She looks up at me like I’ve just said the dumbest thing ever. It’s just something my mom loves to do whenever her feet are sore, and she wants to keep dancing. She really is the life of the party.

“No.” She straightens her shoulders.

“Why?”

“Because I said so.” She looks so sassy when she rolls her eyes.

“Yeah?” I ask, raising my brows.

Indigo looks around her at the sea of people. Some of them ignore us, others smile, and some look at us like we’re animals in a zoo. Can’t say it’s comfortable for me.

“Yes, Elias,” she hisses, her gaze still on the surrounding people.

I catch her off guard and lift her into the air, one arm under her shoulders, the other under her knees, and spin her around, while carefully slipping her shoes off with the tips of my fingers. They fall on the floor as her eyes shoot daggers.

Smiling might not be the best thing to do when she’s fuming, but I can’t help it. She’s too absorbed in all this formal shit. Indigo needs to loosen up a little.

I keep swaying us to the rhythm of the music and laugh at her frustrated expression. She looks like she wants to murder me, but at least she’ll laugh about it years from now.

She checks her surroundings once again, and I look up myself, noticing all the attention on us. And when I say all of it, I really mean it. People are taking videos. Even the security guy is staring at us.

“Everyone is looking at us thanks to your smart ass,” she groans, burying her head in my chest.

“Let them look. Ten percent of them are curious, the rest are envious.”

She murmurs something so quiet I can’t hear it, but I bet she’s swearing, so I just laugh it off and keep dancing.

CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

INDIGO

Just as I start to relax into Elias’s embrace, a cold tap on my shoulder brings me back to reality. I know who it is without looking. I take a deep breath and keep my gaze locked on Elias.

He slowly nods and gently puts me down.

I still don’t look up at my parents as I’m straightening my dress and putting my shoes back on. Elias puts his hand around my waist, squeezing it enough to convince me to face them.

My right hand brushes Elias’s and my first reaction is to take it away, but then I remember where we are. So I grab it. He breathes in deeply and smiles at my parents.

“Mom,” I finally say, looking at her tacky outfit, “Dad.” I nod my head towards him and he nods back, quickly moving his gaze from me to the rest of the room, sipping from his martini.