Society Girls: Sierra (22 page)
Read Society Girls: Sierra Online
Authors: Crystal Perkins
“Reina invited me.”
“You’re not mad at her anymore for
London?”
“No. I should be mad at you for setting it
up, but I’m not. I needed a date, and she needed entrance to that
party. It would’ve been nice to know that she was only using me to
make her husband jealous, but at least she wasn’t clinging to me
after or expecting a piece of jewelry.”
“It must so hard to be you,” Rhieve says
with a sneer. Didn’t see that one coming.
“Don’t be catty, Rheive. It’s not a good
look on you,” Calum tells her.
“Do you have to go to a special school to
learn how to be such a smug bastard, or does it just come
naturally?”
“Oh, it’s natural. I don’t need anyone to
teach me how to handle you.”
“You’ll never
handle
me,
asshole.”
“I wouldn’t want to.”
Jenysis is watching this exchange with wide
eyes. “You two know each other?”
“Not since we were nine years old.”
“Oh. I always forget that you weren’t born
in the U.K.”
“I could tell,” I say, causing everyone to
look my way. I shrug. “What? He doesn’t talk like a Brit, even
though he has the accent.”
“Yes, well. It was good seeing you, Jen, but
you should really think about who you surround yourself with.”
Her gaze gets icy, then. “And maybe you
should watch what you say about my friends.”
“I thought I was your friend.”
“You both are. Don’t try and make me
choose.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he says, kissing her
cheeks before leaving.
“Can we leave soon? I love your friends, but
this night is getting a little intense,” I tell Sierra.
“One dance?”
“Of course.”
I hold her close while we dance and don’t
let her go after we’ve left the dance floor. I’ve finally gotten
her back, and although we’ll be apart more often than not over the
next few months, I’m never going to let her go again.
Neveah
I needed a break from my
friends and our revolving table of drama, and the silent auction
items seem like a great place to escape to. I peruse the trips, the
meals, the show tickets, and the jewelry, but none of it really
catches my eye. I have some money to donate, but I don’t want to go
home with any old thing just because I want
something
.
As I walk a little further down the tables,
I see the guns. There are some ugly black ones, but there’s also
one with an intricately inlaid handle. It’s beautiful, which is
ironic, since it’s still a death bringer, no matter what it tries
to look like.
I hate guns. Even in the hands of someone
who is trained to use them, accidents can happen. A man walking by
can be killed. I’ll never blame Matt for killing my father, but I
can’t help but blame the gun he was using. I know I have to get
over my fear in order to become a full member of the Society, but
can I? I don’t really know.
I’m drawn to the pretty gun, though. So much
so, in fact, that I walk over and look closer. I want to touch it.
But then again, I don’t. I reach out my hand, tentatively, but a
voice to the side of me stops me.
“No touching the weapons, Ma’am.” I turn to
see a police officer glaring at me.
“I’m sorry. I assumed they were
unloaded.”
“They are, but we still would prefer if you
didn’t touch them.”
“You’d
prefer
, so I can touch them if I
want.”
“I would ask you not to. You seem a little
young for this crowd. Can I ask what you’re doing here?”
“Have you asked every guest who’s come by
here?”
“No.”
“Yet, you’re asking me. Is my dress not
designer enough for you?” I ask, looking down at the fancy dress
Stella gave me to wear. I’m pretty sure it retails for more than
his salary for the month, but I got it for free. He has the decency
to look embarrassed that he’s been called out. “I have nothing to
hide, Officer, so I’ll tell you. I’m here because I’m an intern
with the Corrigan & Co. Foundation.”
“Oh,” he says, his eyes going wide. “I’m so
sorry. I didn’t know. Please excuse me.”
“I accept your apology, but I can’t excuse
you. Racial profiling is something I live with every day, but it is
not something I will ever accept.”
“As you shouldn’t,” Dylan Gallagher tells
me, walking over to us.
“I’ll be going back to my post. I truly am
sorry.”
The officer walks away, and I turn to do the
same, but Dylan’s hand on my arm stops me. “Does that happen a
lot?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t look like a terrorist.”
“And what exactly does a terrorist look
like, Mr. Gallagher?”
“Shit. That was a stupid thing to say. I’m
sorry.”
“I seem to be hearing that phrase quite a
bit this evening.”
“Yeah, I guess you are,” he says, rubbing
the back of his neck. “Call me Dylan, please, Neveah.”
“How do you know my name?”
“My sister told me.”
“What exactly did she tell you?” I ask,
curious since Ellie isn’t my mentor and should have no reason to
discuss me with her brother.
