Loving War (13 page)

Chapter 14

TRIA

My strapless dress is a shimmery silver, my cleavage is pumped to the nth degree, and the dress has a fitted feel that Kode seems to love. But… it seems to be completely ineffective tonight.

Kode is talking with some of the guys. I’m with Ash. And the distance between us feels like it’s suffocating me. He’s done well pretending I mean nothing to him. Very frigging well. He hasn’t even glanced in my direction all night.

I hate this—hate hiding
us
.

“Damn. The Sterling boys are looking mighty fine these days. I think they only get better the older they get,” Courtney Hughes says while joining us.

I hate her. I don’t even know why she’s here, other than to try and weasel in on Kade. Fortunately, Kade and Raya aren’t here for her to try and destroy. Unfortunately, her eyes keep raking over Kode every time he walks by.

“Yep,” Ash says, trying to be nice, but I can see her inwardly gagging every time Courtney speaks.

After grabbing another glass of champagne from a passing tray, I start chugging it. If I don’t bitch slap Courtney, I might crunch Kode’s balls. Neither would make me look very sane, so I need to drink so I can be nice.

“Brin couldn’t come?” Ash asks, trying to shift the subject off the Sterlings when Courtney talks about Corbin’s ass.

“No. She works at a museum, and tonight they’ve got some fundraising party there.”

I would really love to have Brin here right now.

“Damn. If Kode is smiling at Leisa Mosely, then he must be drunk.”

At Courtney’s words, I look up. Sure enough, Leisa is wrapping her pink manicured nails around Kode’s arm, and he’s smiling down at her. My stomach twists with a gnawing knot of jealousy that seems to be relentlessly clawing at me.

“Grip that glass any tighter, and it might break,” Ash says, eyeing me with curiosity.

I slowly loosen my hold on the champagne flute. This is torture.

“Well, if he’s paying her some attention, then I know I have a chance. Especially since we have history that I know he wouldn’t mind repeating.” Courtney’s smug declaration has my head spinning and my teeth crunching.

I shouldn’t be this jealous. We’ve barely been dating for any real amount of time. Hell, we can’t even go on an actual date. Yet I feel as though I could grind nails into dust with my teeth right now.

“Hey,” Ash says, nudging me. “Rye’s here. You know, I was thinking… If you don’t find a date for the wedding between now and then, you might consider asking him. He’s really a great guy.”

Other than the fact he never really smiles. Kode’s smile is my favorite part of the day.

Crap. Now I’m waxing poetic nonsense. I hate myself.

“Um… Yeah… We’ll see.”

My eyes are forced to peel themselves away from Kode and move to the duo walking into the large living room that is filled with guests. Ethan is beside Rye, both of them looking relaxed in their jeans and T-shirts with all their tattoos slithering down their skin. They should have been brothers.

Wren quickly joins them just as Rye’s eyes meet mine. He gives me a forced smile that doesn’t come close to looking real, and then he turns his attention back to the guys.

“He’s gorgeous,” Ash adds, as if I’m blind.

My eyes fall over to Kode who is now smiling and talking to Courtney
and
Leisa. He’s never this nice to anyone. Well, no one but his cousins, Rain, and me. But right now… Is he trying to hurt me? Because it’s working.

“Damn. Kode and Corbin look some kind of good right now,” Julie Crane says, causing me to groan. “Oh, and wow. Just saw Maverick and Dale. And damn, Wren, Ethan, and Rye are here, too. It’s like a Sterling Shore edible single men buffet.”

Ash laughs while turning her attention toward the socialite woman who doesn’t mean any harm. “Courtney is competing with Leisa for Kode,” Ash chuckles, unaware of the knife jabbing into my heart.

“Ah, well, that should end up in a cat fight. Then again, Kode enjoys watching drama. He’s a bit of an ass like that. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was intentionally pitting them against each other right now just for the fun of a showdown,” Julie says, further provoking the anger within me.

