Carter's gaze immediately meets mine. He has a little smirk on his lips, as if he's been waiting for this moment the whole night.
A sick feeling hits me when I realize he probably was.
Why else would he choose this club? Why else would he be in such a good mood at the prospect of coming here?
I immediately decide that I'm not going to show him I care. If he wants to play this game, then he can play.
I steadfastly ignore the murderous urges I'm feeling inside at the moment.
"Carter, are you going to introduce me to your friend?" I ask casually, reaching over and taking a sip of Logan's drink. Quaid pushes a glass of water towards me, and I set Logan's alcohol aside to gratefully gulp the water down.
I pretend I'm not self-conscious, but I'm well aware of the wet-dog look I'm rocking after dancing so hard out there with Quaid.
"Celeste, I'd like you to meet my old friend, Valentina," he says, his smirk somewhat dimmed since I'm not reacting how I'm sure he was imagining I would.
Logan puts his arm back around me, apparently not caring about my sweat getting all over him, and Quaid puts his hand back on my knee, stroking the skin reassuringly, as if they both want to give me the strength to survive Carter's little game.
"Oh, isn't she precious!" Celeste exclaims in a heavy French accent. Her comment is decidedly sarcastic, and I dig my hand into Quaid's leg to try and keep myself controlled.
Did I mention that I suffer from sudden emotional outbursts because of my brain tumor? I'd really love for those not to come out right now.
"And how do you know my Carter?" she continues, the "my" decidedly possessive.
"We go way back," I respond steadily, but she's already whispering something in Carter's ear as she strokes the skin that's peaking out from the top of his smoky grey dress shirt.
I hate her. The feeling comes on very strongly, and I just accept it.
Carter's still looking at me challengingly, and I wonder how full of herself she must be not to notice that he's not paying any attention to her.
I’m furious that he’s doing this. Making someone jealous is such a childish thing to do.
My anger fades quickly though as I acknowledge that Carter probably thinks that I'm making him jealous by dancing, flirting, and doing everything else with Logan and Quaid. He still doesn't get that me loving the others—not that I've admitted what I'm still feeling is love—doesn't detract from what I feel for him.
He doesn't understand how they can all exist in my heart at the same time. I'm determined not to waste time trying to play this useless game.
Standing up, I ignore Carter and Celeste and grab Logan and Quaid's hands.
They don't argue as I lead them to the dance floor, and we lose ourselves to the music. Logan isn't as good at dancing as Quaid, he never was one for parties or club settings like this, but his eyes burn as he watches me dance. He tries to move along with the beat. And he's mostly successful…only managing to step on my feet a few times.
Through it all, I can feel Carter's hot gaze on the three of us. The few times that I do look over, Celeste is still draped all over him, but she could be giving him a blowjob and I don't think he would pull his gaze away from me.
After another hour, I tell the guys I need to use the restroom. They walk me to the line for the ladies’ room, staying with me until it's my turn to go inside. I appreciate the gesture, you never know what creeps are going to be at a place like this.
I use the restroom and wash my hands, smiling a bit manically at my sweaty look. For the past year, I haven't expended much energy. My treatments had zapped me of what little strength I possessed. Letting myself be free like this is invigorating, even if my body is protesting and I'm going to be feeling it in the morning.
When I step out of the bathroom, I don't see Quaid or Logan anywhere. Frowning, I look around towards the men's bathroom, wondering if they decided to use it while they were waiting.
But there's no sign of them.
I set off down the hall. Before I can get very far, I'm grabbed and pulled into an alcove.
I attempt to struggle until I'm turned around and