Tessa sat at the large mahogany table of their host's dining room, slowly sipping a glass of red wine. She had been coming to these monthly parties for a year, but she had decided that tonight would be her last one. They simply did not hold her interest anymore. And it didn't help that every time she was here, she had to endure a dinner with Quinn. How she hated that man. Ever since high school they had detested each other.
When she had first met him, she had initially been attracted to him. He was tall and well-built and had played on multiple sports teams back in school, most notably as a linebacker for the football team. His muscles were thick and hard while his dark, full hair always fell wildly into his deep blue eyes. But that girlish crush had quickly morphed into hatred once the animosity between them began.
It had all started over a friendly competition their sophomore year over a school fundraiser, of all things. But it had quickly spiraled into anger when she had beaten him, causing him to not only lose a bet he had made amongst his friends but to also lose face in front of most of their class. How that was her fault, she had never understood. She hadn't even been aware of the bet that he had made, or the embarrassment and hazing he had suffered from his 'friends' when he had lost. But he had been so used to winning that when he had lost to a petite scrap of a girl, he had not taken it well and had taken his anger out on her at school any chance he got. His bullying had been legendary. And ever since then, things had been ugly between them.
Tessa took some responsibility for it. She knew how much winning meant to him so she had made a point to enter every competition that he was involved in just because she knew it drove him crazy when she won, and there was nothing that he could do about it. It had given her a twisted sense of satisfaction. She told herself it was justified after what he had put her through after her initial fundraising win. If his ego was so fragile that he could not stand to lose to a girl, she would make sure he suffered that indignation often. Their friends had always laughed it off as high school drama and had watched the feud between them with gleeful entertainment. But for she and Quinn, the anger and bitterness had been very real.
Despite having graduated from high school over seven years ago, the animosity between them had only grown throughout the years. She had managed to keep her distance from him after graduation, even though they had ended up going to the same college. It had been a big campus and they had majored in different subjects. But they shared a large group of mutual friends and were bound to run into each other at the occasional party. Tessa had wanted to let the past go and even tried to apologize once for being so childish, but he had refused to accept it. The evening had ended with him knocking a bowl full of dip into her lap, to which she had retaliated by throwing a plastic cup of beer at his head. Ever since then, they had given each other a wide berth. But now here they were, three years after their college graduation, being forced into social situations together once again.
After college, they had all become busy with their lives, but their group of about fifteen friends had been determined to stay close. Afterall, many of them had all known each other since they were kids. So once a month they met at one of their houses, each of them taking a turn to host. It was a time to get caught up on each other's busy lives while sharing a good meal and some drinks with friends. But it needled her that Quinn was here. They had always moved in the same social circles, so it had not been surprising that he had been included when the group had been formed, but that didn't mean she liked it. She had almost walked right out of the group's first meetup, but her best friend had convinced her to stay. She tried to keep her distance from Quinn and their friends knew them well enough to know not to ever seat them together. Yet it was easy to see from his hard looks and angry eyes that he had never given up the old rivalry.
Tessa and her friends had all managed to do quite well for themselves since college, and their monthly parties were usually quite elaborate affairs. They got dressed up in their best and sampled opulent food and expensive wines. Tessa had never hosted one yet, and it was unlikely that she ever would since she intended for this to be her last party. Her best friend Kate was the only one she cared to keep contact with, and she could simply do things with the woman outside this group if she stopped coming here.
Perhaps it was time for Tessa to make some new friends. That way she would not have to live with Quinn's contemptuous eyes on her once a month while making small talk with people she didn't really care about anymore. Some of the other junior lawyers from her firm had been asking her to join them for drinks. They went out to a cocktail bar near their downtown office every Friday after work. Maybe she should think about joining them next time. Especially now that her best friend Kate seemed more interested in hooking up with their current host Michael than carrying on a conversation with Tessa. The two had been flirting since high school but had never pursued each other. But lately they had been spending more and more time together. Tessa knew that they had hooked up at the last party and slept together in an unused bedroom of the last host's house. And given the fact that they had both been missing from the table since dessert, they were probably off doing the same tonight.
