Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 117494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
I looked sideways at her, seeing she was giving me the same look right back.
She added, “You thinking what I think you’re thinking?”
“Chances are high.”
A whole different resolution came over her. She lowered her head. Her eyes got serious. Her mouth went firm. “Let’s do this, whatever this is that we have to do.”
I finished, “We’re doing it.”
“Got it.”
She started forward, but I touched her arm. “Hold up.” We had four drinks still left untouched on the table. I took mine and drank it, handing Aly the rest of hers.
When ours were done, we eyed Justin and Harper’s.
“Normally I’m not about drinking what someone else started, but …”
I reached for Justin’s, giving Aly Harper’s. Both of theirs were basically untouched.
I said, “Booze is booze. It’s a cardinal rule in our group not to let good booze go to waste.”
“Exactly.”
After I drank Justin’s, Aly was back to eyeing me. She informed me, “Justin had them do two long islands together so…”
“What?!” Oh–no. Oh boy. No, no, no. That meant I just had like eight shots all mixed together. I forgot he could seriously drink. He had a tolerance level that I’d never witnessed before.
She started laughing. “You are going to be so drunk and soon.”
“Shit.” I covered my face. I had no idea how to handle this, what to do.
Aly started laughing, and I heard the snort at the end.
I groaned. Once the snort-Aly-laugh started, we’d both be rolling because that laugh of hers was infectious. Really infectious. She’d soon be sounding like a chuckling donkey. And soon enough, the haha got longer, louder and I was smiling, chuckling alongside her because the he-ahhhaaa-eee-haaa was emanating out of her body.
Goddamn.
“He-ahhhaaa-eee-haaa!”
I was laughing, and that made Aly get worse, louder. It was now “HA-AHHHHAAA-EEE-HAAA,” and the people around us were joining in.
“Oh my God!” Aly gasped between laughs, holding her stomach. “I can’t breathe HA-AHHHHAAA-EEEE-HAA!”
“I’ve never heard someone laugh like that,” a woman said, shaking her head as she went to her table, but she was smiling and as Aly kept doing her thing, her whole table was joining in.
She hit my hand, half bent over as she was still laughing and motioned for the door. “WE have to go–that way–” Another laugh came from her.
It was a whole out-of-body experience when these happened.
“Ha-ahhhhaaaa–eeee-haaa–HA-AHHHHAAAA–EEE–HAA!”
I was laughing too, but mine was more contained. I moved ahead of her, grabbing her hand. Our fingers laced as I dragged her behind me, and out the door where I assumed Justin and Harper would’ve gone. We got out, but the guys weren’t here. I’d taken her out the back door. People were at tables in the front and on the north side of the bar. They had a whole setup up there for everyone. I walked to the south side. That house was set back a little bit, with gravel traveling up the side of Manny’s and connecting to the parking lot. Spotting Corvette, I didn’t think Justin and Harper would’ve gone by them. I was on a mission before the booze really hit me and wading into whatever was going on between Shane and Aly’s new man wasn’t it.
“There.” Aly had settled down, her laughs more normal by now.
I looked where she was pointing. There was a driveway on the other side of that house, that was attached to a whole different road. I frowned, but saw two guys over there. They looked in an embrace.
“Wait. Maybe they made up?”
Aly’s hand squeezed mine. “Or doing way more than that?”
That didn’t seem like them, though. Justin looked heartbroken in the bar earlier. Those guys were hugging or something more. I doubted Justin and Harper would be at the hugging goodbye stage so soon.
I shared a look with her. “You think we should go make sure it’s in a good way or leave ’em alone?”
“Are you kidding me?” She gave me a dark look while still chuckling. “It’s Harper. We have to do this for him.”
I gave a nod right back to her. “You’re right. It’s Harper.”
We didn’t need to hold hands going over there, but I didn’t pull away and neither did she. Either the alcohol was kicking in or I was feeling some sentimentality about Aly. I was scared about what would happen after this mission was done? A part of me was trying to reassure myself that nothing would happen to Aly and me. Our friendship was solid. Had always been strong. But…
Yeah.
I didn’t want to think about it anymore.
We eased up, seeing the two guys move around the side of a shed.
Aly started forward, but I pulled her back. Frowning.
“What is it?”
I shook my head. “I’m not sure, Harper is shorter than Justin. Those two guys were equal height.”
“Oh, yeah. I noticed that too, but thought Justin was leaning down or something.”
This was dumb. There were bikers just on the other side of Manny’s. Nothing was going to happen with Shane so close by.