Gates of Paradise (Blue Bloods 7)

“Soco?” Oliver sniffed.

“Southern Comfort?” Finn laughed. “Ever heard of it? It tastes okay with Seven Up.”

Oliver scrunched his face.

“You’re such a snob, Ollie,” Schuyler chided. “Come on, let’s have a beer.” She didn’t really want one, but if they were going to try to fit in, they had to do what the natives did.

Reaching the keg seemed impossible, though—there were so many people swarming it: preppy boys in their gingham button-downs over T-shirts and jeans, girls in ironic grandma dresses, everyone jostling for red plastic cups. “You have to be aggressive at parties like this,” Finn said, and used her elbows to muscle her way up to the keg.

“Impressive,” Oliver noted.

A tall boy in a lacrosse hoodie nudged Oliver out of the way and handed Schuyler a beer. “Here. Pretty girl like you shouldn’t have to wait for a drink.”

“Oh, thanks,” she said, a bit unsure whether it was a good idea to accept.

“At your service, m’lady. May the gentleman inquire as to your name?”

“Oh, leave her alone, Trevor,” Finn said, with three beers balanced in her hands. She gave one to Oliver and nodded to Schuyler. “Looks like you’re all set, and you’ve met our resident lothario. Trevor, go find some naive freshman to hit on. Schuyler’s with me.”

“It was worth a shot.” Trevor shrugged and made his way back into the crowd.

“Oh, he was harmless,” Schuyler said.

“Sure, if you’re looking for a one-nighter with no phone call afterward,” Finn said.

“Speaking from personal experience?” Oliver asked.

Already jealous, Schuyler noted. Interesting.

“No, that’s Ivy’s territory. More beer for us, though.” Finn took a long drink from her cup and motioned for Oliver to do the same, then nearly spit it out when she saw the look on Oliver’s face as he downed his drink.

“Come on, it tastes like New York tap water,” Schuyler said to him. “Don’t be so uptight.” It wouldn’t hurt him to have a few drinks to loosen up in front of Finn, she figured.

After two beers Schuyler felt a little looser herself, so she decided to go exploring. Unfortunately, the rest of the house was even grimier than the parts she’d seen. The bathroom had apparently never been cleaned; there were rings of mildew around both the tub and the toilet, and the bedrooms were carpeted with what had once been beige shag and was now trampled brown. The undergrads were boisterously drunk, and after watching one of them vomit into the pot of a long-dead plant, Schuyler decided it was time to go.

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nbsp; Oliver and Finn were in the living room, dancing to some horrible pop song. She hadn’t seen Oliver dance since the old days at the Bank. She’d forgotten what a good dancer he was. He was pretty smooth, she noticed. He blended in so well with the college crowd that she hated to drag him away. “I think I need to get out of here,” she whispered.

“Would you totally hate me if I stayed here with Finn? I’m actually having a really good time.”

It was just as she’d expected. “No problem. Our flight leaves first thing in the morning, though, so if you don’t come home, text me and I’ll meet you there, with your luggage. Finn, would you mind if I went back to your dorm? I think I left something there.”

“Oh, sure,” Finn said. “Someone can let you in the front door, and my apartment’s unlocked. I know it’s totally unsafe, but my roommate’s always forgetting her keys, and we don’t have much to steal.”

“Thanks a lot,” she said. Easier than she’d expected. She didn’t like lying to Finn, but it was better than breaking in and risking getting caught.

“I’ll walk you out,” Oliver said.

“You don’t have to,” she said.

“I want to.”

Oliver helped her elbow her way through the crowd until they made it outside. “Are you sure you’re okay with this? You know I’d normally go with you, but…”

“I understand,” she said.

“The thing is, I don’t know if this is weird, but…”