Strangely Normal Read online

  “I never turn down a good bet.” He leaned forward and rested his forearms on his thighs. His sudden nearness flustered me, and I had to consciously control my breathing.

  His hungry gaze drifted from my lips down to my thighs as if he could feel my bare skin with his eyes. That paper bag was sounding better and better.

  “So what are we wagering?” he asked, looking far more intrigued than he should have, which only flustered me more.

  “If I stay longer than an hour, even one minute longer, then you have to give me a ride on your motorcycle.” I’d always been crazy about motorcycles, and this seemed like an opportunity to live out a dream and ride one.

  “Easy enough.” He caressed my skin with his heated gaze one more time. “And if you leave before one hour then you have to model for one of my paintings.”

  “You’d really want me to pose for you? Wait, would I be naked?”

  “Not completely.”

  It took me a moment to respond. I would just have to suffer through Cole’s asshat friends for sixty minutes. There was no way I could lose.” I stuck out my hand. “It’s a bet. I better shine up my motorcycle boots.”

  “We’ll see.”

  Our handshake lingered overlong. I slid my fingers from his grasp and he stood. He fished in his pocket, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it. Then he held it between his thumb and forefinger as he squinted down at me through a thin veil of smoke. His silent stare was enough to heat every inch of my already sunbathed skin. I shifted nervously on the lounge.

  “How do you like my new suit? Finley picked it out.”

  He continued to look at me as he took a long draw on his cigarette and blew out the smoke. “Once again, Valley, I wasn’t looking at the suit.” He walked away, and I slid my hands beneath my thighs to stop the trembling.

  ***

  Finely tried on eight different outfits for the party before finally deciding on the pair of skinny jeans and top she’d tried on the first time. I, on the other hand, had only one pair of jeans decent enough to wear in front of a large number of people making my wardrobe decision quite simple. Sometimes less is better.

  Finley also checked her hair and make-up enough times in the mirror that even I was beginning to question her mascara application.

  “You look beyond adorable, Finley. Stop fretting. Besides if Max is as cool as you say, he doesn’t sound like the type who will be turned off if you’re wearing too much lip gloss.”

  Her hand flew to her mouth. “Shit, am I wearing too much lip gloss? I knew I went too crazy with the applicator.” She reached for a tissue, but I grabbed her hand.

  “The gloss is fine but something tells me if we spend much more time getting ready, the party will be over.”

  She waved that suggestion away. “Cole’s parties last until dawn or until everyone passes out. Whichever comes first.”

  “Will Jude be there?” My question immediately solicited a raised eyebrow of interest from Finley.

  “Maybe. Why do you ask?”

  “No reason.” I hadn’t mentioned the bet to Finley, and now I was attempting to convince myself that the wager was my only motive behind the question.

  “Uh huh, I see.” A small smile creased her cheek.

  “Not every question has a hidden meaning.” I opened the door and ushered her out to the hallway before she had a chance to rethink her bracelets.

  “No,” Finley said slyly, “but that one did.”

  I decided to ignore her teasing. Music drummed through the house, and it sounded as if a lot of people had already congregated downstairs. There was an actual party room complete with wet bar and pool table, which I suppose should have been expected in a house with an elevator and theater.

  One step into the room and I immediately felt out of place. The people gathered around the pool table and wet bar reminded me of the snooty half of my high school, only the snobbery was taken up a notch. My stomach twisted into a nervous knot, and suddenly, just as Jude had predicted, this was the last place I wanted to be.

  “Finley!” two girls screamed with fake excitement.

  “I hate these two girls,” Finley whispered from the side of her mouth.

  Both girls looked as if they’d spent an entire day getting ready for the party, not a hair, eyelash, or fake nail out of place. They hugged Finley with even more overdone drama than they’d put into their greeting. One of the girls, who was passably pretty mostly because of the professional make-up job and expensive haircut, looked at me and made no effort to conceal her lack of approval. The diamond stud in her nose danced a bit while she crinkled her nose and stared down at my jeans.

