turns to the bartender and orders a gin and tonic for me, just as the Fantastic Four, as they call themselves—Aloha and her husband, Zander, and Keane Morgan and his wife, Maddy—reach the bar where my group is standing.
“No, I haven’t talked to Georgina yet,” Aloha says to me, before I’ve said a word. “We’ve been dancing.”
“Well, chop, chop.”
“Okay, okay.” But when the DJ starts playing “Sweet but Psycho” by Ava Max, Aloha shrieks and pulls Maddy, Hannah, and Kat to the dance floor.
When the ladies are gone, Henn addresses Zander and Keane. “Hey, do either of you have any weed on you? Reed needs to take the edge off.”
“Are there dicks in gay porn?” Keane says, holding up a joint.
“Do me a favor and take Reed onto the patio to smoke that thing. He needs something more than a gin and tonic to keep some homicidal thoughts he’s having under wraps.”
“Homicidal thoughts?” Keane says. “That’s no bueno. Come on, Reed. Z and I will fix you right up.”
Chapter 31
Reed
Once outside on the patio, Keane, Zander, and I move toward a dark, isolated corner by a low retaining wall, where we can smoke out and gaze at the amazing view without a hundred people approaching to kiss my ass, or bum a hit off the joint, or gush over Keane. But when our threesome comes to a stop, Fish’s voice rises up from the ground only a few feet away.
“Well, hello there, fellas,” he says. And when I look down, there he is, camped with Georgina’s stepsister on the opposite side of a low retaining wall, their backs against the wall as they gaze out at the sparkling view.
Keane, Zander, and I look at each other, nonverbally acknowledging what we all instantly understand: we’re totally cockblocking Fish right now.
“Sorry, brother,” Zander says. “Carry on. We came out here to smoke a joint, but we can certainly find another spot.”
“Oh, no need to do that,” Fish says, hopping up with a laugh. He pulls his girl up with him. “Did everybody meet Alessandra at the pool?”
“Yeah,” Keane says. “Hey, Ally Cat.”
She waves shyly.
“Hello again, Alessandra,” I say. I met her briefly this afternoon, but she was so intimidated, she barely held my gaze. And this time isn’t much better. Which, frankly, annoys me. Whether she’s intimidated or not, she needs to put on her big girl panties and try to impress me. She’s a music student, for fuck’s sake! And I’m the head of River fucking Records. If she can’t pull her shit together enough to at least try to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, how is she ever going to make it in the music business? Has this girl never heard the phrase “seize the day”? How about “fake it till you make it”?
Exhaling with frustration, I take the joint from Keane and inhale extra deeply and then hold it out to Zander, who takes an extra-long hit, too. He offers it to Fish, who does his thing, before offering it to Alessandra, who, not surprisingly, politely declines.
“Give Reed her share,” Keane says. “Murder can really fuck up a guy’s life.”
“Not if they don’t catch ya,” I say, taking the joint from Fish. Another inhale. Another hand-off. A long gulp of my gin and tonic. And I’m feeling pretty good. I smile at Alessandra. “If you’re worried about breaking the law, don’t be.”
She looks at me blankly.
“Weed. It’s legal in California.”
“Oh,” she says, catching my meaning. “Only if you’re twenty-one, right? I’m nineteen.”
We all chuckle, thinking she’s kidding. But when her face blasts with color, we all have the good sense to respectfully pipe down.
“You want another bottle of water?” Fish asks, looking at his girl. “Something to eat?”
Alessandra looks relieved Fish has just offered her an eject button out of this stressful situation. “Yeah, I could use a water. I’ll come with you.”
“Why don’t you stay here and chat with me for a minute, Alessandra,” I say.
She freezes, looking like she’s about to crap her pants.
“Just for a couple minutes,” I say soothingly.
“Uh oh,” Keane says. “What’d you do to get called to the principal’s office, Ally Cat? You done fucked up, sis. Godspeed.”
“She didn’t fuck up anything,” I say. “I just want to chat with her for a minute about music. Georgina mentioned you’re studying music at Berklee.”
“Yes,” she manages to say.
“I know a lot of people who graduated from there,” I say. “It’s a great music school.”
She nods.
I address the three men. “Will you boys excuse us for