Free Web NovelChapter 21: BIRTHDAY BOY
KEISHA’S POV "Hold still." "It’s going in my eye, Nadia." I complained. "It’s not going in your eye, stop moving." She tilted my chin up with two fingers and went back to whatever she was doing with the eyeliner while I sat on the edge of my bed, stared at the ceiling and let her. She had shown up at my door at five thirty with a makeup bag and a bright smile on her face, practically bubbling with more excitement than I felt. I hadn’t even fully opened the door before she was inside. "Okay so." She stepped back to assess her work. "Are any of the other guards going to be there?" "I don’t know. Maybe." I tried not to rub at my itching eye. She raised a brow. "You don’t know?" "He said dinner. He didn’t give me a full guest list, Nadia." "Hm." She went back in with the eyeliner. "Well either way you should look good. For yourself obviously." "Obviously." I rolled my eyes. Nadia was insufferable, it was almost funny but cute how much work she was putting into this. "And also so that if it is just the two of you—" "Nadia." I cut her off with a glare. "I’m just saying." She capped the liner and reached into her bag. "You need to get laid, Keisha. Like genuinely. You’ve been walking around this pack wound so tight and you just need someone to—" Oh my god. "Please stop talking." She laughed. "I’m being honest. When was the last time you actually—" "I am not having this conversation with you." She gave me a look but let it go, reaching past me to the small pile of clothes on the bed. She had gone through my wardrobe seven minutes after arriving and pulled out three options and laid them out on the bed. Now, she walked over to my bed and she held up the black one. I stared at it. "No." "Keisha—" "That is too short." "It’s not too short, it sits right above the knee—" "On you it sits right above the knee. On me that is a completely different situation." She held it up against me anyway and turned me toward the mirror. I looked at my reflection, looked at the dress and then looked at Nadia who was giving me a sly look. "It’s his birthday." She whined. "That doesn’t mean I need to show up looking like—" "You look incredible in black. That’s just a fact." She pushed it into my hands. "Put it on. If you hate it after you put it on I’ll let you wear the other one." I looked at the dress and then, I looked at the other one on the bed which was fine, safe and completely boring. Huh... Maybe she was right. Fine." I caved with an eye roll. She clapped once. "Perfect! Put it on, let me see that sexy figure." Gingerly, I put it on and looked in the mirror and hated that she was right. "See?" She appeared behind me in the reflection with a satisfied expression. "Tell me I’m wrong." "You’re annoying." I laughed. "That’s not what I asked." I smoothed the fabric down. "It’s fine." "It’s more than fine and you know it." She reached past me and did something to my hair, pulling a few pieces loose around my face. "Okay. You’re done. You look gorgeous. Go have fun and text me when you get there." My heart skipped a beat as I picked up my bag. "It’s just dinner." "Sure it is." She walked me to the door. "Text me." "Goodbye, Nadia." "Use protection—" You have to be kidding me. I shut the door behind me before she could ramble something worse. **************** The building was exactly where he said it would be. East side, just past the packhouse boundary, a quiet block of residential apartments that sat at the edge of pack territory. I found building C, took the stairs to the third floor and stood outside his door for a moment before knocking. He opened it almost immediately and I just stared at him. Orin had made an effort. He wore a dark shirt, sleeves rolled to the elbows and his hair was pushed back. His gaze raked over me for a long second before he cleared his throat and met my gaze again. "You came." He smiled. "I said I would." I replied. He stepped back, let me in and I crossed the threshold and looked around. It was a one room apartment. It was small, minimal, clean and cozy. My gaze darted around several items, doing a double take to get familiar with my environment. The little dining table in the center had been set carefully. A cake sat to one side, candles already in it. A bottle of wine stood open beside two glasses, the lights dim and warm. No one else was there. That was what I suddenly realized. I looked around once more just to be sure. Orin caught my gaze and laughed nervously. "I should apologise." He said, moving to the table. "I did think about inviting a few others but honestly—" He glanced back at me. "I just wanted it to be quiet this year. Is that okay?" I looked at the table at the cake and at the single bottle of wine and the two glasses set precisely across from each other. "Of course." I smiled slightly. "It’s your birthday." He smiled and pulled out my chair. I sat, thanking him as I placed my bag beside the table. We talked easily the way we always did. He asked about my week and I found myself getting more relaxed as we talked about our week. "So your family doesn’t stay here?" I suddenly asked, taking a sip of the wine he gave me. His gaze was very careful. "No, I left my other pack due to some circumstances..." He didn’t elaborate but I didn’t push. I also didn’t like talking about my past and I handed him the same courtesy. "Oh, that’s fine. What were they like though?" Orin sighed, leaning back slightly with a rueful smile as he started talking about his family. He told me about his sister and what life was like before he came to this pack. For a few minutes, I listened carefully, not interrupting and simply bobbing my head when needed. He poured wine into my glass again but this time, I didn’t remember finishing the first one. "—honestly surprised." He was saying something and I was listening. At least, I was trying to listen, the room felt warmer than it had and it was getting harder to focus. I looked down at my glass with a frown. How much had I drunk? "You handle it really well." He muttered under his breath. I looked up. "Sorry?" "The alcohol." He tilted his head slightly. "You handle it really well." His voice had changed slightly. A particular tone that wasn’t there before now lingered in his words. "Considering how you were at the club the other night. You barely touched your drink." I stared at him, my lips parted. Something uneasy twisted in my guts. "What?" I whispered slowly, feeling trepidation grip me. He leaned back in his chair and looked at me with the easy smile still on his face but his eyes were doing something completely different now. Unease crawled up my spine as I stared at him. "You were very careful that night." He said pleasantly. "Very aware of what you were putting in your body." He glanced at my glass. "Tonight you didn’t think twice." My fingers tightened around the stem of the glass and the room tilted very slightly. "Orin." My voice came out careful and unsure. "What are you talking about?" He looked at me for a long moment without saying anything. My limbs suddenly felt heavy and my vision swam for no reason. What was— what was happening? Diane went absolutely still inside me. "I’ve been watching you for a while." He said casually, like he was commenting on the weather. "Since before you even came to Ashveil actually." He tilted his head. "You’re very easy to track when you don’t know someone’s looking." The glass slipped slightly in my fingers and the rest of the liquid spilled onto the carpet. No. "The club." My voice came out breathless as I tried to understand what was happening. "That was you at the club." He smiled. Oh shit. My heart launched into my throat and I pushed back from the table but the room tilted harder and my legs felt like they belonged to someone else. Diane was screaming something in my head but it sounded so far away. No no no no— I grabbed the edge of the table, feeling my knees buckle. "There’s no need for that." He smiled, his voice pleasant and still completely calm. "We have all night." Oh shit.
