Call It What You Want(53)

I’m just looking out for you.

Sure, Bill. Thanks a lot.

At the same time, these thoughts fill me with guilt. My father wasn’t a good man. He hurt a lot of people. I have to look them in the eye every day. I should be glad at what Bill did.

I’m not. I have to live with the fallout. I’m not glad about any of it.

“There,” says Maegan, and this time she tows me forward, into the crowd. I’m jostled by the dancers, but I cling tightly to her fingers, and she propels me right to the middle of the dancing.

Samantha’s eyes are closed, that red plastic cup hanging precariously from her fingers, and she’s dancing with her back against some guy I’ve never seen before. He’s grinding against her, a hand splayed across the front of her abdomen.

Maegan lets go of me to step up to her sister. “Sam. Hey! Sam!”

Her sister’s eyes open lazily, but she doesn’t stop dancing. “Hey, Megs.”

“We need to go.”

“No way. I’m having a good time.” Her eyes fall closed again.

“Sam. Seriously.” Maegan is yelling over the music. “We need to go.”

The guy dancing with Samantha opens eyes that light with irritation. His voice is a low rumble that carries over the music. “She said we’re having a good time. Okay?”

“Maegan. It’s fine.” I don’t want to get into it with a stranger. I don’t want anything drawing attention to us. My nerves are so shot that I want to say I’ll go wait in the car. These earrings feel like little balls of fire in my pocket.

Maegan jerks her head toward me. “He’s our ride, and we need to go. Come on, Sam.”

Samantha pulls away from tall-dark-and-surly and gives Maegan a light shove at her shoulders. “Don’t you know I’m sick of people telling me what to do?” She takes a drink from her cup, then gives me the same light shove, speaking right into my face. “Leave if you wanna leave. I’ll get a ride.” Then she turns back to her new friend.

It takes me half a second to realize she’s drunk.

It takes me a full second to realize the implications of that. Once again, I’m so tangled up in my own problems that I forget it’s not all sunshine and roses for everyone else.

Maegan’s just as quick on the uptake. Her eyes are wide. “Oh my god. Sam. Are you out of your mind?”

“Would you just go?” Samantha snaps.

Maegan steps forward and grabs her arm. “I can’t leave you here like this. I can’t believe you’re drunk.”

“Hey,” says the guy. He pulls Samantha behind him. “She said she doesn’t want to leave with you.”

“She’s my sister,” Maegan snaps. “And she’s hammered.”

“Easy,” I say, putting a hand on her arm. Maegan has a fire inside her that rivals Samantha’s when she chooses to set it free, but the last thing we need is a fight in the middle of Connor’s living room.

“Everyone is drunk,” says the guy. “She doesn’t want to go with you.”

Maegan pulls free of my hand. “Yeah, well, she’s pregnant.”

The guy jerks back. His eyes go from Samantha’s face to her belly and back. “You’re what?”

“Forget it!” says Samantha. “Just forget it.”

She moves to push past her sister, but Maegan grabs her arm. “Please, Sam. Come on. Let’s go—”

Samantha whirls and slaps her square across the face.

She stumbles into it, so it’s not a hard slap, but Maegan cries out and falls back. Her hand flies to her cheek.

“Whoa.” I step in front of her, blocking Samantha before she can wind up for another hit.

“Get out of my way, Rob,” she says.

“You need to calm down.” We’ve started to draw the attention of everyone around us. There’s not much dancing going on. There’s a lot of staring.

Samantha shoves me in the chest. She’s strong, but she really is drunk, so she doesn’t rock me back.

I catch her wrists. “Stop. We’re leaving.”

“Go to hell.”

I want to get out of here so badly that I consider physically dragging her out the front door. “Fine. Stay here. I’m taking Maegan home.”

“No,” Maegan cries behind me. “We can’t leave her here like this.”

“I’m not a baby!” Samantha yells. “I’m eighteen years old, and you’re not my mother.”

“Lucky you,” Maegan says. “Mom will kill you.”

Samantha jerks her hands free. “Good. I guess that’ll solve a lot of problems, then, won’t it?”

I’ve run out of tolerance for this—but I also don’t want to leave Maegan’s drunk sister stranded. “Please,” I say to Samantha, and I can hear the urgency in my own voice. “Please, can we get out of here?”

She takes a breath. Her eyes are a little unfocused.

And then, because life likes to kick me even when I’m down, Connor shoves his way through the crowd. His eyes lock on me, and he pushes around Samantha to get in my face. “Should have known it was you causing a problem, Lachlan.”

“Give it a rest, Connor. I’m trying to leave.”