  “Nice vintage jeans,” she said. “Saks Fifth Avenue?”

  “Mutli-family yard sale,” I answered. “Third Avenue.”

  The girl snorted a derisive chuckle.

  “We’re going to get drinks.” Finley took my hand and dragged me mercifully away.

  “Gee, I can’t imagine why you don’t like them,” I said. “And they really seemed to like me.”

  Finley smiled. “Hey, if they didn’t insult you then you should be worried. Just the fact that they took notice of you means they consider you a threat.”

  We reached the bar and a tall, thin guy with a pair of thick rimmed glasses smiled down at us. “Hey, Finley, long time no see. What can I get you girls?”

  “I’m not much of a drinker,” I whispered to Finley.

  “Something sweet with not too much alcohol,” Finley told the guy. She glanced around casually and then she grabbed my hand so tightly her nails dug into my skin. “There he is.”

  I glanced in the direction she was looking and found a guy who matched her description of Max perfectly. He seemed to sense we were staring at him and looked over with a friendly wave. The bartender pushed two icy drinks our way.

  I leaned over to Finley. “This is your chance. Go talk to him before you lose him in the crowd and before you draw blood from my hand.”

  She looked down at the death-like grip she had on me and laughed. “Sorry about that.”

  “Go talk to him. I’ll wait here in the shallow end.” I lifted my glass. “I’ve got my floaties, and if I stay close to the side, I’ll be safe.”

  I felt a bit like a nervous mother watching her child go off to school for the first day. I definitely wanted things to go right for Finley. In fact, I worried what may happen if it didn’t.

  “I was beginning to think you weren’t going to show.” Jude was standing so close I could feel the heat of his body on my back.

  I decided it was safer not to look at him. “Haven’t you heard the phrase fashionably late?” I glanced around at the crowd and realized Jude had instantly become the center of attention. Particularly with the female guests, and in particular, the two girls who’d I’d already met.

  Jude pulled out his phone. “It’s eight minutes after ten.”

  “I’ve already been here for at least five minutes.”

  “Fine, then we’ll make your start time three minutes after.”

  The two girls were making their way toward us. I looked back over my shoulder at Jude and wasn’t prepared for how close his mouth was to mine. It seemed to take us both by surprise and a heated hush fell between us.

  “Here come the viper twins.” The words cracked out of my suddenly dry throat. “You’re on your own.” I picked up my glass.

  “Jude,” the one with the nose diamond spoke using the same fake tone she’d used with Finley. “Cole said you weren’t going to show.”

  I scooted away with no particular destination in mind. I could tread water for fifty plus minutes just to win the bet and then head back upstairs to the security of my room. Finley’s white blonde hair was easy to spot. She was standing next to Max, looking up at him with pure admiration. She seemed relaxed and thrilled to be standing there with him.
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br />   I peeked back through the crowd. Jude had vanished, but the two girls had been left behind. The only other familiar face in the crowd was Cole. He smiled and waved from across the room but appeared to be surrounded, and not surprisingly so, by a group of girls.

  “And what is your name, beautiful?” I didn’t recognize the voice, but the mouthwash was definitely beer.

  I turned around reluctantly. The guy was broad shouldered, semi-handsome, and completely drunk. And he was obviously not going to leave until I told him my name.

  “I’m Eden.” I leaned out of the path of his toxic breath.

  “I’m infatuated.”

  I wondered how long he’d worked on that impressive little introduction. “Well, good for you.”

  He stumbled closer. I took several steps back and glanced around for an escape route. Fortunately, Cole came to my rescue. “Hey, Mike, why don’t you slow it down? It’s early and you’re already shit-faced.”

  The guy completely ignored Cole and leered hungrily at me. “Who’d you come here with?”

  One match and I could have blown up the whole room fueled solely by his breath.

