It was a high-proof red. Forget the whole bottle; half of it would be enough to tear a stomach lining apart.

"I'm a server. I don't drink with guests."

Crack.

Vivienne shook out her hand, lip curled in disgust.

"You don't know when to take a gift. Fine. You won't drink? Then get on your knees and lick Mr. Lambert's shoes clean. Do that, and I'll let you go."

Every eye in the room locked onto me, waiting to see how the once-untouchable Stella Graves would be brought to her knees.

Half my face burned like it was on fire.

Howard stood just a few steps away, swirling the wine in his glass.

He didn't say a word. He just watched me with that half-smile that wasn't really a smile at all.

In that moment, the last flicker of hope inside me died.

Fine.

Fine.

I grabbed the bottle from the table, snatched up the corkscrew, and twisted the cork free in one clean motion.

"If I finish this, we're done here. Right?"

I stared straight at Vivienne.

"Of course." She folded her arms, her face alight with the look of someone settling in to enjoy a show.

I tipped my head back and pressed the bottle to my lips.

I didn't stop for air. The wine poured down my throat in heavy, unbroken gulps. Red rivulets escaped the corners of my mouth and trailed down to my collarbones.

The crowd around me started jeering. Some clapped. Some cheered.

Halfway through, my stomach revolted. A violent wave of nausea surged up my throat.

I clenched my jaw and forced it back down. Tears squeezed from the corners of my eyes.

Finally, the bottle was empty.

I slammed it down on the table so hard the glasses rattled.

"Done."

My body swayed, but I locked my knees and refused to fall.

"Satisfied, Miss Graves?"

Vivienne blinked, caught off guard for half a second.

"Not bad. You can hold your liquor."

She let out a soft laugh, then drove her foot into my ankle.

I lost my balance completely, pitching forward with nothing to catch me.

Crash.

The champagne tower came down in a cascade of shattering glass.

I landed on the wreckage. Shards sliced into my palms and knees, and I felt the sharp, wet sting of a dozen cuts opening at once.

Before I could even push myself up, Vivienne's voice split the air in a shrill, panicked scream.

"My necklace! My pink diamond necklace is gone!"

She jabbed a finger at me where I lay sprawled on the floor.

"It was her! She threw herself down on purpose so she could steal my necklace in the chaos!"