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“I’m not sure,” she said slowly, looking at me. “I kind of wanted to wait until Mia can be part of the festivities.” She shook her head. “You were leaving town and now you’re shacked up with a…Blue Angel. Jesus, things change fast.”
“Yeah. They do.”
Darcy tossed me the deck of cards. “You promised to teach us how to play poker.”
“No, I promised I’d teach you how to cheat at poker.” I laughed.
Joni slid off the bed and squeezed into the circle.
“Did you get a tattoo too?” Shelly asked, gesturing to Joni’s arm.
“Take another shot,” I told her. “I have some shit to tell you.” I wasn’t able to divulge everything that was going on, but it was for her own protection.
Three hours later, we were all hammered. Gray had come upstairs to check in on us, but aside from him, there had been no word from the outside world. My phone didn’t buzz with a message from Colt.
“I need my bed,” Allison said finally.
“Why? You haven’t even been drinking,” Shelly pointed out.
“I’m pregnant.”
Shelly’s eyes were glassy. “Oh. Why didn’t you say so earlier? This whole time I thought you were just a straight-laced weirdo.”
They all cackled. Shelly fit right in with my new friends and it warmed my heart.
“I need a smoke,” Rachel said.
“I need air,” Shelly muttered. “I shouldn’t have had that last shot. I’m not safe to drive.”
“Last shot?” Joni repeated with a teasing smile. “More like the last three.”
Shelly rolled her eyes.
“The sofa in the basement theater room has a pull out couch. You should crash there,” Darcy said.
“Really?” Shelly asked.
“Or, if you’re feeling dangerous, I’m sure Cheese would let you sleep in his bed,” I teased.
“Stop,” she said with a laugh.
Darcy stood up off the floor and shook out her leg. “Ooh, it fell asleep.”
I put the cards back into their box and also rose and held a hand to Joni to help her stand.
We went downstairs, drunkenly jabbering like magpies. Even though I’d had enough alcohol to fell an elephant, it didn’t fill the aching sadness in my chest. I drank to temper the feelings of watching my grandmother’s house go up in flames. I drank to forget the feelings of loneliness inspired by Colt’s sudden emotional withdrawal.
Despite being in the company of my friends and watching them all get along and joke around, I felt alone.
“I’m going to go check on Gray and the kids,” Darcy said. “I’ll meet you guys at the picnic tables.”
She waved us toward the back door and then turned the opposite direction down the hallway to the living room.
“I’m going to bed,” Allison announced. “Seriously, I can barely keep my eyes open.”
“You’re no fun now that you’re knocked up,” Rachel said with a playful grin.
“Just you wait. Your time will come.” Allison leaned over and gave me a quick hug and then did the same to Shelly. “It was great meeting you. I hope we see more of you.”
