“Please.” She bats her hand at the empty air. “I’ve been over him. He was fun, but I think I put more thought into it than I should have. I mean, we dated in high school, for God’s sake.”
I let out a long breath of relief but try to hide it, focusing on applying my mascara in the mirror beside Cassie. After Kip broke things off with Erin, she was a mess, but only for a few days. Before the cruise, we talked about everything – the deal, the presidency, her and Kip… me and Kip. She had basically said the same thing then, that it was different with him and she wasn’t upset about it, but I know Erin, and I wasn’t sure I could believe she’d gotten over it that quickly. But now, she’s on the prowl looking for someone to bring home. If that isn’t the green light go sign, I don’t know what is.
Still, I wonder if it’s too early to let everyone know about me and Kip.
I’ve thought about what I would do if everyone reacted the way I think they would. If my sisters were pissed, if I didn’t get president, if everything just kind of went to shit. At first, it frightened me. Being president is in my “blood”, so to say. My Big is president, her Big was president, so on and so forth for who knows how long. I would break our biggest Greek family tradition if I didn’t step up next year, if the girls didn’t trust me enough to elect me. Maybe it’s Kip messing with my head, but for some reason, I don’t care as much as I used to. I want to be president, I think I would make an amazing president, but at the end of the day… I just want to be me. And me likes Kip. A lot.
“I like this plan.” Jess nods, taking another shot. “I vote we all bring someone home tonight.” She pauses, considering what she just said. “At different times, of course. No orgy business on Spring Break.” We all burst out into laughter and Jess shrugs, smiling as she hands a shot to Ashlei.
I nudge my Little, eying her in the mirror. “You think you’ll be cozying up with Kade tonight?”
She blushes. “I don’t know. He’s still… emotionally unavailable, I guess. We’ve been hanging out, but I can’t tell what he’s thinking.”
My mouth pulls to the side as I digest her words. Funny, Kade has been with Kip almost the entire cruise and I haven’t really seen Cassie with him. Maybe they’re sneaking around, too.
“He’s a boy.” I smile, handing her my favorite lip gloss. She returns my smile as she applies it, checking herself again in the mirror. “He’ll come around eventually. Just give him time to break down his feelings. For some reason, that’s hard for them.” And for me, apparently.
Cassie nods, handing back the tube of gloss. “Thanks, Big. I think things are looking up.”
After we’re all dressed and ready and the room is just shy of a hundred degrees from all the blow-dryer and curling iron heat, we head to the piano bar onboard. Everyone is pre-gaming there tonight before heading to the club. My palms grow sweaty the closer we get to the bar. I can’t wait to see Kip, and now that I know Erin has her own agenda, I can’t help but think tonight might be the night Kip and I make things official. I don’t want to push it too soon, but I feel like I’m the small ball at a circus with a large elephant balancing on me. I either need to make a move or I’m going to get crushed under the pressure, and that won’t end well for anyone involved.
The bar is packed and we squeeze our way into an opening, ordering our first drinks. Well, our first ones of the night, anyway. I think we’re all still buzzed from the island. I scan the crowd as we wait and find Kip almost immediately. He’s dressed in a dark pink button up shirt, the sleeves rolled up to quarter-length, exposing his freshly tanned muscles. Paired with dark gray jeans and the messy way he’s styled his hair, he looks absolutely edible. And he’s wearing his glasses.
Why those black frames make my legs weak, I’ll never know.
He finds me seconds after I find him, and his lips curl up into a soft, relaxed smile. He tips his drink in my direction and Jess hands me mine just in time for me to return the gesture. She follows my eye-line and her brow pops up when she turns back to me.
“Seriously, Skyler?”
The heat rushes to my face and I look away quickly, taking a sip of my drink. It’s pink and fruity, something with rum. “What?” I ask, feigning innocence. Jess just keeps her eyes fixed on mine.
“Listen, I think Erin is going to be fine, but you need to break this to her easily. Explain to her. I think we all know that you had real feelings for Kip when this whole game started and it’s clear they haven’t gone away. Are you the reason he officially called things off with her?”
I’m not sure if I should admit to that one, so I shake my head subtly and take another drink so I don’t have to speak. Jess nods, but she seems unsure of my response. “Good, at least you can say it was over first.”
“They were never dating,” I clarify, feeling like I need to defend myself. I’m not a home wrecker. Kip was mine. At least, it felt like it. Ugh, the stupid game has my head all twisted. I don’t know how to tell right from wrong, anymore.
Jess takes a long swig of her drink and kisses my cheek. “You don’t have to defend yourself to me, Sky. I’ve been team Kip and Skyler from the beginning.”
My eyes grow wide and I pause mid-drink. “Really?”
She smiles, nodding. “Do you even have to ask, Sky? Erin was crazy to pull the shit she did, honestly. I’m just glad it’s all over. And from the way you’ve had that big ass smile plastered on your face for the past week, I’d say you feel the same.”
“You have no idea,” I reply, letting out a long breath.
“It’s good to have you back. Sad Skyler and Pissy Skyler outstayed their welcome.”
I smack her ass playfully and she yelps before grabbing my hand and pulling me toward where our sisters are gathered around the piano.
As the night goes on, the drinks get stronger and everyone is singing at the top of their lungs to every song the piano man plays. After the third round of Benny and the Jets, Kip’s brothers start chanting his name and shoving him up toward the piano. I eye him curiously just as the man at the piano wipes his head with a white rag and stands, letting Kip take his place at the bench with a smile.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I’m told we have a pretty good piano player here on board from Palm South University,” he says and everyone goes nuts, including Clinton and his brothers. Kip blushes a little and I think it’s the first time I’ve ever seen a red tint on his cheeks. If possible, it makes him even sexier and I find myself smiling without even realizing it.
Everyone starts chanting Kip’s name again and the piano man steps back, taking a seat behind Kip and sipping on a bottle of water. Kip moves his hands over the keys, playing a soft melody with no direction as he finds his groove. “Go easy on me, guys,” he says softly and I swear I feel all the girls swoon in unison. Me included.
Damn him.
His brothers all continue cheering and I can tell from the soft glaze of his eyes that Kip is definitely past buzzed at this point, but maybe that’s where he found the courage to play. If it is, then I need to get him buzzed more often. I’ve been dying to hear him play ever since I saw the keyboard in his apartment.
Slowly, he begins playing a song that sounds familiar. When he sings the first line into the mic, his eyes find mine, and I’m locked in place. His voice floats over the crowd, smooth and dreamy, but everything feels muted to me. The cheers from his brothers, the swooning screams from the girls, the clinks of drinks in the air – it’s all lost as he sings straight to me. His blue eyes dance in the soft light of the bar and he smiles through every note of the Michael Bublé song. His hands work methodically over the keys but I fantasize about having them on me instead, feeling lightheaded at the thought.
It’s so silly, this stupid game we’ve been playing, but I got completely caught up in it. Everything that seemed to be so important to me just a short three months ago now seems trivial. Kip sees me for who I really am. I’ve never been more comfortable in my life, whether I’m wearing a ball gown or nothing at all – he sees the beauty in me, the beauty I’m not even sure I see. I don’t know where we go from here, where the story will take us, who will still be in it and who will flee the pages, but I think I’m finally ready to find out.