town. The three-story house seemed too big and fancy for a tiny town like Riverton, or actually anywhere. The thing had wings, for fuck’s sakes.
The acres of land that surrounded the house had been landscaped to an inch of its life. Alex wouldn’t have been surprised if the rosebushes had been placed according to a ruler.
Alex let out a low whistle. It wasn’t that he wasn’t used to excessive houses and luxury, but it seemed that the few weeks in ascetic conditions had had an impact because this particular house looked huge.
“Lacey’s parents own half the town,” Noah said quietly.
“Only half?” Alex joked.
“We should come up with a signal,” Noah said as he and Alex walked into the party after Noah had parked his car into the driveway, complete with marble statues on both sides of it. It was gaudy as fuck.
There were about fifty people milling around. Some of them were in the pool. Some were playing volleyball. Most people were just lounging around on the huge property, chatting, tanning, laughing.
There was a pool house with sliding glass doors that could be pushed open for the summer. Or when the eighteen-year-old daughter wanted to have all her friends over to a party while the parents were gone. It would have all been impressive if it hadn’t been so extravagant and so very unfitting into the overall landscape.
“For what?”
“For when either of us wants to leave,” Noah said. The duh was heavily implied.
“Won’t a simple let’s get going suffice?”
“What if you don’t like anyone at this party?” Noah countered.
“Aren’t those your friends? Shouldn’t you be saying nice things about them?”
“I wouldn’t exactly call them friends. More like people I go to school with. Nevertheless, what if all my friends are terrible people? You don’t know me that well yet. Maybe I have horrible taste in friends?”
Alex smirked. “That would definitely explain befriending me. I think you should be more worried about the fact that those people out there might find me an asshole, not the other way around.”
Noah stopped. “You’re not an asshole,” he said.
Alex threw his arm over Noah’s shoulders and pulled him forward. The way his body reacted to Noah’s closeness was a definite indication that being pressed against Noah’s side was not a good idea, but Alex damped that feeling down. If they were going to be friends, he’d just have to get over his dick’s inclination to salute every time Noah was touching him. That’s what right now was—practice.
“Let’s just go.”
“Fine. But the signal idea stands.” Noah snapped his fingers. “Got it. If either of us tugs at his earlobe, we’ll take it as our cue to go.”
Alex shook his head in amusement as they moved closer to the throng of people. “I can’t decide if you want to keep your friends from me or me from your friends.”
Noah stopped, but Alex wasn’t in the mood for another pep talk, so he kept walking, and he couldn’t be sure, but he could have sworn Noah muttered, “Maybe I want to keep you to myself.”
Alex’s heart skipped a beat, but he clenched his teeth and forced himself to keep moving. He’d probably imagined it. Wishful thinking and all that. After all, Noah had made it pretty clear that there couldn’t be anything between them except for friendship.
Noah caught up to him just as Alex reached the first group of people. Noah made the introductions, and Alex easily fell back into his old self. The one that could be charming and funny if need be. Being superficially likable came easy to Alex. He’d had a lot of practice over the years, and right here and right now, it was made even easier by the fact that he most likely wouldn’t see any of those people again.
Alex was a master at making a good first impression, which was why it had always come as a surprise to all his teachers and other authority figures when Alex got caught doing something stupid, reckless, illegal, or some combination of the three.
Alex almost expected Noah to disappear into the crowd of his friends, but he stuck by Alex’s side. After a minute, Lacey noticed they’d arrived, and she hurried to them. She was wearing a tiny, pink bikini top and a white tennis skirt. Alex had to reluctantly admit that, objectively speaking, she looked hot.
Lacey stuck to their side, grabbing Noah’s elbow as they walked around, maneuvering Noah around like she was walking him. Alex fell a step behind. He was clearly