Page 119 of Awestruck at Dusk
I needed backup.
Me:Joel and Lily got engaged. There’s a party on my apartment building’s rooftop. Nathan’s going to be here for sure. William’s here with Rachel King. I’m sending over someone to pick you up right now, so you better get your ass into something pretty because you can’t leave me here to die.
I fired Nina that text as I walked to the kitchen and grabbed a glass of water. My head spun in a melodic way brought to you by Don Julio 1800, and I needed to find something that would overshadow Rachel.
Nina:Shit! This is gonna be goooood!
Me:Nina!
Nina:What? Hahaha. You’re delaying me. See you in a bit.
Getting Experimental
NINA AND Istepped into the engagement party on the rooftop escorted by Aaron and Amena. David’s shift ended, so he was going to meet with CJ. Probably to drink more tequila. My keys were in the car. I must’ve dropped them at some point.
The rooftop was packed. And the party didn’t seem impromptu to me. Everything was beautifully decorated in white and silver, and there were flowers all around the place. We greeted Tobias and Eric first, who were the closest to the rooftop’s entrance. They both looked great as expected.
I wore one of the Enzio de Luca dresses they sent me on my birthday. It was the short, bright watermelon color one with a one-shoulder asymmetrical design and a somewhat flared futuristic shoulder. I should’ve worn black and tried to blend in with the night, but a part of me wanted to stand out too.
The pathetic side to this unnecessary thought was that I didn’t even know the reasonwhyI wanted to be seen. Or by whom exactly because William had his hands full with Rachel, and I didn’t even know what to think about Nathan. My neck went stiff just thinking about seeing him tonight.
Nina looked hot. I bet she realized Zara was going to be here, so she went all in. She wore a dress too—beige and tight around her curves. But it wasn’t too short, which made her look elegant.
The first person I saw next in the distance was Lily. She was beaming with joy. I quickly approached her and Joel.
“Congratulations!” I shouted at her and went in for a hug. Lily squealed as we embraced each other, and she immediately showed me her left hand. The ring wasgorgeous—a perfect round (and huge) solitaire with a thin micro pavé band. “Oh, my God, Lily! It’s beautiful! You need to tell me everything.”
“I promise I will,” she said, but someone stole her away from me. I congratulated Joel afterward. I’ve never seen him smile that much. He seemed elated. I was thrilled for them.
“Billie, I wanted to thank you for what you did for Lily the other day at the photo shoot,” he told me in a hushed voice. “It means a lot to me that you would protect her like that. She shouldn’t have kept that from me or gone through that alone as she did and for so long. But I’m glad that things are falling into place.”
Joel dragged a hand along his face and scratched his neck. He seemed stressed about the situation. “I really wanted to find the guy and murder him, but Nathan—” He cut himself short from finishing that sentence.
“Joel, you don’t need to do that,” I reminded him. “I know he’s your best friend, and you can mention his name.”
“Yeah, I’m sorry. It’s just weird that you’re not together anymore.”
I know. I missed hanging out together, just the four of us.
“So? What were you about to say?”
Nathan hadn’t arrived. He was most probably at the office. But Lana, Poppy, and the rest of Lily’s model friends were here.
Hurrah.
“Nathan’s been monitoring the case alongside one of your father’s lawyers, so that’s giving me some peace of mind. But I can’t promise I won’t mess up the guy’s face if I see him walking down the street. I would gladly serve a few hours in jail to have the pleasure to do it.”
“Joel, you need to stop thinking about that right now,” I told him. That’s when I spotted William at the far end of the rooftop with Rachel and some of the guys who were downstairs at his apartment just before. I shook my head twice and said, “You should just go back to smiling like a kid with a new toy.”
He laughed. “You’re right.”
“Hey, Murph.”
I widened my eyes at Joel and felt Nathan’s lips on my cheek as he kissed it. Joel offered me a pursed smile when I greeted Nathan back with a simple, “Hey, Nathan.”
“Grattis,bror!” Nathan and Joel hugged each other with heavy pats on the back. They both wore big grins on their faces. I couldn’t help but smile and nod a couple of times. But it was best to walk away.
I didn’t know what to do or how to act around Nathan. I hadn’t seen or talked to him since we broke up. The fact that he kissed my cheek just now threw me off. I wasn’t sure how he felt about me after everything that happened.
