“Swanky,” Lisa says. “Dr. Campbell.”

“Chin-chin,” Christian says as we all clink our glasses.

Golden bubbles slosh over the sides. I take a careful sip, but no more than that. I was tipsier tonight than I’ve been in years, but I’m starting to sober up and I need to stay that way.

Beth is totally trashed. Lisa seems giddy, laughing and twirling in the center of the room, but she’s not as far gone. At least she manages to keep her feet underneath her, while Beth topples over onto the couch. And Christian … he keeps pouring, but I can’t manage to catch him drinking.

He puts on some music and pulls Beth into his arms for a dance in the center of the suite’s living room. All the curtains are open. My own reflection stares back at me, faint as a ghost, with the ripple of the water beyond it. This is not the same river that flows through Dayton, minutes from my house in Kettering. That’s the Great Miami River, but it does connect to the Ohio, one flowing into the other, all the way down to the sea. For a second, I imagine what it would be like to step through this glass, an Alice without her Wonderland. Can I jump far enough to hit the water? Would it hurt? Would I be awake when the water rushes into my lungs?

Behind me, Beth’s transparent outline staggers toward Christian, melding their shapes into one for a second or so. I cross my arms over my stomach, one hand cupping my elbow, the other holding my warming glass of champagne. When I turn around, I see her kiss him on the mouth. The kiss is sloppy. Brief. When she pulls away, a look of repugnance crosses his expression, gone so fast I might’ve imagined it except that he looks up, his glance catches mine, and a small, sly smile twists his mouth. He knows what I saw.

“Come dance with me,” Christian says and holds out a hand.

Of course, I do. When in my life have I ever been able to resist C.C.? In the first grade, he stole my favorite pencil eraser and when I threatened to tell the teacher, he promised to let me catch him at recess when we all played Prisoner. I hadn’t been able to do it then, or ever since.

Until tonight.

Tonight is different. I see it in his eyes and in that warping smile, and in the touch of his fingertip again along my bare collarbone as he pushes away a strand of hair that has worked free of my stylish chignon. His hands fit on my hips, pulling me closer. The song is fast, but we dance nice and slow.

Lisa wrestles Beth up from the couch. She’s protesting, her words a fuzzy mumble. Lisa scolds her, but with laughter. Their voices rise and fall. Christian nuzzles my neck. I close my eyes.

When I open them, Lisa and Beth are gone, and it’s only me and him. The door shuts behind them with a loud click. Christian’s teeth slide along the top of my naked shoulder. His breath is hot, but I shiver.