Execution (Off Balance 2)

I glanced at my glass and swirled the contents. Little spurts of anxiety fizzed and popped inside me the way they did in the glass.

I looked up. "She shouldn't have embarrassed me in front of my friends."

I had no idea where my balls came from.

A little smirk tugged at one corner of Xavier’s mouth. "A little freedom has made you a bit rebellious, I see."

I smiled, a little nervous, a little confident. I wouldn't admit it out loud, but I was worried to see her re

sponse.

"Defiant looks good on you," he added.

"I think she looks amazing."

Xavier whipped his head toward Avery and I swear his eyes dilated. "Ave." He dipped his chin, his intense gaze deliberately scanned the length of her body. "You look beautiful." He shot a quick look at Holly. "You too, Holly." But his eyes were already back on Avery while he loosened his tie.

"I look fucking amazing," Michael added, his arrogant tone made us laugh. He ran his hands down the front of his chest and smoothed out his shirt.

"Let's get this show on the road. People to meet, girls to do," Connor said, his voice a deep southern drawl.

I rolled my eyes. That dialect meant Michael would use the same one tonight. They once confessed they only used that voice when they wanted to pick up chicks. He thought girls loved a fine, southern gentleman.

Such pigs. What was funny was that southern girls could spot a fake a mile away. They just didn't know that.

We all raised our glasses, said a quick toast, and emptied the bottles of the remaining bubbly before heading down to the party.

* * *

The party was in full swing. There were guests everywhere dressed to the nines, music playing in the background, white gloved servers carrying trays of food and champagne. A proud smile slid across my face. I was enthusiastic about the night, especially since I got to spend it with all my friends I'd grown so close to.

A newfound attitude swept through me. It may have been the two glasses of champagne, but I felt free. I decided everything that had happened in the past was going to stay in the past. I wasn't going to dwell about how I could've changed things, or how I should've kept to myself and not engaged in a relationship with my coach.

What's done is done. New year, new me. New outlook, new goals.

Conner and Michael went in the opposite direction to do God knows what. Before they left, they told us if we wanted any alcohol to hit up the pool house, but I wasn't planning on drinking more, and neither were my friends. Possibly another glass of champagne when the ball dropped, but that was it.

Oh, God. Midnight. I could kill Avery. I had a sinking feeling Hayden was going to try and kiss me when the ball dropped.

Locking lips with him again wasn't on the list for the night—or year. An alligator walking on to my lawn was a higher possibility than that. My lips tingled at the memory and I brought my fingers to my mouth, curious as to what was on his mind. Hayden was a good kisser, but then again, I didn't have many kisses to compare it to.

I lifted my eyes toward Hayden and found him taking in the scene in awe. My home looked like something fresh out of a movie, and the more I studied him, more questions crowded my head. We'd kissed once before when I first moved to the west coast, a memory long forgotten, and nothing I'd thought would ever, in a million years, happen again.

But it did tonight. I didn't resist. I didn't pull away. I didn't question it. The slow caress of his lips said way more than what I was prepared for. Even though he'd been there for me at the drop of a hat when I needed him the most, I assumed he was disgusted after everything that went down with Kova.

I'd been wrong. So, so wrong. Friends don't kiss friends for the fun of it.

Stopping just before the steps to the deck and against my better judgement, I skimmed the crowd of Wonder Breads looking for one person. Wonder Breads. I laughed to myself at the use of Avery's phrase to describe fake, full of shit kind of people.

"Stop," Avery whispered in my ear, and clutched my forearm. I dragged my attention away from the crowd and frowned at her. "Don't make it obvious."

Recognition dawned on me and I gave a subtle, appreciative nod.

"Ana? Ana!"

Glancing over my shoulder, our eyes locked long enough between the flurry of people for Mom to get a glimpse of me. My heart froze when her eyes widened. Despite the rosy blush she'd dusted onto her cheeks, she looked like her oxygen had been cut off.

"I'm sorry your mom is such an asshole," Avery said, only for me to hear. I nodded, chewing my bottom lip, careful not to smear lipstick on my teeth. Inhaling, I drew in confidence and plastered on my social event face she'd taught me so well to wear.