Xerxes (Scott, how boring) laughed. “There better be some hot guys bidding.”
“Lovely,” I said, clapping my hands together.
Biff, Chet, and Xerxes laughed. Brian smiled. Darren didn’t do either.
He just stared at me.
“The boys,” Paul said. “As in…?”
“Everyone you see here,” I said. I looked at the twin
k. “Except for you. I don’t know you.”
He frowned. “My name is—”
“Darren’s doing this too?” Vince said, sounding offended.
“He practically begged,” I said.
Paul’s eyes narrowed. “Really.”
“Oh boy,” Darren said. “No, not really. Helena asked. I said okay. It’s not a thing. We’re not making this a thing.” Whatever. It was totally a thing.
Paul said, “Of course it’s a thing, you—”
“Brian,” I purred, moving like liquid smoke toward him. “How lovely it is to see you again. You’re looking delicious as always.”
He had that same goofy grin on his face that initially drew me to him that night at the bar. Well, that and the fact that I was already halfway drunk and slightly angry. Not even the memory of him eating all my brunch bacon stopped me from rubbing up against him. It was close, though.
“Hi, Helena,” he said, sounding a little nervous now. He kept darting glances over at Darren, which meant the Homo Jock King had opened his fat mouth and blabbed to the homo jocks about us. Which, to be fair, wasn’t that big of an issue, seeing as how everyone else knew something that wasn’t quite true.
“Paul, Vince,” I said. “You remember Brian, right? From brunch. And the night before.”
Darren had a sour look on his face that I resolutely ignored.
“I really wish I was somewhere else right now,” Paul moaned.
“Go to your happy place,” Vince said. “Go there and think of happy things and you’ll be free of this.” He looked back at me. “You can’t sell me to men. Paul would murder them.”
I grinned, razor sharp. “Of course, baby doll. I would never ask you to do that.”
“But you’d let Darren?” He looked at his brother.
I wrapped an arm around Brian’s shoulder, tugging him as close as the twink was to Darren. “Darren does what he wants,” I said loftily. “He always has. Why should this be any different?”
Brian said, “I think that I want to leave—”
“What are you doing?” Darren asked me.
“Just chatting.” I looked over at the twink and my eyes widened in great surprise. “Oh, I’m sorry. Forgive my rudeness. I didn’t even see that you existed. Hello. Aren’t you just adorable.”
The twink, as adorable as he was, didn’t seem too thrilled with me, which, oh no, my broken heart. But neither was he too intimidated, as he didn’t move away from Darren. That was his first mistake. He obviously didn’t know who I was or he would have been running in the opposite direction. Or, if he were really smart, he wouldn’t have even been here to begin with.
“Caleb,” he said.
“Caleb,” I exclaimed. “That’s so… fitting. Isn’t that fitting, Brian?”
“Um,” Brian said. “Yes?”