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“You’re old enough to be his mother.” My friend hiccupped as she reached over and took my drink from my hand. With a happy, satisfied smile, she downed the contents before asking the bartender for two more. I shook my head as she partied it up. By the looks—and the smell—of it, she was already at least one sheet to the wind and steadily working towards a second and a third.
“More like old enough to be his older sister, but what does that matter?” I corrected her. “And he is hot, but that’s not the point. I’m not here to pick up some random guy. I’m here to celebrate the fact you’re getting married to the man of your dreams.”
Casey squealed and threw her arms up in the air in celebration. A move that was very unlike my normally calm friend. She wasn’t overly demonstrative, but tonight the alcohol that flowed through her veins had done its job by thoroughly loosening her up. It was fun to see her let loose.
“Sometimes I can’t believe it, Dee,” Casey said, tossing her arm over my shoulders before leaning on me. “I mean, can you believe it?” A low burp escaped her lips before she continued. “Two years ago, I wasmarriedto someone else, and now I’mmarryingJason!”
The last two years had been a complete whirlwind for my friend. She’d had to go through hell to get there, but she’d triumphed in the end.
“I know, and I’m so proud of you. I’m so happy that you’re happy,” I said honestly. Casey’s lip trembled as if she were about to cry. A second later, she was full blown bawling against my shoulder.
“I love you so much, Dee,” she whimpered. “You’re my very best friend. My forever PIC.”
“I thought I was your partner in crime?” Her fiancé Jason suddenly appeared and pulled her from me straight into his arms.
“You are! I have two PICs!” Casey slurred as Jason’s arm wrapped around her waist, anchoring her to him so she didn’t fall down.
“Dee.” Jason nodded to me. I raised my glass to him as Casey snatched hers off the bar. “I’m glad you could make it here tonight. It means a lot to us. Especially me, seeing as we’re her co-partners-in-crime.”
“I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.” I took a sip of the sweet, yet tangy libation in my hand.
“Travis is here,” Jason mentioned casually and randomly, right out of the blue. My pulse skyrocketed. My eyes bounced around the room until I spotted him chatting it up with Clive, a guy who’d recently started working with Jason at L’Orangerie. Clive was his newest server and after mentioning how much I loved it, always brought me extra jam to dip my grilled cheese into. His kindness had instantly skyrocketed him to the position of my favorite server there.
“Oh, yeah. That’s nice,” I rambled off instead of asking Jason how Travis was. I’d done my best to avoid him over the past few days. Every time he managed to corner me, I’d blurted out some excuse and promptly hid until I knew he was gone. I knew it wasn’t fair to avoid him. He didn’t deserve my silence. If anything, he deserved my attention. Especially since that kiss that was so freaking good my toes had yet to uncurl.
“He’s been looking for you. Said he’d like to talk to you, if you’re okay with that.”
Even though it felt like Travis had sent him, I knew Jason had come on his own. He wasn’t the type to meddle in someone else’s business, but was always willing to help a friend.
“There’s something I want to talk to him about, too, but later after the party,” I explained. “But right now, I want to have a drink and go dance with my sister and Casey.”
“Yippee!” Casey clapped her hands before jumping out of Jason’s arms. Before I could object, she’d grabbed my hand and pulled me to the dance floor. We’d just reached Runa when “Push It” by Salt ‘N Pepa started playing. The three of us got our groove on and danced throughout the next several songs, all hits we’d danced to since we were young girls. When the music transitioned into a slow song, I left my besties to find partners while I headed back to the bar.
After working through another lemon drop martini, I switched to an English garden cocktail at the suggestion of the bartender. He promised it to be delicious and wouldn’t knock me on my ass. I heartily accepted his suggestion because yes, I wanted to drink tonight, but I didn’t want to go from zero to blitzed in 2.5 seconds. I’d just taken a surprisingly delicious sip when the sudden presence of a hand resting upon my lower back had me turning around.
“Hey there, beautiful.” The sleaziest looking dude I’d ever seen stood next to me, eyeing me like I was lunch. Or maybe he thought I was dinner, since it was evening now. It really didn’t matter because there wasno waythis dude was making a meal out of me. Avoiding his hungry gaze, I turned back around to face the bar, hoping he’d take the hint and walk away. Or that Travis would come and tell him to get lost. No such luck. The guy’s hand slid up my back until it rested between my shoulder blades. The dude was probably trying to see if I was wearing a bra. The jackass.
“Mind taking your hands off me?” I shrugged the unwanted touch off. The douche nozzle brushed my rebuke off and continued on.
“What’s a beautiful woman like you doing in a place like this?” His line was cliché, cheesy, and we both knew it. Still, it hadn’t deterred him from using it.
“Best friends with the bride,” I said flatly, again hoping he’d see it as a sign that Iwasn’tinterested and would move on to someone else. Or better yet, leave.
“I know the groom,” he offered as he moved to sit beside me. Once seated, he turned his seat so he faced me and signaled the bartender. “I’ll have a beer and get her another of whatever she’s having.”
“Coming right up.” A different bartender, a woman this time, nodded before getting to work. A few minutes and a lot of useless small talk later (from him, I remained silent), I sat nursing my whatever number round this was while doing my best to try to lose this guy. I’d moved up and down the bar to get rid of him, but the guy was like a bad rash and wouldn’t go away. During his overzealous pursuit, I kept glancing around, seeking out either Travis or Jason, but from my vantage point, I hadn’t been able to see either of them. I’d even tried to flag down my sister but she was currently chatting it up with a super sexy ginger that was eyeing her like she was a gift he wanted to unwrap.
Go Runa! You get some girl! I mentally tossed out into the universe right before the creep tried to touch me again. Picking up his hand, I pulled it off me like it was covered in slime.
“Look pal,” I bit, my words coming out slightly slurred. How could I already be this tipsy? It’s not like I’d hada lotto drink. Maybe the drinks were stronger than I’d noticed. Whatever it was, the alcohol apparently snuck up on me and now, I felt like I was about to match my best friend in drunkenness.
“There’s no other way to say this, but I’m not interested. So why don’t you do yourself a favor and move along?”
“Is there someone else?” he asked as his hand flicked over my nearly full drink. I watched carefully, wondering if he’d just simply stretched his arm out or if he’d slipped me something with his clever-not-so-clever sleight of hand. “Whoever it is, I can guarantee he won’t satisfy you like I can.”
“Don’t flatter yourself.” I barked out a laugh as I stupidly took another drink. It still tasted normal so I shrugged it off with the assumption that Mr. I Don’t Think So was just trying to show off his lack of muscles. “The guy I like kissed the crap out of me in front of Guaranteed Rate Field and my vagina isstillfeeling it. There’s no way you can compete with that.”
“One ride on my dick . . .” He had theaudacityto wiggle his tongue at me. “. . . will make you forgetall aboutthat other guy. I’ve never met a woman I can’t satisfy.”