It’s on the tip of my tongue to defend him, but I rein in the urge. My champagne flute is suddenly empty, just like my tolerance-level for Kode’s antics.

“I think he’s gay,” I brazenly and randomly state.

Both women swivel their heads toward me, eyes wide in their faces. But Julie, the gossip she is, quickly pounces.

“Why?”

Shrugging, I prepare to wage a little war between myself and the sex god who is flaunting himself like a steak in front of two starving lionesses. He doesn’t date women from Sterling Shore very often. He’s barely had any real affairs here. I assume that had a lot to do with the fact he was into Rain for so long and didn’t want her thinking he was as bad as Corbin or Maverick.

But his lifestyle sets the stage for this little rumor that I’m about to spread.

“You said it yourself; he thrives on drama. What heterosexual male would prefer to pit two women against each other in hopes of a fight, as opposed to trying to appease them and get one—if not both—into bed? And when do you ever see him with a date? Never. He’s in the closet, obviously, and doing what he can to keep up pretenses, but if he were straight, wouldn’t he have already made a move on someone by now?”

Ha. Julie’s expression is priceless, and I watch as the light bulb goes on in her mind, her wheels slowly turning. It’s easy to manipulate someone who is eager for something as juicy as this detail.

Ash starts to speak, but then doesn’t. Instead, she suppresses a grin as Julie excuses herself for some ridiculous reason. She runs a whole two steps before whispering in the ears of two women. When their heads snap to the right to look at Kode, I bite back a grin.

“You’re so going to have to pay for that. What the hell are you thinking?” Ash asks, but the humor in her voice is evident.

“Couldn’t help myself,” I say without shame, swapping my empty glass with a full one on another passing tray.

A few gasps ring out, letting me know the rumor has more than likely been spiced up and morphed into something jarring by now. Crap. There’s no telling what it’ll be by the time it reaches him.

No. I refuse to regret it. He’s being an ass right now, so he deserves this. Maybe all the women will leave him alone if they hear he’s yet another delicious bit of eye candy that is batting for the other team.

Rye waves me over, and I smirk in Kode’s direction. Of course he doesn’t notice me. If he wants to be this big of a dick, then let the games begin.

***

KODE

Tria isn’t in my peripheral anymore, and it’s irking me because if I turn and try to find her, it’ll be obvious to her that I’m seeking her out.

I’m ready to rip Courtney’s head off and spit down her throat. One time. I got drunk enough to stupidly end up in bed with her
one
time. Now she acts as though it was supposed to be a night to remember. Hell, she would much rather be with Kade, and right now, I’m wishing he was here to deal with her drama instead of me.

Leisa… I swear she has some serious self-image issues. I actually feel bad for her, which is unusual, but not bad enough to keep letting her grate on my nerves.

Why me?

“Corbin is close to launching his newest website. You really should talk to him about it,” I say, throwing him under the bus in an effort to save myself.

Neither girl stops talking to me. My head is going to explode.

Don’t look at Tria. Don’t look at Tria.
That’s been tonight’s mantra for me.

She said for me to treat her like I used to, and I’ve decided to be maliciously obedient—do
exactly
as she said. If she wants me to be a cold and dismissive dick toward her in front of everyone, then she’s going to get the full effect. Maybe next time she won’t be so eager to toss that out there like it’s not a big fucking deal.

Dane is holding onto Rain, his arms draped casually around her shoulders and holding her back to his front. That sight used to sicken me, but now I feel… not a damn thing. It’s like I’ve had chains unlocked, and it feels so damn good.

The growing number of older socialites is annoying me. I get sick of going to my parents’ functions and having to deal with the elite crowd who want to speak to a Sterling. This was supposed to be a reprieve.

Deciding to note that to Corbin, I move to his side, also hoping to leave behind the women vying for my attention. I’m seconds away from exploding on them. It was fun to play when Tria was watching. Now that she’s not, all I can think about is pointing out all their flaws and giving them complexes to last a lifetime just to get them the hell away from me.

