No one moved.
Not one person.
Lenora heard a woman gasp, then quickly swallow it back. She heard Candace laugh under her breath, the small cruel sound of someone enjoying a private victory in public. Beverly gave a dramatic sigh, as if Lenora falling had inconvenienced the evening.
“See?” Beverly said, her voice loud enough for the nearest guests to hear. “This is exactly what I mean. No composure. No class.”
Lenora tried to push herself up, but pain stabbed through her shoulder and she froze. Tears slipped down her face before she could stop them. She had spent years learning how not to cry in front of Darnell. Crying made him angrier. Crying gave Beverly something to imitate later. Crying made Candace smile.
But tonight her body betrayed her.
Darnell leaned down just enough for her to smell the whiskey on his breath and the sharp spice of his cologne.
