Bad Romeo Christmas: A Starcrossed Anthology (Starcrossed #4)(67)

"Erika, I'd like you to meet my best friend, Joshua Kane. "

I hold out my hand, and Erika shakes it. "Nice to meet you, Josh. Super outfit."

I laugh. "You, too. Both the outfit and the meeting." She's intimidating but warm. In that respect, she reminds me a lot of Elissa. Attractive, too. It makes me wonder why she's here alone.

She chats with everyone about what they've been up to since graduating, and it's interesting stuff. Zoe spent some time organizing performances with underprivileged youth, which didn't gel at all with my image of her, and Connor did a Taiwanese movie in which he had to speak his entire role in Chinese.

When Ethan and Erika strike up a conversation about a Shakespeare festival he's about to appear in as Hamlet, I move over and hold out my hand to Connor.

"Hey, man, we haven't met. I'm Josh."

He takes my hand and smiles, and I get the feeling he's had more than his fair share of liquor tonight. "Connor. I saw you briefly at the wedding but didn't get a chance to say hello. Those were some pretty sweet moves you made on the dance floor."

"What can I say? I have a gift."

Cassie comes to stand beside me, and Connor's smile falters for a second before he says, "Good to see you, Cassie."

Cassie smiles. "You, too."

His girlfriend sidles up to him and hands him a beer before gripping his arm possessively.

"Josh, Cassie," Connor says. "This is Ava."

She smiles at us, but it's as fake as Marco's Elvis wig.

"Nice to meet you, Ava," Cassie says. "Great costume."

There's a slight twitch to Ava's eye when she says, "Thanks. You, too."

If Cassie notices Ava doesn't like her, she doesn't let on. There are a couple of seconds of awkward silence when we're all just staring at each other, before I break the ice by saying, “So, are you an actor too, Ava?"

"No," she says in a curt tone. "I'm a bartender. Before Connor and I got together, he was one of my best customers. Used to come into the bar every night." She gives him an affectionate glance, and Connor smiles down at his beer before taking a mouthful. Then he sways a little.

Yep. If the boy doesn't want a major hangover tomorrow, he's going to need to stop drinking now.

When he looks over at Cassie, I almost feel sorry for him. It's clear he has it bad.

"So, Erika," Jack says. "Do you miss us? Be honest. We were your favorite class ever, right? I mean, just look at the amount of awesome in this group. It's off the charts."

Erika smiles. "You were certainly one of my most challenging classes, Mr. Avery, that's for sure. However, between the bickering, Ethan and Cassie's relationship dramas, Zoe's constant requests for bigger roles, and your propensity to leave whoopee cushions on random chairs every second day, I admit that the lack of hijinks in subsequent classes has been ... nice."

Connor pushes his cowboy hat farther back on his head. "Yeah, but nice boring, though, right? It's safe and forgettable. Like me. But you'll sure as hell remember Ethan Holt, because he was a giant pain in your ass."

We all laugh, but I don't miss Cassie's confused expression.

"It's true," Erika says. "I've yet to meet a student quite as volatile and opinionated as Mr. Holt, but lucky for him, being a pain in the ass can sometimes be endearing."

Ethan gives a shrug. "Lovable *. That's me."

"Well, you've got the * part right," Connor mumbles under his breath.

Damn, son ...

Thank God Ethan's too busy bantering with Erika to hear it. I can't imagine he'd need much of an excuse to start pounding on the dude who spent a significant amount of time between his beloved wife's legs. Or maybe that's just me. I've yet to meet one of Angel's ex-lovers, but I can't imagine it would be a pleasant experience.

"Holy shit." Ava stares open mouthed as Liam joins the group. He greets Erika then puts his arm around Elissa and kisses her cheek.

"Is that Liam Quinn?" Ava says, star struck. "No way."

"Yes, way," I say. "The Stallion, in the flesh. But with clothes on."

She's not the only one who does a double take. Jack goes as white as a sheet, and Zoe looks like she's about three seconds away from a full-on head explosion.

Man, did they really not see him at the wedding? Maybe my dad's right. Our generation does need to look up from our cell phones every now and then.

Elissa introduces Liam to everyone, and it could be my imagination, but I swear he winces a little as he shakes their hands. The big lug probably pulled something lifting me. I did warn him.

"So, Jack," I say, never one to miss an opportunity to stir the pot. "Why don't you tell everyone who you've come as tonight?"

Jack glances at Liam and gives a nervous chuckle. "'Come as'. I see what you did there. But, nah, I'm good. Thanks."

"Oh, come on," Elissa says, looking him up and down. "I was wondering what you were. Ooh, I've got it. You're a Fun Guy!" Everyone looks confused. She points to his hat. "Mushroom? Fungi? Get it?" When everyone groans, she gestures to the waiter for more drinks. "Man, you guys are lame. Shots, please."