on my feet. I don’t like this. He can tell me anything. He has to know that. “Cass?—”
He crashes his lips against mine before I can say my piece. I try to focus on what I wanted to say, but the pressure of his mouth on mine and the way he flicks his tongue along the seam of my lips has me melting. I forget about it all. The way he spoke to me, the way he acted toward Nancy, and the cruel things he said.
I forget it all because I just love him that much.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Cassius
I’m on edge.
I sling my arm over Skylar’s shoulder, dragging him to my side as we enter the lit-up club. It’s not XO, which isn’t entirely unusual for us, but it’s been a hot minute since any of us have been to a rave.
All of us are here—Butch too, surprisingly—thanks to the tickets Elton scored us. He helped promote this event, so as a thank you, they gave him a bunch of free tickets he shared with us. The DJ playing isn’t someone super well-known, but none of us are snotty in that way. We’re just here to have a good time and enjoy the night off Davis gave us. He must be feeling unusually charitable, because it’s not easy figuring out how to cover all our shifts.
But despite this rare night when we can all be together, I’m still…off. Restless, even. Out of sorts and too much in my own head. It’s been a week since that disastrous meeting with the producer, and things have been fine, but a nagging feeling of inferiority is creeping in on me. I know Skylar was just trying to do something nice. He’s that type of guy. Still, wanting me to meet Nancy when I obviously didn’t… What does that mean he thinks of me?
Questions have plagued me. In my quest to be good enough for him, will I ever truly be? Am I not famous enough? Rich enough? Established enough? Is there more I can do to prove to him that I’m the one?
“This is awesome!” Skylar cheers, the neon green lines on his face glowing in the black light.
“Trippy,” Max mumbles as he stares at the dots from the strobe light that shine on his skin. “Woah.”
“Ever been to a rave before?” Everest asks, flushing and squirming when Rhys grabs a firm hold of his ass and yanks him closer.
Max doesn’t seem to notice that Rhys is two seconds away from fucking Everest right here, right now, and shakes his head. “Wasn’t really my type of crowd.”
“Ugh, I love virgins,” Skylar sighs dramatically as he hops up to pinch Max’s cheeks. “So adorable.”
Butch rolls his eyes. “I guess I’m Bambi’s babysitter for the night, then?”
“You’re all our babysitters,” Knox clarifies with a smirk. “You know, since you pulled the short straw.”
Literally. We drew straws before we came here to see which one of us would be the designated driver. Well, we’re probably going to take a rideshare home—more than likely, if I’m being honest—but it’s always nice to have at least one sober person in the group. It used to be Britt, because she’d volunteer, but now the burden lies on our grumpy bodyguard.
When Max wanders off into the crowd, his eyes wide with an euphoric haze, Butch groans. “Fuck me. I’ll get him.”
Knox snickers and laces his fingers with Elton’s. “Come on, sweetheart. Let’s get some drinks.”
Elton nods as he follows behind his husband. “We’ll catch you all later.”
I up-nod him as they pass and snort at Skylar, who’s practically vibrating at my side. Smirking, I kiss the top of his pink head. “Excited?”
“Did you…” He bites his lip as he looks up at me. “Did you get the stuff?”
I grin as I produce a baggie of tabs from my back pocket. Skylar and I don’t roll very often, but when the mood strikes, we have the best fucking time. I don’t bother asking if Rhys and Everest want to participate. Because of Rhys’s past, they’re both completely against doing drugs, not that they judge.
Rhys must sense what we’re about to do, because he places a territorial hand on Everest’s hip. “Don’t go too hard.”
We never do, but I appreciate his concern. “No worries, man. Find us in about an hour?”
He nods and disappears into the crowd with Everest. Skylar’s bouncing on his toes with his tongue out as I take a tab out of the bag. Instead of placing it on his tongue, I put it on mine, then grab him by the back of his head and crash my lips against his. I stroke his tongue with mine, inhaling his sweet little whimper, and transfer the tab to him. When he pulls back, he’s got this hazy look in his eyes, but I know it has nothing to do with the drugs.
Taking another tab, I place it on my tongue. I cut them earlier today so we could just microdose. Not strong enough to actually trip balls, but mild enough to feel euphoric as hell.
