Letting my emotions get the best of me, I grab Jamie by the sleeve of her dress and tug her toward me.
“What the hell is she doing here?” I whisper harshly, pointing my chin toward the duo. “I specifically said no partners.”
Jamie looks confused, then squints. “Wait, is thattheSelina?” Then eyes me for half a second too long before she laughs, trying to defuse the tension. “But also, why were you expecting Huxley to follow the rules in the first place?”
I quell the urge to stomp right up to Selina and tell her to leave in front of Huxley and the whole cast. But I’m twenty-nine, for god’s sake, I should maybe start acting my age.
I harrumph at Jamie’s answer but don’t reply. Taking another big gulp of my vodka soda, I let Jamie resume her conversation with Mary-Beth, and I make a show of pretending to listen. But try as I might, my gaze is fixed on the asshole who brought a date tomycast party.
He pauses near the doors and looks around, most likely looking for Whit, who’s talking to one of the set designers.His green eyes land on me, and he pauses his sweep of the room just long enough to stare back and smile.
God, his smile.
It’s calculated and inexplicably delicious. It’s as if he thinks he’s won something unsaid between us.
Little fucker.
Two can play this game. I turn away first before he has the chance to.
Half an hour later,I’m still fuming. He hasn’t even come up to say hi to me or Jamie yet, and by my best friend’s nonchalance, I’m the only one who seems to have a problem with his aloof behavior.
I’mthisclose to walking up and introducing myself to Selina just to spite him when he finally catches my eye. Leaning down to whisper something in Selina’s ear, he keeps his gaze steady on mine, then turns and walks away.
Assuming he’s going out for a cigarette, my curiosity—or more like suspicion—piques when he veers to the left and heads for the balcony stairs.
Is he wanting me to follow him?
I press my lips together, subtly rolling my eyes. He’ll be waiting a long time for that.
I return to the conversation Jamie is now having with Nacho.
A minute passes. I’m not listening.
“I need some air,” I blurt out. And before anyone has time to offer their company, I add. “I’ll be right back.”
I walk out of the auditorium and end up standing like an idiot in the middle of the lobby.
“This is so stupid,” I mutter under my breath.
After barely thirty seconds, I loop back inside and bolt upthe stairs, praying that no one has noticed me. I find Huxley sitting exactly where we sat last time.
The night we kissed.
The memory of his lips on mine does nothing to quell the flames licking up my body.
Huxley is holding his beer with a loose grip, letting it hang between his legs as he stares down at the party downstairs. Even if he doesn’t look at me as I approach, I can tell he knows I’m there.
With every step, I feel his presence like a magnet pulling me even closer. I stop just beside his seat. Placing my hands behind me on the railing, I lean against them.
“I said no partners.”
He flicks his gaze up without moving an inch, staring at me from under his eyelashes. His smile is just as disarming as before.
His voice is low when he speaks. “She’s not my partner.”
I smooth my tongue over my teeth with irritation. “Whatever the fuck she is to you, she’s not supposed to be here.”
“James is here.”
