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That wasn’t a bad idea.
I nodded my agreement and turned when the sound of my name being yelled made me stop.
“Halley!”
I jerked around, then froze. “Oh, my God! What are you doing here?”
I was wrapped in a huge hug before I could even blink. She almost knocked my glasses off, and I had to take a second to right them.
“Surprise!” One of my old college friends, Lauren, squeezed me.
“Holy crap.” I hugged her back just as tightly. We hadn’t seen each other in three years, but she looked exactly the same as she always had. Long, dark hair, dark eyes, bright pink lipstick.
She stepped back and grinned, her eyes sparkling. “Why do you look younger?”
“You need your eyes tested.” I laughed. “What are you doing in town?”
“Oh! That’s right. I’m being rude.”
“No change there,” muttered a tall, good-looking guy who was a couple of feet away from her.
Lauren shot him a look. “Ignore him. He’s moody when he has to be in the car for hours. Like a cat.”
“Yeah, I’m the moody one.” He smirked and gave me a look that said he was used to her sass. “Since she’s not going to introduce us, I’m Mason. Lauren’s boyfriend.”
“Oh! Hi!” I accepted the small hug he offered me. “She’s mentioned you a few times, but hid this trip.” I side-eyed her.
Lauren sighed. “We were supposed to be here three days ago, but my car broke down somewhere in Georgia, and we ended up in a hotel for a couple of nights while it got fixed.”
Preston shuffled next to me.
“Oh, shit, now I’m being rude.” I motioned to Preston. “This is Preston. He’s Reagan’s brother,” I added to Lauren. “He’s on the other side of the curtain this year.”
Lauren wiggled her eyebrows in my direction in a totally unsubtle way. “I’ve heard about you, too! Hi!” She leaned over between us and hugged Preston.
“You have, have you?” Preston eyed me.
I pushed my bangs from my eyes. “Don’t get too excited. None of it was good.”
Mason laughed as he shook Preston’s hand. “Shit, there’s two of them.”
“There’s another Halley?” Preston looked around in disbelief. “I’m out.”
“Hey!” I shoved him. “There being two of you is the scary part.”
Lauren grinned. “So what are you guys doing? Is the booth shut?”
I nodded. “Everyone’s interested in the talent contest. We were gonna head out and get something to eat at my place. You’re welcome to join us.”
Lauren and Mason shared a look before she shook her head. “Thanks, but we’ve been inside for what feels like forever. We’ll hang here for a while, but we should get something to eat tomorrow.”
“Definitely. I’ll text Reagan and Ava and let you know where and when.” I smiled.
“Perfect! Ooh, yay!” She actually bounced when she clapped her hands. “Okay. Come on, Mase, I want one of those huge teddy bears that’s the size of a grown man.”
“It won’t fit in your—never mind,” he muttered, shaking his head. It was the kind of fond exasperation that could only come from someone who was totally in love with her. “It was great meeting you guys.”
“You, too,” Preston replied. “And if they do dinner, I know a great sports bar where we can avoid them.”
“Sports bar? They have wings?”
“You and freakin’ chicken wings,” Lauren said, almost to herself.
“The best fucking wings you’ll ever eat,” Preston said, and he wasn’t lying.
They were damn good wings at Lucky’s. I just didn’t eat them often because I had a tendency to get the sticky sauce absolutely everywhere.
I’d even gotten it on my dad once, and we still weren’t sure how.
“Sold,” Mason said, fist-bumping Preston right before Lauren grabbed his arm and dragged him away.
“See you tomorrow!” she called, waving. Mason threw up a wave, too, but it wasn’t long before they both disappeared into the crowd.
Preston watched them go for a second before turning to me. “She’s… bubbly.”
I laughed and started walking in the direction of the parking lot. “She’s pretty full-on,” I agreed. “But she’s the sweetest person I know, and just about the only person I’ve keep in touch with since college.”
“You met her in college? Where does she live?”
“Florida. Her cosmetology school—she’s a hairstylist—was close to my campus. Dad paid my fees so I have no student debt, but I had to work my way through in general like every other kid.” I tucked my hair behind my ear. “Part of that was getting cheap haircuts. The school had an on-site salon where their students could practice on real people once they reached a certain skill level. It cost, like, ten? Fifteen bucks? I met Lauren there in sophomore year.”
“Huh. And she came to see you?”
“I guess so. I know we’ll close the booth early tomorrow because the winner is announced during the talent contest, so I’ll probably take her for dinner so that you and Mason can visit the sports bar. But we have to be back by eight for the announcement.”
