The idea alone is enough to send a shiver down my spine.To be fair, I’ve never even been to a strip club, but I can imagine the options Lexie would come up with if she had free rein over my attire for this evening.Would I even be able to fit in anything her coworkers wear?I highly doubt it.I peek at the mirror one more time and cave.“Fiiiine,” I groan.“I’ll wear this.”
“Yay!”Lexie claps.“Now, let’s get you home so we can play dress-up.”
“And when you say we, you mean June and me,” Violet quips dryly.“I’m still mad you aren’t coming tonight.”
“Me, too,” Lexie admits with enough sincerity for me to believe she’s almost serious.
Is she…disappointed?
Violet and I exchange looks before Vi reaches for Lexie’s arm and squeezes.“Are you sure Ethan won’t change his mind?”
Ethan?What does this have to do with Ethan?
“Trust me.”Lexie shrugs out of Violet’s grasp.“If I’ve learned anything in my life, it’s that Ethan never changes his mind once it’s made up.”
“Wait,” I interject, praying it doesn’t come out snobby or intrusive.I’m genuinely curious.“What does Ethan have to do with tonight?”
Her shoulder lifts.“Nothing, really.I mentioned the auction to him the other day, and he most definitely decided it was a bad idea.”
“The auction in general, or your participation?”Violet questions.
When Lexie hesitates, Violet sighs.
“To be fair, I get it,” Lexie defends.“I love how much you trust the Harden boys, okay?And yes, they seem like pretty decent guys from the outside looking in, but…you know.Not all of us are Harden girls?—”
“Who says I’m a Harden girl?”I argue.The words come out before I can stop them, along with a flash of Ford’s dark gaze as he sucked on my fingers at the bonfire.
Whoa.Where in the world did that come from?
“I mean, you live in Harden territory,” Lexie clarifies.Thankfully, she’s too caught up in her own thoughts to read mine this time around.“Who knows what would happen if I participated and was bid on by the wrong guy, you know?”she continues.
Violet frowns.“Are you saying you don’t feel safe in Harden Heights?”
She picks at a few pieces of lint from her off-the-shoulder sweater.“I’m saying your boys keep you in the dark more than you know, and tension is rising.Who’s to say I won’t be caught in the crosshairs?”
“I don’t have a boy,” I remind her.Again.Seriously, can I not stop myself from insinuating I have a small, itty bitty, teeny tiny thing for a certain Harden brother?
“You’re still on Team Harden,” Lexie returns.“Meanwhile, I’m a Drifter through and through.Nothing’s going to change that.I know it, my brother knows it, everyone at work knows it.Which is fine,” she tacks on.“It doesn’t bother me or whatever.It's just…something I have to remind myself of every once in a while, which includes nights like tonight.”
Moving closer to Lexie, Violet gently says, “The only one hanging on to titles is your brother.”
Lexie’s lips bunch as if she’s holding back something.The question is, what?
“Maybe,” she finally replies.“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”Turning to me, she adds, “I’ll be out front.”
It’s a simple shift.Nothing crazy.But I don’t miss it.The way she closes the door on our conversation.I’d say it’s out of character for Lexie, since the girl is so outspoken.But the truth is, the more I’ve gotten to know Lexie, the more I’ve seen firsthand how easily she clams up when anything hits too close to home or is too personal.Heck, I don’t even know her parents’ names or whether she has any siblings outside of Ethan.Maybe we aren’t as close as I’d like to think?
As I watch Lexie leave, I murmur, “You think she’s okay?”
Violet’s gaze stays glued on her best friend crossing to the opposite side of the large brick building.“She knows how to handle herself.”She steps out of the small space and reaches for the dressing room curtain.“I’ll be out front, too.See you in a sec.”With a whoosh, she closes the curtain, blanketing the small space in privacy and silence.
Okay, then?I fold my arms, hating the loneliness creeping in.I know I’m not officially one of the musketeers, even if Lexie and Violet have been nothing but welcoming.And this?This is nothing but a stark reminder of exactly that and my role in the friendship.Maybe it’s okay.Maybe it doesn’t matter.Maybe I should be grateful for the camaraderie they’ve already shown me.But knowing they’re outside talking without me?I don’t know.I guess it sort of stings, even if it doesn’t make any sense.
Pushing aside the self-doubt, I take off the dress and change back into my scrubs.Besides, I don’t have time to feel sorry for myself.Right now, I need to get ready for an auction I don’t want to be a part of.
Lucky me.
13
