Freya pointed in my direction. “Look at her, Bree! Look at that smile! Look how happy she is every single day. There are no problems in that area. I don’t need to know any more.”
Izzy’s cheeks were flushed, and as the youngest of the bunch, I figured this conversation might be too much for her. But then she met my gaze. “Well, you could tell us something…”
My mouth dropped open in mock horror. “Isabelle! I’m shocked!”
She chuckled and I smiled at her, glad she felt comfortable enough with us to joke around.
“I am disturbed by this conversation,” I said, and sucked at my drink through the straw. “Are you all imagining what my man is like in bed?”
“Not imagining,” Alison said. “Just… wondering.”
“I wonder what this says about my man,” Bree mused. “I bet none of you have imagined what Jude’s like in bed!”
Another chorus of laughter rang out, and I said, “Well, I’ve never imagined it, but that doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with him. Jude’s gorgeous.”
He was, too. But he was so quiet he often got bypassed for the likes of Radleigh, Bryce, and Cody.
“He is gorgeous,” Bree agreed, nodding. “And in case you were wondering, he’s hung like a horse.”
I threw my head back as the laughter continued.
“I do not need to know this,” Freya said, giggling. “Please stop.”
“You love it!” I nudged her arm. “But if we must change the subject, what would you like to talk about?”
“Nothing. I think it’s time we hit the dancefloor!” She grabbed my hand and pulled me up, leading me out amongst the crowds.
After a couple of hours of drinking cocktails, laughing, and dancing, I considered my hen party a total success. My girls and I were having the time of their lives, and as I spun around on the dancefloor, I loved everyone and everything.
Life gets really good after a few cocktails.
“Leah!”
Freya’s voice cut through my happy musings, and I smiled at her, grabbing her hands. “Dance with me!”
She shook her head. “I can’t right now. I need you to come outside with me.”
I stared at her as if she’d grown another head. “What? No way! It’s party time!”
“Leah. You need to come with me now.” I could barely stand up straight as Freya took my arm and led me from the dancefloor.
“No!” I protested, trying to dig my heels into the floor. I wanted to dance, dammit!
“Leah, please, it’s important.”
Had I been fully lucid, or even just a tad more sober, I’d have noted the concern on her face a lot faster. As it was, though, all I cared about was getting my groove on, and I grumbled as she dragged me outside.
“Fuck, it’s cold out here!” It probably wasn’t but it felt like a hundred degrees inside the club, and in my drunken state, the shock of the cool air was like having a bucket of ice water thrown over me.
“Leah!” Freya put her hands on my shoulders and shook me a little to stop me trying to get back inside. “I need you to focus. And I need you to stay calm because we’re gonna have to move real fast as soon as I tell you what I have to tell you. Can you please stay with me?”
The beginning of concern began to trickle into my consciousness as I stared at her. “Okay.”
She closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. “I don’t really know the best way to tell you this, but there’s been an accident. Well, not an accident…I… Bryce just called me. Radleigh’s in the hospital.”
My eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”
“I mean Radleigh is in the hospital. He’s… he’s been stabbed.”