Tessa drained her glass of wine before she pushed her chair away from the table and excused herself. She didn't really need to go to the bathroom, but she wanted to get away from the table for a while. The conversation had been boring, just rehashing stories from the past, as they also each tried to one up each other regarding their recent successes. Besides, Quinn had been staring at her with that old anger simmering in his eyes. Yet it did not escape her notice that his eyes would linger on her chest every time that he looked at her. That was the way it had always been with him. Equal parts loathing and lust, as if he hated the sight of her face but couldn't help but imagine what he would do to her body if he could.
Good, let him imagine. His fantasies would be as close as he ever came to her.
Tessa knew that she was pretty, but she didn't try to openly flaunt it, especially not to Quinn. But she did always like to look her best and tended to wear pretty dresses to their monthly dinners. Tonight, it was a simple black number, strapless and tight around her chest while the lacy skirt flared prettily out and flounced around her legs where it fell to mid-thigh. She was wearing heels with it, giving her normally petite 5'1" frame a little extra height. Her soft, chestnut brown hair was down and fell around her in a thick cascade that hit halfway down her back.
Her heels clicked against the marble floor as she walked, tossing glances around the large house as she went. Michael was quite possibly the most well off of their group. His family had always had an air of wealth around them, but he had also done very well for himself by buying a bunch of Bitcoin in high school when everyone else had been convinced it was just a fad. Now his millions spoke volumes for his financial sense. It really wasn't a surprise that Kate had been chasing him for a while. She had always been attracted to rich and powerful men, despite the fact that she was quite well off herself from the social media empire that she had built as a lifestyle blogger. Tessa had never understood how that was a real job, but Kate certainly wasn't hurting for money with her many commercial partnerships. But that had not stopped her from pursuing Michael. If they became an actual couple after this, Tessa thought there would be no stopping them on their climb to the top of the social ladder.
Tessa found the first-floor bathroom already occupied so she made her way up the grand staircase to the second floor. She knew that there were several rooms up here. One was sure to be a bathroom. She spied one at the end of the hall but as she began to make her way toward it, she heard sounds emanating from one of the bedrooms ... Kate's voice raised in loud screams of pleasure. Kate often shared tales of her sexcapades with Tessa so she knew that her friend was very uninhibited during sex. Tessa didn't think the sounds would actually carry downstairs to the party below but she knew that Kate wouldn't care even if they did. She probably wanted everyone to know that she and Michael were fucking.
"Classy, Kate." Tess rolled her eyes as she continued toward the bathroom. But she knew that she would be able to hear them even here and the thought didn't appeal to her.
Past the bathroom was another staircase that led up to the third floor. Why had a single man bought a three-story mansion, anyway? Probably just because he could. Tessa made very good money as a lawyer but would never buy something this massive just as a display of her wealth. Instead, she had opted for a penthouse condo high over the city. Someplace close to work in the bustling downtown area that was the center of her universe.
Tessa wasn't sure how Michael would feel about her exploring his house, but he was obviously otherwise occupied so she doubted that he would notice. She decided to head for the quiet third floor just to get away from the people and noise for a bit. She could freshen up in the bathroom and return to the party before anyone even noticed that she was missing. And what did she care if they did notice? She had a feeling that she wouldn't be seeing any of them again any time soon anyway. They were all arrogant and self-absorbed. The parties had stopped being fun a long time ago.
After a quick climb up the stairs, Tessa found herself on the third floor. The air up here felt heavy and stale. She got the impression that Michael probably didn't even come up here very often. Tessa passed a few open doors -- an office, a sitting room, a couple of bedrooms -- before she found what she was looking for. A large bathroom was on her right and she slipped inside and shut the door behind her. She didn't bother to lock it. After all, she did not actually need to use the restroom and even if she did, no one was likely to come up here and bother her.
Tessa cast a glance around the large bathroom, finding it lavishly decorated. Every surface was marble and polished to a high shine. An enormous tub sat on her right while a long counter stretched along the length of the wall on her left. A couple of his-and-hers sinks nestled there but they barely took up any space on the counter at all. There was a thick, soft rug beneath her feet and fluffy matching towels hanging from the racks. Even the bathroom oozed opulence. Michael was such a pretentious asshole.
