Page 34 of Scars Like Wings
When we reached the railing, I took a second to look below again. Somehow, the crowd hadgrown. Now, I could hardly see the floor below and the furniture was nonexistent as people danced, sat, or stood on it. Despite the ocean of bodies, I was still able to find Simone instantly. She was leaning against Cole, against a wall, swaying to the music. Cole bent down and said something into her ear that made her throw her head back, laughing. When she finished, she caught sight of me and waved. I waved back.
“Who are you waving at?” Quinn asked next to me.
“My best friend, Simone, down there. She brought me and my other friend, Maisie, to the party.”
I saw the realization dawn on Quinn’s face, along with her smile widening. “Ah, Cole has beenravingabout Simone forweeks. He’s obsessed with her.”
“Oh, I can tell. He’s got it bad, but she’s honestly just as whipped.”
We went downstairs together. As the crowd thickened at the base of the stairs, Quinn reached for my hand so we didn’t lose one another—Not that I could with her towering above most heads in the crowd, but I loved the sentiment. She easily parted the masses and got us back in front of the pretty bartender with the cute earrings.
“Hey, Jesse!” Quinn yelled above the music. “Can we get my usual and whatever she wants? On my tab?”
“Of course, baby! You want another Mezcal Paloma, doll?”
I smiled and nodded. While they were making our drinks, I turned to Quinn. “What is your drink of choice?”
“A gin and tonic with a fresh squeeze of lime.”
“Classy!”
Again, Jesse made quick work of our drinks, presenting them to us in no time at all. Quinn nodded their way, and we turned back toward the crowd. I was sipping my drink when Quinn bent down toward my ear for me to hear. “How about I give you a tour? Show you some quieter places in the house?”
“You are going to have to try harder than that to win, babe.”
“I haven’t even begun, to be honest.”
She took my hand again, guiding me through the crowds. Instead of going toward the entryway, we cut through the middle of the crowded den to reach an alcove. A pair of closed double doors stood across from the open bathroom door. We stopped in front of them, and Quinn pulled out her keys to unlock them. I heard a distinct ding before the doors opened. The interior was all wood, just like the office. Before I could ask the obvious, Quinn pressed against my lower back to get me in so she couldclose the doors back and lock them. Presumably, before anyone noticed.
Once inside, I asked, “Afuckingelevator? Y’all have anelevatorin yourhouse?”
Quinn shrugged, pressing the bottommost button. “My mom told my dad that if we had to have a house with stairs, it had to have an elevator.”
“Howbigis this house?”
“We’ll find out after our little tour,” She winked. “We are starting with the basement before we make our way back upstairs to show you my favorite spot in the entire house. To answer your question, though, there are about three floors, but the house itself is well over eleven-thousand square feet with over ten or so total bedrooms, I think?”
“That isinsane.”
Quinn smirked. “Just wait until you see the house.”
“I doubt there’s anything that can beat an elevator…” I said under my breath, making Quinn chuckle.
As soon as the elevator stopped with another ding, Quinn rested her hand against my lower back to guide me forward again. I could feel the warmth through my clothes, and I tried not to lean into it like I wanted to. Instead, I tried to focus on Quinn’s tour. An excellent one, at that.
The basement alone was the size of a modest house. A stairway put you out before a thick wooden door against a brick wall that gave strong medieval vibes in its design. Quinn noted that her mother had gotten it handmade frommonks—yes, literal monks. They had a dining room table and chair set in their formal dining room made by the same monks using the same tree, a testament to Quinn’s mom’s eccentric style.
There was an average-size kitchen that still put most normal kitchens to shame. Off the kitchen was abutler’s pantry, as Quinn described, for their cooks andbutlersto use. I had toask Quinn for clarification on their fullstaffof three maids, three butlers, a team of cooks, and a massive landscaping team to manicure the over five acres of property. It made my luxury condo seem closer to a two-star motel at this point.
Nearby, there was a living room with one of seven gas fireplaces in the house and a seventy-five-inch TV above it—again, one ofverymany mounted throughout the mansion. The basement was home to three bedrooms and two bathrooms. It was also home to a movie theater room with drink and snack machines, an arcade room with pinball machines and other games, a bigger gym than was in my complex, and an open-space game room with gaming tables and more.
The basement filled with our amusement as we went. I wanted to know everything about Quinn, and I could tell from her questions that she wanted the same from me. This must be what Simone was talking about when she said that she and Cole just clicked.
There’s something about these cousins, I guess.
“Honestly, babe, why do you even leave the house?” I asked, smiling.
Chuckling, Quinn answered, “With work, I actually don’t get a chance to spend a lot of time down here or at home in general. I’m always traveling.”