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Tears pricked the backs of my eyes. “I’d choose you too, Disney. Always and forever.”
A tear spilled down her cheek, and I was pretty sure I had matching ones on mine. She grabbed me in a hug and held me tight.
I hugged her back, being careful not to squish her belly while sniffing and trying to smile all at once. “I love you. I don’t know how I lived most of my life without you, but I’m damn glad I don’t have to go another day like that. Even if all these lug heads we’ve accumulated fall off the edge of the earth, it’s you and me, and mini Disney ’til the end, right?”
She laughed into my shoulder. “Always and forever.”
I sobered. “I’m going away for a couple of days. To meet my dad’s family.” I screwed my face up. “That is if he’ll meet us there. I need to text him. But either way, I need to get out of here. I feel like I jumped out of the frying pan and into a fire.”
She nodded slowly. “You’re coming back though, right?”
I was. “My whole life is here. You. Fang. My home. Saint View is in my blood. But I need a minute to breathe. I’ll be back for the funeral and to face whatever needs facing.”
“I’ll see you at the church then.”
“Okay,” I said as the house lights lit the room, signaling the club was closing.
Vaughn stopped behind me. “You ready to go? Kian is back. He’s waiting outside in the car. I have your coat and purse.”
Bliss squeezed my fingers one last time and disappeared into the crowd that was quickly emptying out. It was always a little confronting at the end of a sex party. When the lights came on and the illusion shattered, people left quickly.
Vaughn held my coat up for me, and I slipped into it. He put his arm around me and, like I was some sort of celebrity who needed shielding from the paparazzi, hustled me out of the club to his father’s car, where Kian sat behind the wheel, engine already running. Vaughn put me into the back seat and went to follow me in, but I put a hand to his chest.
“Thanks, Kevin Costner, for giving me a Whitney moment, but I call dibs on the back seat. I’ve been working all night and I plan to make myself a cozy little nest back here. You’re in the front.”
He scowled at me, but I was already stretching out, ready to take a nice long nap. My feet were killing me, and my eyes were as gritty as sandpaper.
“Fine.” Vaughn closed the door and tried to get in the front seat.
Kian jerked the car forward so Vaughn couldn’t get a hand to the door.
Inside the car, Kian chuckled.
I shook my head. “You’re an asshole.”
He only laughed harder. “Oh, come on. He used to do this to me all the time when we were in high school. This is just payback.” He zoomed the car forward again and stopped just as abruptly, forcing Vaughn to keep running alongside the car, trying to grab the handle.
“Kian!” Vaughn shouted.
“Run faster! You almost had it that time!” Kian waited until Vaughn caught up then jerked forward once more.
A howl of pain from outside had Kian slamming his foot on the brake so hard I nearly fell off the seat.
Vaughn thumped on the outside of the car. “You’re on my foot!”
Kian peered back at him but laughed. “Yeah, sure I am, you faker. Come on, just get in. Let’s go.”
Vaughn glared at him through the back window. “I’d fucking love to. Do you know how to amputate the foot pinned beneath this tire so I can do that? Fuck, Kian!”
I widened my eyes at him. “I don’t think he’s joking!”
Kian jumped out and ran around to the other side, while I frantically slid across the back seat to lower the window.
Vaughn leaned heavily on the car, but when I looked down his body, sure enough, his foot was pinned beneath the tire.
I clapped a hand over my mouth and stared up at him in horror. “OMG. You aren’t joking. Are you okay?”
“Been better.”