  Cole took my arm and led me away and as slurred as Mike’s speech was he was able to pronounce the word bitch quite clearly.

  “Sorry about that,” Cole said. “He wasn’t really invited. In fact, he’s never really invited, but he shows up anyway. His father owns a record company so most of us with family in the business just accept his presence. The dude really needs to go to rehab though. His liver is going to be toast before he’s thirty.” Cole walked me over to where his groupies were waiting anxiously for his return. They looked less than pleased to see me. I guess one more girl just meant one more competitor. “Hey, everyone, this is Eden. She’s a friend of the family’s and she’s staying with us this summer.” I guess it made complete sense that he’d made up a reason for my presence other than the true reason. But it was hard to know if he was doing it to protect Finley or himself. Surely other people in the room had to know that Finley had problems. For one, it would be ignorant for people in this kind of party hardy society to not notice that she never left the house. On the other hand, they all seemed so enamored with themselves, it was entirely possible they’d never taken note of it.

  I nodded politely at Cole’s friends and then sipped my drink to keep from having to converse. The girls had no problem ignoring my presence until I asked a question that seemed to peak everyone’s interest.

  “Where did Jude go?” I asked Cole.

  “He rarely shows to my parties.”

  “He was here just a second ago.”

  A wave of pretty, powdered faces turned my direction. “Jude was here?” one girl asked. There was a glimmer of hopefulness in her tone.

  “For a second,” I repeated and now regretted bringing it up.

  One girl laughed. “I swear that boy does this just to torture us.” She looked at me and took the time to check out my shabby outfit before speaking again. “If you see him, you tell him that Kiley and her friends are waiting to see him.”

  Cole threw me a small, almost imperceptible shrug.

  I smiled back at the girl. “I will definitely tell him that. Cole, what time is it?”

  He pulled out his phone. “It’s twenty-five after. Do you have some place you’ve got to be?” he asked with a grin. He caught sight of something over my head and motioned me to look that direction. Finley was sitting with Max on a small couch. She looked extremely happy and completely oblivious to her surroundings.

  “Do you think she’ll be all right?” I asked.

  “Yeah, she’ll be fine.”

  “Who?” Kiley asked nosily.

  “Our cat. She wasn’t feeling great this morning,” Cole answered.

  “You know,” I said, “it’s kind of stuffy in here, Cole. I think I’ll step outside for some fresh air.” I plastered a smile on my face. “Nice meeting you all.”

  I stepped outside onto the small patio off the party room. There were several people sitting out there on chairs, so as far as I was concerned, I was technically still at the party. And according to my estimation, I had about half an hour of the drudgery left. Hopefully, Finley wouldn’t be too upset if I left early. A hand took hold of mine. My thoughts seemed to have conjured her.

  “Eden, I feel bad. I hadn’t meant to abandon you like this. It’s just that I haven’t seen Max in so long.”

  I held her hand in mine. “Finley, please don’t worry about it. I can handle this alone, but I’ll probably turn in early if that’s all right with you.”

  “See, you’re bored. I knew you would be.”

  “Really, Finley, it’s fine. I’ve never been much for big parties. I’m just glad you’re having a good time.” I smiled. “So do you still like him as much?”

  Her blue eyes sparkled beneath the fringe of white bangs. “I do, Eden. He’s gotten even better, if that’s possible. And it looks like he’ll be sticking around town longer now. He’s going to work with his dad.”

  “Great. So you’ll be able to see him more.”

  “Yep.” A small frown pulled at her mouth.

  “What’s the matter?”

  She sighed. “It’s just Max knows I’ve had some problems in the past, but I don’t think he knows that I can’t leave the house. What am I supposed to say when he asks me out?”

  “Can’t Cole explain stuff to him?”

  “My brother doesn’t admit it much, but he’s embarrassed about me.”

