Where We Meet Again, стр. 49
“Nope. A. D. I. D. A. S.”
“Ugh. The 90s called. They want their music back.” I meander back down the hall to retrieve my shoes from my bedroom. Kiersten follows.
“They want their jokes back, too.”
“My joke isn’t as bad as your sexual references.”
“And that song isn’t as bad as your joke. That song was popular well into the 2000s.”
Stuffing a few makeup staples into my black clutch, I shoot her a mock glare. “This is true. You win.”
“Woo-hoo! First round’s on you!”
I stick out my tongue.
“Are Nathan and his friend meeting us here or there?”
“Here. He’s our ride. We can cab it home. I just need to call him when we’re ready.” I sit on the edge of my bed and tug on my gorgeous shoes. After admiring them myself, I shove a foot in her direction. “Whatchya think?”
She pushes my foot down and leans over to pull me up. Cocking out a hip, she smooths a hand beneath her chin, and runs her eyes over me from top to toe. “Freakin’ gorgeous!”
“Thanks. You look fantastic too.”
“I’m ready if you are. Give Nathan a call.”
After circling the bathroom to make sure I turned everything off, I follow her out to my living room. “I’m on it.” I scroll through my contact list and tap his name. He answers on the second ring.
“You ladies ready to roll?”
“We sure are. Make sure you have the heat cranked in your truck.”
“Already do. Just picked up Rhett. We’re headed your way now.”
“Cool.” Nerves tingle along my spine.
“See you soon,” Nathan murmurs and ends the call.
Sadness tinges the edges of my mood, and I don’t want to think about why. I need to shake it off, not dwell on it.
“Hey, you okay?” Kiersten asks, stepping up beside me.
I smile. “Yeah. Hey, I have an idea. Since we aren’t driving, let’s have a quick drink. One for the ladies.”
“I like the way you think.”
Shot glasses mean extra dishes, so we bump from the bottle instead. I’ve just passed it to Kiersten when my phone buzzes with a text.
Nathan: Get your asses out here ;)
“They’re here.”
She tucks the bottle back into my cabinet, and we leave, locking up behind us.
* * *
The bar is in the dead center of Main Street. Right in the middle of a business strip, it takes up twice as much square footage as any other building. The overhang with the sign Calypso’s! sports red and green Christmas lights, even though the holiday has passed, and will probably look that way well into January.
The men drop us off at the big red door while they find a place to park, saving us from having to walk a good distance in the cold. We hoof it inside and into the warmth.
Packed isn’t a word one would use to describe any place in Arrow Creek, but in regards to its regular weekend turnout, Calypso’s is packed tonight.
The bar has entrances at both the front and the back of the building, with stairs leading to the basement on both ends. They run a full bar on both levels every weekend.
The upstairs has more tables for dining in, not to say food can’t be ordered for downstairs (it could), and the basement has a side of pool tables and a dance floor. From what I can see of the upstairs, there isn’t much room unless we want to stand at the bar. “Let’s go down.”
Kiersten changes her course and leads the way.
Chilly air blasts us from the door opening and closing so we pick up our pace. I have a mission to get another drink in me before the next hour starts, and it’s getting dangerously close to nine o’clock. This is the one night a year I let myself get uninhibited and free, and I’m desperate to enjoy it.
We find a table, and the waiter steps up just as Nathan and Rhett join us.
“Welcome to Calypso’s. What can I get you? The next hour is ladies’ hour, so the girls’ drinks are on the house.”
“Yeah!” Kiersten and I high-five over the table.
“I’ll have a Moscow Mule and keep ‘em coming.”
Kiersten grins. “Oh, that sounds yummy. I’ll start with one, too.”
“Shit, how am I supposed to owe you a round when our drinks are free for the next hour? I don’t know if I’ll be able to do a round after this.” I giggle, though completely serious. I can hold my liquor with the best of them, meaning I almost never get sick. That doesn’t mean I don’t get drunk easily. It’s a double-edged sword.
“Two rounds of tequila for the table, extra limes.” Nathan orders.
Leaning to my left dramatically, I twist my neck to look at where he sits beside me. “You’re trying to get me drunk.”
From the corner of my eye, I watch the waiter smirk and walk away to fill our order.
His jaw drops open, and he raises his hands in defense. “I am not. If you don’t want it, I’ll just have to drink it. Then it’ll be you who’s getting me drunk.”
“Unh-uh. I’m not the one who ordered.”
“Says the woman who gets free drinks for the next hour.”
I smile and fiddle with the wrapped silverware in front of me, enjoying the playful banter.
“So, you all work together?” Rhett asks, joining in the conversation for the first time. I can’t help but notice the way his eyes stay trained on Kiersten, as if he finds her fascinating.
“Nathan and I are partners on the ambulance. Kiersten works in dispatch. So, same field, yeah, but not in the same area.”
“That must be fascinating. Do you ever get any crazy calls?”
Nathan and I exchange a glance. “Crazy stupid or crazy annoying? There’s never a lull in the calls from people who should have called their therapist instead of 911. Kiersten gets the most interesting calls, though. We’re only routed to the ones that need medical assistance.” Nathan answers his friend.
“Ugh. Just last night. A lady called