After a moment, my eyes drift to Carmen and I notice she looks a little bit lost.
I move to her and put my arm around her shoulder. “Hey, Carmen. Is this party as overwhelming to you as it is to me?”
Carmen twists her mouth adorably. “I feel like a deer in headlights,” she admits. “It wasn’t too long ago I was watching Will perform at a local club for fifty people.”
“Have you and Will been together a long time?”
She nods. “About two years. What about you and Josh?”
“Oh, we’re not a couple. This is just our first night out.”
“Seriously? Wow. I would have guessed you’ve been together forever.”
I laugh. “That’s funny.”
I glance across the suite at Josh—he’s deep in concentration, making some sort of complicated concoction at the bar—and my skin buzzes at the mere sight of him.
Carmen rests her cheek on my shoulder in the most adorably affectionate way, making me think of Sarah again.
“Carmen, you remind me so much of my best friend, Sarah, it’s uncanny.”
“I do?”
I nod. “She’s the best. Gorgeous, funny, super-duper smart. Weird.” I laugh. “The sweetest girl you’ll ever meet.”
“Well, thanks. It sounds like you’ve just given me a huge compliment.”
“Definitely.”
Josh returns with two glasses and hands me a red-colored drink.
“What is it?” I ask, sniffing it. “You looked like you were busy building an atomic bomb over there.”
“It’s an original creation. I call it a Kiss,” he says, a cocky grin spreading across his face.
“Oh, really? I’ve never had one of those—at least not from you,” I say.
“I figured you were dying to taste a Kiss from me, though.” He winks. “So I decided to make your dreams come true.”
I smirk. “Gee, thanks. What’s exactly in a Kiss from Josh Faraday?”
“All sorts of stuff to make your toes tingle and your face go numb. Try it.”
I take a long, slow sip. “Whoa, it’s strong,” I say. “And delicious. Kinda curls my toes, actually.”
“That about sums up a Kiss from Josh Faraday: toe-curling.”
I motion to his cup. “Is that what you’re having, too?”
“No, I made myself something totally different—I call it The Terrorist.” He takes a sip from his cup. “It really socks a punch. Honestly, it’ll probably knock me off my feet—might even be the death of me. But something tells me it’s gonna be well worth the pain.”
Eighteen
Kat
After downing two Kisses from Josh Faraday, I’ve suddenly got a freaking fantabulous idea. “Let’s go for a swim, Joshie Woshie.”
“Yessssssssssssss, Kitty Kat,” he says. Without hesitation, he rips off his jacket and begins unzipping his pants while I frenetically pull my mini-dress over my head and kick off my shoes.