“Why the hell are there so many of our parents’ friends here? I thought it was just going to be us tonight,” I say to Corbin.

I try to disentangle myself from the two sets of hands that seem to have followed me to Corbin’s side. Stupid fucking party.

Corbin snickers while Dane groans, his eyes burning down at Rain who bats her lashes with faux innocence.

“Rain invited our neighbors because she didn’t want to be rude. And from there, well, apparently no one had anything to do tonight.”

Corbin continues laughing when Rain gets cornered by one of her stepmother’s friends. Man, I can go to these elite functions anytime. This was supposed to just be our close friends for Maverick’s birthday. He’s going to demand another—

“You guys owe me another birthday night,” Maverick says while walking up, scowling at Rain who is engaged in some asinine conversation about petunias versus roses for a garden.

Leisa weighs in on the flower conversation, while Courtney tugs on my arm, asking me about my next trip to New York. I wisely don’t mention when I’m going.

“I love Tria’s dress. I want one like it,” Ash says, sidling up next to Tag just as he joins us.

Shit. I love Tria’s dress, too. In fact, if it were any sexier, I’d probably have already hauled her out of here.

“Get one,” Tag says, sliding his hand around Ash’s waist before kissing her cheek.

It must be nice to not have to hide a relationship. Never thought I’d envy Tag Masters for any reason.

I keep waiting on Tria to get pissed enough to end the charade and claim me in front of everyone. She was staring at me forever, and now I have no idea where she has gone.

Discreetly, I turn and move to the bar that is set up, letting my eyes lazily roam over the crowd. I order a crown and coke, and tap my fingers restlessly while letting my eyes peruse the crowd once more.

Then I see her. She’s right beside Rye Fucking Clanton. Shit. I didn’t consider the fact that if I pushed her, that she might push me back. My teeth grind, but I take a deep breath instead of losing my mind.

Sylvia Pratt walks up to me, smiling as though she has a secret. Since she’s one of my mother’s friends, I muster up the courtesy to acknowledge her. That proves to be a mistake when she takes it as an invitation for conversation.

“Well, Kode, at least I finally understand why you never would ask Ilene out.”

Ilene? Oh, yeah. Her daughter that she’d love to marry off to a Sterling.

“Mrs. Pratt, sorry. I must have forgotten. My schedule stays rather busy.”

She pats my arm, but it almost seems patronizing for some reason. “It’s okay, Kode. Really. This is the twenty-first century. And this is a great area that doesn’t judge for such things.”

What? I have no idea what rocks are loose inside her head.

“Um… I’m missing something,” I say unsurely.

“You poor thing. You shouldn’t be ashamed. I tell you what I’ll do. My sister has a son, and he’s very nice, charming, and a very good catch. I’ll introduce you.”

It takes me a second to wrap my mind around her words, but when I do, I’m positive I heard her wrong. Had to.

“Say what now?” I ask in an unusual octave that has me immediately clearing my throat.

“His name is Martin. He’s a lovely man. He’s in law school right now, but he’s not far from taking the bar exam.”

What… the… hell?

“Um… Mrs. Pratt, I think you’ve… There’s a mistake here. I’m not gay.”

A few snickers emerge from women nearby, their eyes moving over to me. The collar on my shirt seems to start choking me when all the eyes say the same thing. What the hell is going on?

“Kode, sweetie, it’s time to be honest with yourself and everyone else. I’ve always thought you were a little too angry for a man with such a wonderful family. I understand it now. You sad, sweet boy. If someone can’t be themselves, it makes them a bottle of fury.”

Oh, I’m a bottle of fury alright. Especially when Tria finds my eyes and gives me a conspiratorial wink. I glare at her, but she merely smiles and raises her glass of champagne in a toasting motion, as if to say she just screwed me over and loves it.

Cracking my neck to the side, I rein in all that anger that I apparently don’t deserve to have—according to Sylvia Pratt.