Grey Eyes: Book One of the Forever Trilogy

Chapter Twenty Seven

“So what are these parties like?” I asked, as we pulled onto the winding driveway leading around to the back of my house.

“I’m not going to spoil your first time,” he said grinning.

“Oh, you’re just hilarious,” I said turning pink.  I was glad that it was something we could laugh about.

Again, we were stopped at the gate leading to my front door.  A man dressed in a tuxedo stepped around to the driver’s side window and knocked gently. 

Darren rolled it down.

“Invitation please.”

Darren started to reach for his pocket but stopped himself.  “She’s my invitation,” he said nodding in my direction. 

“I—Oh, princess, right this way please.  You’ll be taking the front entrance.  Is this young man your date?”

I nodded.  I ignored the images of Tristan that shot through my head.  He’d had his chance.

“Then you may enter through the front door just this once.  You can wait downstairs while the princess is prepped for her entrance.”

He groaned.  “I get to wait while you get ready, some fun.”

I gave him a light punch on the shoulder and he laughed it off.

Inside, the Elder Witches verbally assaulted me.  Apparently, I was pretty late.  But when Darren stepped in after me, what was so thoughtless and inconsiderate before, instantly became sweet and adorable. 

“Munchkin!” Darren called, and a young red-faced girl, ducked behind Mrs. McArthur. 

When she reemerged, I saw that it was London’s little sister he had addressed.  In the seconds, she had spent hiding behind her mother, she had composed herself and spoke with an elegance rivaling the Queen of England.  “Why hello there, Darren.  I hope you’re well.” 

After setting off a round of giggles, she took my hand and led me through the house and up to my room where she had already laid out all of her things.  She told me to sit down and started with my makeup.

“I’ve already been down to the ballroom and let…me…tell….you…awesome.  They must feel like you’ve seen enough magic that you won’t like, freak out now because they pulled out all the stops for this one—I should tell you, “like” is my new favorite word.”

“Okay…Is your sister down there?”

Her face soured.  “No, London and my mom got in this like, huge fight about her boyfriend or something.  Anyway, they were calling each other names and throwing stuff and I was so glad daddy was leaving early cause I was like, “take me with you!”

“Did you say boyfriend?”

“Yeah, I caught them kissing once and I was going to tell mom and she’s like, I’ll give you two hundred bucks to keep your mouth shut, and I’m like, Sold!”  She chuckled.  “So I hung out with them for a while.  When I saw his face I was like “Wow!” maybe, Darren isn’t the hottest guy in Brighton anymore.  No offense, I know he’s your boyfriend now.  But he was so quiet—snore— and London kept trying to say she that was leaving soon and she’d miss me and I’m just like, you don’t graduate for another nine months, that’s a long time from now.  Chill out with the depression already. So I just went to sleep and dreamt about my future hubby, Nathan Mathalbane.  Oh yeah.”

Hearing about London had set off alarms in my head, especially if her and her mother’s fight had to do with Aiden.  I guessed that Aspen probably wasn’t aware that she was in the company of a vampire.