  “Then we better start moving forward on your goals so we can get you out on a date with him.” My optimism sounded a little forced even to my own ears, and the look on Finley’s face was gloomy with defeat. It was definitely a daunting situation, and I had no real answers for her except to continue with small steps and see where they led.

  “You’re right,” Finley said quietly. “For tonight, I’m not going to worry about it. I’m just going to have fun.” The conviction in her tone and words seemed genuine, and I was relieved to hear it.

  “Good idea. Go back to him, Finley. I’ll be fine. I might even have one more of those super sweet drinks just to help me get in the party mood.”

  She hugged me and went back inside. Seconds later, my alcohol soaked friend had found me again. This time he had the nerve to take hold of my arm.

  “There you are, garden of Eden. I was hoping we could share an apple together.”

  “I’m not really in the mood for fruit.” I pulled away from him and hopped down the small flight of steps leading to the yard. I was confident he wouldn’t have the balance to walk down stairs, but he proved me wrong. Annoyance was quickly morphing into fear. I looked around, but the few party-goers who had stepped outside were too busy with their conversations to notice drunken Mike staggering after me like a horny Frankenstein. With large feet and a lumber that bordered on clumsy, he was alarmingly fast on his feet. He grabbed my arm and twisted it. There was nothing I hated more than a scene, and I concentrated on keeping my cool. After all, I had my wits and one big advantage, I was sober. He, on the other hand, was having a hard time focusing as he swayed back and forth like a giant tree about to fall. I shoved him hard with my free hand, but it was like pushing against a brick wall. My theory of him being an easy pushover had been squelched. Leaving the patio had been a huge mistake.

  I took a step back and realized we were tucked securely into a corner of the rose garden wall. Unfortunately, our location did not escape his bleary-eyed notice either. With no small amount of force, he had me pressed against the wall. He stuck his thick thigh between my legs and held tightly to both my arms. He leaned forward and smothered my scream with his disgusting mouth. He released one of my hands and grabbed at the shoulder of my shirt. I shot my fist into his stomach, but at such close range, it had little impact. Then a hand grabbed his wrist.

  “Damn, is that
you, Cole? I’m just having some fun,” Mike mumbled without looking away from me.

  “Guess again.”

  This time Mike’s face snapped up and he backed away. “What the hell, Jude? Where did you come from?” Mike grabbed my arm again. “I found her first.”

  “Let go of her now and then get the fuck off my property.”

  “What are you, the bouncer?” Mike attempted to sound calm, but there was a streak of terror running through the center of his words.

  Before I could take a breath, Jude had him pressed up against the wall with his arm across Mike’s neck. “I don’t know. Let me bounce your thick skull off this wall a few times and we’ll find out.”

  Mike’s face turned red, and he flailed an arm at Jude but missed.

  “Leave now and we won’t have to call an ambulance to pick you up.” Jude’s chilling tone caused the guy to put up his hands in surrender. Jude shoved his arm against Mike’s neck harder and then released him.

  Mike stumbled away coughing and cussing. We’d attracted a small crowd, and I looked around at the faces then finally brought myself to look at Jude. I knew the moment I looked at him I would burst into tears. And I did not disappoint myself. His green eyes were a mixture of rage and concern.

  He reached for my hand, but I pulled it away.

  “You win,” I blurted through sobs and ran back through the house and to my room. I was fairly certain I’d elbowed my way through the crowd without Finley noticing. I was glad for that. Even though my night had gone from bad to horribly ugly within the space of half an hour, I definitely didn’t want it to stop Finley’s night.

  A whimper of relief fell from my lips as I reached my room. I flopped onto my bed and buried my face into my pillow just as a knock sounded on the door.

  “Eden, it’s me. Let me in.” The sound of Jude’s voice pushed the tears harder.

  “I’m fine, Jude. Just go away.”

  The door opened and he stepped inside. I didn’t look up from the pillow.

  “Go ahead and say I told you so,” I muttered into the pillow. “You were right. I couldn’t handle it.”