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‘It was just the three of us.’
I shoot him a glare. ‘You’ll need to be more specific; currently, my role in life is the third wheel, remember?’
Brooks rolls his eyes. ‘You, me, and Mercy. You walked out behind us, dancing I might add, and Jade ran out, calling your name. Something about it sounded flirty, so Mercy wanted to eavesdrop.’
I scrunch my face. Of course she did.
‘You know you picked the weirdest woman on the planet?’
He beams. ‘Isn’t she awesome?’
‘Back to me.’ I snap in front of his face as he dreams of a girl who’s like family to me. No thanks to witnessing that. ‘So, I danced. That’s not terrible considering I’m pretty damn good. But, uh, what did I say?’ I ask, setting the hot dog in front of me, a little worried about the story I’m about to hear. Andrews seems into it, sitting with his elbows on the table, double-fisting his second dog, his full attention on Brooks. Lunch and a show at my ego’s expense.
Suddenly the scene he’s referring to flashes through my head. Shit. How did I forget this, and why has she never brought it up? First, I was very drunk – which happens about fifteen minutes before horny drunk, then leads to emotional drunk. When she burst out the bar door calling my name, I greeted her with an overly confident ‘Hey, pretty lady.’ I stepped closer to her. ‘You know what I was thinking earlier? We’re like nachos with jalapeños, you and I.’
‘Why?’ she asked, a coy smile on her face.
‘Because I’m super cheesy and you’re incredibly hot. Obviously, we belong together.’ I slung an arm over her shoulder as she laughed at my proving how cheesy I am. It wasn’t only that, though, I’m pretty sure I was wearing a T-shirt that said I’m a Barbie Girl that night. I’ve never been as aware of my obnoxious taste, passed down by my mother, as I am right now.
‘You are pretty cheesy,’ she said. ‘I just wanted to say thanks for earlier,’ she’d continued. ‘I guess sometimes a girl just needs a hug.’ She laughed shyly. ‘For the record, I like your brand of cheese.’
I remember going in to kiss her because I got the vibe that’s what she wanted. Hell, I was sure as fuck feeling it, but something stopped me. Ah, that’s right, Brooks and Mercy were dragging me away. ‘Come on, we don’t drunk kiss sober girls…’ they’d said in unison.
After that, I yelled my phone number into the dark streets, not giving a flying fuck who else got it, and to this day, I don’t know if she kept it. I’d guess not, as she’s never called me. Cheesy wasn’t even the right word. Jesus. Why does no one ever remind me that tequila is not my friend?
‘Is it all rushing back?’ Brooks asks suddenly, waking me from my day-mare.
I drop my head into my hands. How did I forget all this? ‘Yeah, yeah, no need to spell it out. At least verify she wanted me to kiss her, right?’
Brooks nods. ‘You don’t want your first kiss to be a drunk kiss, that’s what I know.’
Andrews slurps his now nearly empty soda. ‘As interesting as that was, story time is over. We got creeps to spy on.’ He stands from the table, heading to the garbage can, then to the unmarked police SUV they drive.
Brooks stands, shoving his hands into his pockets as he gets in line to buy his lunch. ‘My dad says I have to go back to work now. But I’m glad I could remind you that you’re an idiot when you drink.’
‘Thank you. Can ya make sure you spell my name right on my trophy?’
I can’t believe this. Why did I block this out? Was that my shot? Her giving me a chance that drunk me fumbled? That happened before her mom died. Before she met Conner. Crap, had I been sober, that night could have changed things between us, but Conner slid into her DMs first because I chose to get too drunk the night she hinted that she liked me.
5
JADE
‘Where have you been?’ Kai, my best friend, asks when I finally show up to work thirty minutes late. ‘You’re never late; I was about to call your dad and ensure you hadn’t boarded the plane with Conner.’
Not sure he’d have allowed that considering he practically ran out of my apartment this morning. I thought about calling in sick tonight because lovesickness should count as a genuine illness. But I convinced myself to head to my happy place and shockingly, my job is my temporary happy place. As I fall asleep at night, I don’t count sheep. I pretend I’m lying on a white sandy beach, with the waves lapping at my freshly painted toenails, palms blowing in the gentle warm breeze, flamingos meandering in the surf, and a private bartender named Wells, who laughs at my jokes and reminds me of my worth. (Thank you, Bachelor in Paradise, for bringing us him.)
The first time I walked into this place, I felt like I was nine years old and revisiting Disneyland’s Enchanted Tiki Room, which I sat in with my grandfather for an hour. I was officially in love with all things tropical. I even have a photo of him and me from that day on my fridge. My smile couldn’t have been bigger.
As a kid, I wondered if I was mistakenly born in the wrong part of the world, the rainy pacific northwest. I’m the type of girl that, with a hint of cold, I dress as if I’m headed into sub-zero temps, and currently, fall is upon us in the Rose City. I’m freezing and it’s only September. Fog, rain, cool temps, and falling leaves have me pulling out my vintage fur jacket, fingerless gloves, and scarf, which I’ve left in my locker in the back employee room.
‘I had a long night, an irritating morning, and then I fell asleep.’ I stash my phone under the bar top where we employees keep them because, inconveniently, grass skirts have no pockets.
‘You slept through Conner’s family dinner? I thought you’d walk in here on cloud nine after spending time with your new fiancé.’
I heave a sigh. ‘Conner canceled dinner. He canceled ring shopping. He even walked out on breakfast.’
Both Kai and Adam, our manager, turn my way, their eyes wide.
