and champagne glasses. Ramon led me to one of them and a bunch of people I didn't know jumped up, embracing us and complimenting my dress. I responded with simple nods and smiles, my voice not loosening an inch for them.
"Sasha is still adjusting back into normal life. She only feels comfortable enough to speak with me at the moment," Ramon explained for me and they all cooed and awwed like I was some puppy who'd just gotten home from the vet.
I sat through a meal, picking at the tiny portions of food and zoning out of the boring conversation everyone was having about the stock market, some celebrity who'd put on weight and the new mall opening up a few blocks away.
Carlos stood against the closest wall behind me and I felt his presence like a lurking ghost. One I needed to exorcise pronto.
After our meals, we were led through to another room with a mahogany dance floor and a crescent bar at the end of it. A string quartet were playing music which should have been impossible to dance to but some of the pretentious idiots were managing it, swaying along like their souls thrived on it.
"Carlos, take Sasha to get a drink, I'm going to speak with the mayor," Ramon directed, his gaze on a man with ashy hair and an overly tanned face across the room.
The moment Carlos stepped to my side, Ramon headed away and I glowered at my beefy companion before he pointed me to the bar. The guy had the personality of a turnip and the head of a potato, so at least he wouldn't bother trying to strike up a conversation with me.
We sat side by side at the bar and I remained silent as Carlos ordered me a vodka soda and himself a Jack on the rocks. When our drinks arrived, I snatched his, tossing it down my throat and pushing the vodka soda at him with a raised eyebrow, challenging him to defy me. It burned all the way down and I smiled satisfactorily at the scowl on his face.
He ordered another and the barman glanced between us curiously as he placed it down in front of Carlos. I reached for it again, but Carlos pushed the glass down the bar so it was out of reach, his brows pulling together. He nudged my vodka soda toward me and I tsked.
"Would you like something else, miss?" the barman asked, glancing at my muscular companion curiously.
I nodded, grabbing up a menu and flipping to the shots section. I pointed at the one I wanted with a smirk and the barman chuckled.
"One Redheaded Slut coming up," he said, setting to work making it for me.
When he placed down the little glass full of red liquid in front of me, Carlos tried to swipe it away, but I grabbed it before he could.
"If you get drunk, Ramon will be unhappy," he growled, his voice a deep baritone.
I raised my middle finger as I held the shot, lifting it to my lips so I was flipping him off as I drank it down, the sweet cranberry juice sharpened by the schnapps.
He muttered under his breath in Spanish and I distinctly heard the words la puta which I was pretty sure meant he was calling me a bitch, but I didn't give a damn what he thought of me.
I turned my gaze to the room, seeking out the exits and finding each of them manned by one of Ramon's men as promised. I'd have to scout out the restroom soon, but before I did that, I really needed to lose the vegetable following me around.
I strolled through the party with a beautiful girl on my arm and a smile on my lips beneath my elaborate black and gold mask as I took a turn around the room, making sure to take note of every bodyguard and henchman I spotted. It was impossible to say for sure who each of them worked for of course, but it was simple enough to guess that those with a clear eye line to Winter where she sat at the bar were probably working for Hernandez.
I pulled the girl I’d brought with me into my arms. Donna was my second cousin Edwardo’s girl and had been for years. The only reason she wasn’t officially a Romero yet was because the lazy fucker still hadn’t popped the question. But I’d promised her that I’d put the pressure on him for a