“Just your name. I asked her who the
gorgeous girl in the red dress was, and she gave me your name. And
a warning to stay away from you.”
“Well you are better known for your playing
off the court than on it.”
“You wound me. I’ll have you know that I was
MVP. That means ‘Most Valuable Player.”
“Did you really just insult my intelligence?
And women actually sleep with you?”
“It happens,” he says with a shrug.
“You either have a large penis, which is
doubtful, because of your attitude.”
“Hey, now.”
“Or you’re good at what you do.”
“I’ve had no complaints. Back to my dick,
though. It’s a decent size.”
“Ah, trying to downplay now. You’re good at
reacting. I’ll give you that.”
“I’m also good at shooting a gun.”
“Excuse me?”
“You and the cop were facing off over that
gun. Do you want to know how to shoot it?”
“It’s not mine to shoot.”
He walks over to the listing and scribbles
something on the paper. “After tonight, it will be. Do you want me
to teach you how to shoot it? No strings. We can just be
friends.”
“What’s in it for you?”
“If I play my cards right and stop being an
ass, maybe I’ll convince you to be more than friends with me.”
“I didn’t think you needed to put out so
much effort to get a girl into your bed.”
“I don’t.”
“Oh.”
“Does that ‘oh’ translate to a ‘yes’?”
“It shouldn’t.”
“But?”
“Yes, I’d like to be your friend. And I’d
like…I’d like you to teach me how to shoot that gun.”
“Perfect,” he says, handing me his phone.
“Give me your number and I’ll text you tomorrow to work out the
details.
I shouldn’t be doing this. I should just
learn from Faith like I’d planned to. That’s the problem, though. I
always do what I plan and what everyone else expects. I want
something different this time. Something spontaneous just for me. I
want to learn to shoot a gun…and I want Dylan Gallagher. So I put
my number in his phone and hope that he’s not playing me.
Find out what happens with Neveah and Dylan
in
Society Girls: Neveah, Coming in February 2016!
I always thank my girls first, and that will
never stop! I love you Dominique, and Gabi! Being your mom brings
me so much joy every single day!
To Helen, who sent me a mock-up of a new
style of cover (Rhieve’s), which was of course AMAZING! You never
cease to wow me with your cover designs, and your friendship! I
love you, lady :)
To Jesse, thanks for always going the extra
mile with the formatting, and working as fast as you can! I
appreciate you more than you’ll ever know!
To Ally, thanks for fixing my commas and
trying to make me use proper grammar! You’re a great friend IRL,
too!
To my Friends of the Society group, thanks
for always giving me your opinions on covers, names, and how fast
I’m writing! You guys are the best!
To those of you who said Sierra, Rose,
Jenysis, and Wayne needed their own books, thanks for your
enthusiasm, and I hope you love them even more when you read their
stories!
And I especially want to thank all of you
who chose to read this book, and my others! I love my characters
and books, and it means the world to me that you’ve fallen in love
with them, too!
Those of you who know me and/or follow me on
Goodreads, know I’m a huge reader myself! I love to read, and if
you’re looking for something great, I’d love to recommend the
following authors (many of whom I’m lucky enough to call my friends
as well):
Lauren Blakely, Tracy Wolff, Tera Lynn
Childs, Codi Gary, Rachel van Dyken, Monica Murphy, Christina
Lauren, M. Malone, Jen McLaughlin, Megan Erickson, Sophie Jordan,
Jennifer Armentrout, Jay Crownover, Cora Carmack, Christina Lee,
Sawyer Bennett, Crista McHugh, Katie Reus, Jessica Lemmon, Lauren
Layne, Mira Lyn Kelly, Caisey Quinn, Jamie Shaw, Katee Robert,
Tigris Eden, Allison Packard, Brigid Kemmerer, Julie Brannagh, Elle
Kennedy, Erin McCarthy, Jennifer Dawson, Claudia Connor.
There are lots more I know I’m forgetting,
so I’ll give you a whole new set next month!
Crystal Perkins has always been a big
reader, but she never thought she would write her own book, until
she sat down and did it one day. She lives in Las Vegas, where you
can find her running author events and selling books at conventions
when she isn’t reading, buying too many Sherlock t-shirts online or
finding a place to put all of her Pop! figurines. A mac and cheese
connoisseur, she travels the country looking for the perfect
version, while attending book conventions and signings as a cover
for her research. The Griffin Brothers series and the Corrigan
& Co. series are international best sellers, and she’s thankful
to the readers who made that happen!
Find her here: