Left Behind: Left Behind Series #1 (4 page)

“Of
course. I never forget a pretty face. How’s it going?”

“Hey,
Joe. Good to see you again,” Jade answers in her flirty voice.

“This
is a friend of ours. Kacie Foster.” Jake introduces me, putting his hand on the
small of my back.

“Nice
to meet you, Kacie Foster.” Joe smiles at me. “You related to the dude having
the party tonight?”

“That
would be my brother,” I say politely.

“She
tends to find as much trouble as my little sister, so please help me keep an
eye on them tonight,” Jake tells Joe.

“Hey!
I do not, Jake Quinn!” I snap at him.

Joe
laughs, but promises to watch out for us as Jake ushers the two of us inside.

The
first floor is where the main bar is. There’s a dance floor off to the right
and the bar is across the back of the room. Tables and stools are scattered
about and appear to be full. The blue lights are already dimmed, making it hard
to look around, but from what I remember, it’s very contemporary.

“Elevators
are over to the left! Take it to the top floor!” Jake shouts above the music.
“I’m going to hang out down here! If you girls need anything, just text me!”

“Sure
you don’t want to come up?!” I ask him. “The more you drink, the more it costs
my father!”

“I’ll
hang out with you girls anytime you aren’t with your family!” Jake says,
putting his arm around me and kissing Jade on her cheek. “Have fun! I’ll be
ready the second you need to be rescued!” I nod my thanks as Jade pulls me
toward the elevators.

She
pushes the button and the metallic door promptly slides open. As the elevator
starts to climb, I can feel my dinner rising in my stomach. “Take a deep breath
and relax,” she says. “We don’t have to stay long. Just make an appearance and
then, if you want, we can go to any other club or bar in town.”

“It
doesn’t take long for my parents to sink their claws into my skin, Jade,” I
remind her just as a chime dings, telling me I’m about to meet my doom.

“You
got this,” she encourages from beside me. “Besides, how bad can they be when
they’re out in public?”

The
instant I step foot out of the elevator, it’s almost as if the excessively
crowded room parts and my mother walks toward me. She’s just a bit taller than
me, but makes up for it in the highest heels she can find. Her naturally dirty
blond hair has always been dyed to be a prettier shade of brown. We look
absolutely nothing alike. People have actually asked if I was adopted because
my red, curly hair matches no one in the family. The truth is, my mother has
had more cosmetic work done than anyone will ever know.

“Hello,
Mrs. Foster,” Jade attempts to intercept her.

“Jade,”
my mother barely acknowledges. “Well, it’s about time you showed up to your own
brother’s party.” She glares at me. I can feel my neck tightening up. It’s
extremely hard to resist the urge to rub it.

“Hello
to you, too, Mom,” I say, sarcastically. “Considering the party just started
about ten seconds ago, I would hardly consider myself late.”

Why
the hell would a fifty-something woman really need to come to a nightclub for
this party? Sophia Foster never, and I mean never, misses a party or any chance
she can get to show herself off. Then, as if on cue, she leans over and kisses
my cheek for anyone paying attention to her.

She
ignores me and continues with her condescending remarks. “You finally get back
into town after being away for months and you don’t even call your mother to
tell her? It’s bad enough you aren’t even staying with your parents.”

“I
haven’t lived with you for almost five years. Why would I move back there now?
And I just got back a few hours ago,” I lie to her. “I know better than to
interrupt when you’re at Lorenzo’s.” Before every outing my mother goes on,
she’ll spend two or three hours at an overpriced salon to “look her best”, as
she says.

“I
would always take a phone call from my only daughter,” she says, trying to play
“Mom of the Year”.

“I
know, but you wouldn’t like it,” I retort, not trying quite as hard to play
“Daughter of the Year”.

“I
understand you wouldn’t have had time to go shopping, so that explains the
hideous dress. However, you could have done something with your hair. This
family still has an image to maintain, despite you traveling from town to town.
I taught you better than that, dear.” She smiles at me before looking around to
see if anyone is watching.

I
can sense that Jade is ready to attack my mother, so I excuse us before she
does. “I’m going to go find Noah to congratulate him on his promotion. We’ll
catch up with you in a little bit, Mom,” I say, grabbing my best friend’s arm
and pulling her with me.

“Jesus
Christ, Kacie. That woman gets bitchier the older she gets,” Jade says through
clenched teeth as soon as we’re far enough away.

“Tell
me about it. I need a drink. Now,” I mumble. We stroll up to the bar and Jade
orders two strawberry martinis as I try to spot my brother in the mob. How the
hell does he know so many people?

“I
say we find your brother and get the hell out of here,” she grumbles. “That
bitch has no right talking to you like that.”

“That’s
my mom, Jade. You just have to ignore her.”

“How
the hell do you ignore that?” she demands.

“Kacie,”
I hear my brother’s voice from behind me. When I turn and see him, my heart
softens a bit. This is why I’m here. I really missed him.

“Noah,”
I say, walking over to him. Immediately, his arms fall around me and he
squeezes me. “Congrats, big brother. I’m so proud of you!”

“Thank
you.” He smiles. “This whole thing is overkill, but you know Addison wouldn’t
hear of not having this party. I’m so glad you’re here. I missed you, kiddo!”

“I’m
glad, too,” I say, half-heartedly.

“Don’t
lie to me. I bet you’re plotting your escape as we speak. I saw Mom swoop in
like a vulture the moment you walked in.” He sighs. “Sorry. I couldn’t get
there in time to save you. I was in the middle of talking to someone.”

“I
am glad to see you. Our parents, though? Not so much.”

“Hi,
Jade.” Noah greets her a lot better than my mother did. “Thanks for coming with
her tonight.”

“Sure,”
she tells him, sipping on her drink.

“How
was school? I’m sure you did well this semester,” he asks me.

“Still
have my perfect GPA,” I proudly tell him.

“I
wouldn’t doubt it,” he says, as his girlfriend walks up beside him. Addison
Morgan is basically a five foot, ten inch blonde super model. She’s a
professional cheerleader or, at least, she used to be. I don’t really keep up
with her. She also used to be an exotic dancer, but I don’t know if my parents
know that or not. They won’t learn it from me. This nightclub is her kind of
place. My guess is she planned the whole thing and my parents just paid for it.

“Hi,
Kacie,” she says. “Welcome home.”

“Thanks,
Addie. You look beautiful, as always,” I say. My mother adores Addison. More
than once, she’s commented how I should be more like her. It doesn’t cause me
to have any hard feelings for the girl my brother loves, though. She really is
sweet.

“That’s
very nice of you.”

“Well,
there she is,” another obnoxious voice rings. My shoulders and jaw tighten once
again.

“Hi,
Dad,” I say when he reaches my side. The smell of his whiskey burns my nose.
Jade steps back to sit on the barstool next to where I’m standing. I’m not sure
if it’s to get away from the smell or from him.

“So,
how come you came back to town this summer? You need money or something?” my
father questions as if I’m still a small child.

“No,”
I say. The ironic thing about that question is I haven’t asked him for a dime
since long before I moved out.

“Dad,
tonight’s a celebration. Let’s not do this now,” Noah steps in. I shake my head
at him. I’ve been dealing with this my whole life. A few hours won’t hurt me.

“I’ll
say whatever the hell I want, whenever I want. And who the hell knows when
we’ll see her again, so I may as well get it out now.” A guy who looks
familiar, but I can’t place, steps up next to my dad. “There you are. Kacie,
you remember
Doctor
Sean Murphy?” He had to emphasize the doctor part of
his name as if it would impress me.

“No,
actually, I don’t,” I say, uninterested, and attempt to turn my back on him.

“I
met you when you were home in January,”
Doctor
Sean Murphy volunteers.

That
jogs my memory. “Ah, I remember now. You were the douche bag who tried hitting
on me at my grandmother’s funeral,” I snap. Jade chokes on her drink and
Addison elegantly tries to contain her laugh.

“Watch
your mouth, Kacie,” my dad warns.

“My
mistake,” I apologize with a fake smile. “You’re
doctor
douche bag who
tried hitting on me at my grandmother’s funeral.” I’m starting to lose my
patience. After downing the rest of my drink, I slam the glass on the bar.
“Excuse me, Noah. Addie. I need to use the ladies room. Jade.” I motion for her
to follow me and leave my father standing there before he says something else.

Safely
inside the restroom, I grab onto both sides of the sink, breathing in and out
rhythmically. Jade is silent while I calm myself down. When my moment passes,
she raises her eyebrows at me. “What the fuck was that?”

“I’m
assuming you’re referring to the warm welcome I just received from my parents,”
I say, starting to laugh. I can’t control it. If the laugh doesn’t come out
now, it will come out as tears later.

“Kacie,
how the hell do you deal with this shit? I was about to break the glass and
stab your father in the throat,” she growls.

“I
don’t
deal with it, Jade. I usually hold it in until I crack, then I run away from
home,” I remind her, still trying to calm down.

“Let’s
go. You don’t need to tolerate this bullshit.”

“I’m
not here for them,” I sigh.

Addison
pops her head in the door and blurts out, “Your mom and dad were just talking.
Now she’s looking for you.”

“Thanks,
Addie,” I say. I knew there was a reason I liked her. A little warning is nice.
She nods and disappears. “It’s a shame there aren’t any windows in here or I’d
jump.”

“Time
to dance?” Jade smiles.

“Yup.”

We
go back out and immediately hide in the middle of the dance floor. A waitress
is walking through, so we ask for two more martinis. About eight songs and two
drinks each later, my mother finally finds me. “Kacie, I need to speak with you
right now!” she shouts and turns away. I have no choice except to follow.
She’ll make a bigger scene if I don’t.

Jade
says, “I’ll wait right here for you. Come back when you’re done.”

“How
dare
you speak to Sean like that?” she starts as soon as I’m within
hearing range. “He’s a very sweet man. Your father is trying to find someone to
take care of you so we don’t have to for the rest of our lives. The least you
could do is be polite.”

“Find
someone for me? What the hell are you talking about?” I almost yell.

“Kacie,
you have been acting like a child long enough. Sean is a well-respected surgeon
and will be able to support you through medical school, if you even make it
until the end. Now grow up. If you didn’t piss him off by the way you acted,
he’ll be asking you out. Your answer will be yes, do you understand me?”

I
don’t take threats very well, especially from her. “What are you saying? You
want me to
marry
this guy?”

“Marriage
is a little premature, but maybe he’ll eventually be able to tolerate you
enough,” my mother declares, folding her arms over her chest.

“I’m
twenty-one years old. I have my whole life ahead of me. You expect me to marry
someone I don’t even know?!” Now I am yelling and I’m not worried about who
hears me, either.

“I
expect you to date him.”

“No.”

“If
you don’t, we will take the house now. We’re only tolerating you living there
for the time being,” she informs me.

“Gram
left it to me! Not you. Not Dad.” I start to choke up.

“You
cannot afford to live there on your own. Your grandmother’s estate is paying
for it right now but, eventually, that money will run out. You have until then
to win Sean over or else the house goes up for sale,” she finishes and walks
away.

Anger,
confusion, and sadness are all running through me right now. That’s a nasty
combination, especially when you toss in the alcohol. The room just became too
small and I need some fresh air. I find Jade and tell her I’m just stepping out
to clear my head. She offers to come with me, but I tell her I really need to
be alone at the moment. Fortunately, she understands the way I tick.

Once
I’m back on the ground floor of Skyline, I head for the bar. Lucky for me,
someone gets up from a stool as soon as I reach it.