shaved. He looks as if he rolled out of bed and hit his face on the corner of his nightstand, because he has a black eye to boot.
Dylan grabs Seth’s arm and drags him out before he can reach me, but I excuse myself from our family table and meet them in the small waiting area outside the banquet room. Dylan has his fists in Seth’s shirt, his voice low and stern, though I can’t make out what he’s saying. Seth pushes Dylan away, then he spots me.
“What’s going on?” I ask, walking over to them.
“Don’t do it, Seth,” Dylan says.
Seth pushes Dylan and meets me halfway. “I thought we were a team?” He’s slurring and I realize now that he can’t really stand up straight.
“What are you talking about?”
He laughs and almost topples over. “I saw you with your buddy Klein. Secret deals under the table, huh?”
And now that sour feeling in my gut makes sense.
“It’s not what you think,” I say, reaching for him. “Let’s go outside and talk about it.” Some crisp air might help sober him up.
He pulls his hand from mine and my arm flies in the air. “It’s fine. I mean, this entire thing was fake anyway.” He looks over my shoulder, where I’m sure a line of guests are taking in the show. “Yep, folks, that’s right. Our entire engagement was fake and didn’t mean anything because we all know the Ericksons just like to think about themselves.”
“Let’s talk about this,” I say. “What exactly did you see?”
“I saw it. I saw it all. His arms on you, touching you. You laughing with him.”
“What? Nick? He was happy that we got the offer, but I didn’t take it. I don’t want it.”
A hollow laugh rings out in the small space, and our parents step up to our sides as Seth says, “I find it funny that I’m always the last one to know everything. I upended my life to help you get out of the business. Pretending you were my fiancée. I foolishly thought we were in this together. Do you think I would’ve been mad if you got some deal?”
I look at my feet because I’m ashamed. In the weeks I’ve grown closer to Seth, I’ve discovered that he harbors feelings about being second best.
“First, I’m the last one to know my brother is so high on coke he’s stealing to support his habit.”
His dad puts his arm on Seth’s forearm. “Let’s go, son.”
But Seth shakes his head and dislodges his arm from his dad’s grip, turning his ire on him. “Come on. This entire town knows. Even after he stole from you and broke into the store, you still put him above me. Fuck, I just wanted a better life for myself, so I went to college. Why is that so fucking bad? But then you treat me like some outsider. The jokes between you and Trevor, always ganging up on me. You’d think you’d be proud of me for getting a fucking degree. And yeah, I know I take boudoir photos, but it’s a legit business. I’m not stealing to support a drug habit. So tell me, Dad, how do I end up the asshole?”
“Seth,” Mrs. Andrews says. “It’s time to go.”
He laughs and looks at his mother. “And you. You have a friendship going with Mrs. Erickson for twenty years behind your husband’s back.”
Her eyes fly to her husband’s. I’m guessing from the look on Mr. Andrew’s face that she wasn’t as upfront as my mom was with my dad.
“You told me we hated them. That I wasn’t to talk to the Ericksons,” Seth continues.
“I never said that,” Mrs. Andrews says.
“You implied it. Suddenly I couldn’t go over to Evan’s and she couldn’t come to our place. No one told me why, just that things changed, and our dads weren’t friends anymore. What was I supposed to think? I was nine.”
His mom blows out a breath.
“And then I come to find out you were secretly meeting with her behind everyone’s back? Fuck, Mom, did you ever stop to think that maybe I wanted to see Evan too?”
“Seth, let’s just go talk somewhere.” I place my hand in his. He’s self-destructing right in front of me, and I can’t bear to let him do it in front of all these witnesses.
“And now you.” He narrows his gaze on me.
Knox steps in and puts his hand on his friend’s chest. “Enough, Andrews, let’s go.”
But Seth weaves around him. “Now you. Why