Holidays In The Hamptons [COMPLETE]

Chapter Fourteen

The doors opened as if by magic, letting the sound of revelry pour out into the night. Marley stood in the foyer for a long second, her eyes wide with the warm glow of the mansion's interior. She came back down to reality when she realized that Christian wasn't leading her by the elbow anymore.

He had helped her out of the car and then taken position behind her as they ascended the stairs. Whether it was to make sure she didn't trip on the train of her dress or to make sure that she did, in fact, enter the party, Marley wasn't sure.

Christian met her gaze with a questioning look that Marley responded with a nod. They couldn't have communicated with words if they had wanted to. Some remixed version of a classic Christmas song was pounding through the speakers, the bass drumming in the walls and pulsing in the floorboards.

Christian left her with one last concerned glance before he entered the fray, leaving Marley alone in the center of the foyer.

Before her extended a sea of velvet and silk, diamonds and gold, all shiny and glittering under the glow of the Christmas lights decorating every available surface, not to be outdone by the twelve-foot Christmas tree that stood guard in the far corner of what Marley had to guess was some sort of family room. It was hard to distinguish rooms as there were bodies everywhere.

But Christian didn't seem to notice. Marley watched his progression through the crush of bodies, his determination and confidence parting the crowd like the Red Sea before him.

Down the front steps, through the hallway, passing the crowded kitchen on the right and the dining room on the left, all the way to the wall of glass that distinguished the end of the house from the beginning of the back yard.

Marley saw immediately who his intended target had been. Winter's glare turned from the yard beyond and softened when she found who had tapped her on the shoulder, quickly to be replaced with shock.

Marley had yet to see Christian and Winter standing within ten feet of each other and her own shock was expressed upon Winter's face. Marley left them to their conversation as Christian leaned in to talk.

Her eyes started moving over the heads before her, unconsciously looking for that familiar pair of bright gray eyes. When Marley realized just who she was looking for, she admonished her subconscious and searched out her sisters instead.

She found Stella with a smile on her face, actually having a good time. She was deep in conversation with one of the servers and Marley let out a huffed laugh as she saw him leave Stella's side to deliver food and then immediately return when his tray was empty.

Gabbie was easy to spot as she was in the center of the big family room, chatting happily with anyone who would listen. And she had drawn herself quite a crowd. Someone broke through her circle of acquaintance to lean in close to her ear.

Marley's heart froze mid-leap into her throat as she found that oh-so-familiar pair of eyes looking each way as he leaned in to talk to Gabbie. Gabbie shrugged, looked around with him, and then pointed to Christian where he stood deep in a heated conversation with Winter.

Marley watched Felix's eyes follow Gabbie's finger, knowing that her spot was soon to be discovered.

Her feet were moving before she was even aware of the action, her fight or flight responses taking on a literal application.

Marley only noticed the two security guards that stood on either side of the front door, opening it for newcomers, once her heels were clicking against the tile of the staircase she had found hidden from plain sight to her left when looking frantically around for an escape route.