Tempting | My Brother's Best Friend [18+]

Chapter Nine

The music pounds through my skull. My fingers are wet and tacky, gripping a glass that holds half a drink I've already spilled over myself and the floor. 

Chelsea is opposite me, eyeliner smudged under one of her eyes. Lipstick more around her mouth than on it. 

Her dress sits comfortably on her body, black and full of straps and chains to match those combat boots she seems to wear everywhere. Her once straight hair has now fallen victim to the humidity, and it's about three times as puffy as it was when we walked through the door. 

She pulls on one of my arms, lifting it into the air as we dance to the music. Everybody else is nowhere to be seen, one by one they slunk away until only Chelsea and I were left dancing by ourselves. 

Matt thrust a drink in my hand before he disappeared, and I've done nothing but let it spill as people barge me around since. 

There's a man behind Chelsea trying to dance with her. She let's him every few seconds, and then giggles and pushes into my body some more. He's handsome, with strong features and big, dark eyes. His head is shaved though, and I briefly think about Noah's full head of curls as my lips meet the glass of Matt's drink. 

Chelsea tips it towards my mouth, grinding against my front playfully. I laugh with her, leaning in so she stumbles against handsome man. 

He says something in her ear, and my entire face lights up as she blushes and places a hand over her mouth. 

"I like them skinny, and dead-looking," Chelsea winks. 

"Shut up, no you do not," I laugh back with her, spinning in my chair. My tablet lights up with a message from Zach but I choose to ignore it, looking back at her manic expression as she scrolls through the company Instagram. "Dead-looking?"

"Yeah," she grins. "Little skinny gamer boys." 

"And that makes you, what? Their goth girlfriend?"

"Gamer boys love that." 

"Dead-looking." I repeat, taking a sip of my vanilla latte. "You're insane."  

The memory fills my heart with warmth - or perhaps that's the vodka soda I've just finished off  making my stomach hot and my lips dry. The man behind her does look a bit gaunt, now that I'm looking. His cheekbones are sunken, and his eyes have bags under them.

I almost want to ask him what his favourite video game is, just to see if this is the 'little skinny gamer boy' she's looking for. 

He kisses her neck so I turn away from them, dancing by myself and thinking about that conversation in work all those months ago. As I reminisce, a large body slips in front of mine, gently turning me back towards Chelsea. 

I let him, because I'm drunk and she's still laughing when I look at her. 

She reaches out a hand and I hold it, swaying my hips with hers as the guy behind her continues pressing against her, kissing at her where he can. The person behind me presses against me too and Chelsea nods enthusiastically when my eyes widen. 

"Hi," his voice is saying near my ear. I crane my neck to look back at him, and he immediately looks to my now gloss-less lips. 

I pull back a little. 

"Madelaine!" I shout near his face, over the music. He nods and his eyes crinkle at the sides with his grin. 

He looks as if he shouldn't be able to smile like that. There's a scar that runs down the side of his nose and over his lips, deep and a faint wine colour I squint at. His head is shaved too, and there's a teardrop tattoo underneath his eye.