“You can call me whatever you want if you’ll get me the booster, kid.”
“I’m not starting that game tonight. Marj will kill me.”
“But...I need it and I’m so adorable!” he ventured.
“And so modest! I’ll try it later, when I get home.”
“Call me then.”
“Do I have a curfew?”
“Course not. I just want to know you get home safe is all. Marj is fun but she’s not the most careful person out there. Plus, twelve-hour time difference is your friend. It’ll be midafternoon where I’m at. In technology-challenged training hell.”
“Okay, I’ll call you.”
“Have fun. I miss you,” he said, trailing off.
“Bye.”
She felt better after talking to him. He always made her feel better. She answered the door when Marj knocked and they set off together. Marj parked behind a new club, Silver Rain, and practically had to drag Britt to the door. Marj was wearing a gold minidress and gladiator sandals that made Britt’s tight blue dress look positively Amish. The bouncer waved them in and they went straight for the bar.
“How does Luke feel about you trolling for guys?” Britt asked, leaning close to be heard.
“Aw, I told him I was going to hook you up. I’m just the wingman.”
“That’s the same thing—” She stopped herself from mentioning Jack, reminding herself just in time that their relationship or whatever it was—was still a secret. “That Kevin used to tell me,” she finished lamely.
“Well, he was lying, too.”
“Are you going to cheat on Luke?”
“No. Of course not. I’m going to drink and flirt and hook you up.”
“Right. So where do we begin?”
Britt ordered a mojito and a guy with a beard sent over a couple of shots for them. Marj slammed hers, smiled at the bearded guy, and elbowed Britt.
“Drink up, it’s free.”
“I haven’t eaten!”
“You had that cookie.”
“Two hours ago! I can’t do shots on an empty stomach,” she protested.
“Excuse me, could I get two cherries and a lime wedge?” Marj asked the bartender.
The woman gave her the fruit garnishes.
“Here. Supper,” Marj said, shoving the cocktail napkin with the two maraschino cherries and the lime wedge on it toward Britt. “Now quit bitching and drink.”
Britt ate one of the cherries and shrugged. She didn’t take the shot. Somehow, she didn’t want it. She wanted....it galled her to admit this even to herself...she wanted Jack. Two months ago, she would’ve thought Marj’s routine with the fruit was hilarious, would’ve pounded the shot and eaten the lime and laughed it off. Now she felt like her friend was trying to lead her astray.
The pulsing music and the flashing white lights got to Britt and she started to relax a little. She sipped her drink while Marj chatted up the bearded guy and downed another shot. The bar was chrome, the stools upholstered in silvery gray. The crowd was thick with the tanned, young and beautiful, mostly sipping the signature Gray Mist cocktail with a white glow stick as a stirrer. The crush was peppered with the sight of those gleaming cocktails and it added to the surreal atmosphere. The mojito buzzed around in Britt’s brain and she started to listen to Marj and Beard Boy’s conversation. Soon enough, Beard Boy’s friend came over to talk to her. He was on the skinny side with the sort of artfully groomed facial hair that marked him out as a hipster even without the boutique-label bottle of water he carried instead of a drink.
“I prefer folk music. A real seventies jam, not this wannabe electronica.” He said by way of introduction. “I’m Chris.”
“Hi, Chris. I’m Britt,” she said with a half sigh.