AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“When this guy celebrates, we drink vodka,” said Slade.
Bentley shrugged. “Okay then. Vodka it is. Shots all around?”
Everyone nodded, and a few moments later, they all knocked them back. When Xander set his glass back down on the bar, Bentley slapped his back. “I like this, bud. I really like it.”
Xander grinned happily; he did, too.
~ ~ ~
“What do you think’s going on at the bar?” Willow tilted her head toward where the guys were standing.
Tori and the others followed her gaze.
“Slade and Xander doing shots doesn’t surprise me, but Jacob and Bentley joining them does. They must be celebrating something.” Willow looked at Becca and Alyssa. “Anything either of you ladies want to tell us?”
Tori loved that they both looked slightly disappointed as they shook their heads. She didn’t know either of them that well yet, but she loved them. Alyssa was perfect for Bentley, and she couldn’t wait until they got married and Alyssa became her sister-in-law. And Becca was an absolute sweetheart. She knew that they were both looking forward to getting married and starting their families.
“Are you sure?” Chelsea asked. “They all keep looking over here, as though whatever they’re celebrating has something to do with one of us.”
“Don’t look at me,” said Willow. “I would’ve told you already if I had any good news to share.”
Chelsea narrowed her eyes at her. “What about news that you don’t want to share? You’re too good at keeping secrets, lady.”
Willow laughed. “You can bet your ass that if I were keeping something secret, there’s no way that Slade would be celebrating it with the guys.”
Chelsea made a face. “True. So, what then – see, they’re all looking this way again.”
Tori looked over to where the guys were standing at the bar. Xander met her gaze and smiled. She felt a little self-conscious as she smiled back. They hadn’t had the chance to say anything when they first arrived, and that was probably just going to make it more awkward now that they’d been here for a while.
She froze when her sister spoke beside her. “I know what it is!”
Tori turned to look at her, and Willow grinned. “It’s you, isn’t it?”
“It’s me, what?” She tried to sound innocent, but she could feel the heat in her cheeks.
Chelsea raised her eyebrows at her. “You? What have you been up to?” She looked back over at the guys, and her eyes grew wide. “Oh my God! It is! Xander! Look at his face!” She turned back to Tori. “You guys finally …?”
Tori’s heart was pounding – what did she mean, finally? What did she know?
Willow grinned. “That’s awesome, sis. Why didn’t you say anything?”
Tori swallowed as Chelsea and Willow stared at her expectantly while Becca and Alyssa looked confused.
“Come on,” Chelsea urged. “This is huge! It’s so huge that I don’t even mind sharing the limelight with you. I was hoping that our wedding was going to be the big news of the night.” She chuckled. “It’s taken us a couple of years to finally figure out what we’re doing. But damn, it’s taken Xander a couple of decades!”
All Tori’s breath caught in her chest. “Decades? What do you mean?”
Chelsea laughed. “I’ve known about Xander’s crush on you since we were teenagers. I mean, all right, that’s only really, like, a decade and a half but you know what I mean. This is awesome. But what are you doing over here with us? If this is your first official night out with everyone, we should get you over there with him. Hell, this calls for shots all around!”
Willow linked her arm through Tori’s and swept her along with the other girls as they headed for the bar. Xander met her gaze as they got closer. He was smiling broadly – so were the other guys. If he had told them all, then it seemed that they’d received the news well.
She relaxed when she looked at Bentley, and he nodded. He knew – and he was happy! That was awesome.
When they reached the bar, Xander held his arm out to her, and she went to him. He held her close at his side and looked down into her eyes. “I hope it’s okay that I shared our news.” He grinned at the girls. “I’m guessing that you did, too?”
“Not exactly,” she said with a laugh. “Willow and Chelsea figured it out when we saw you guys doing shots.”
Chelsea held her hand up and Xander high-fived her. “I’m happy for you. And I’m also happy for me,” she said.
