Page 7 of Puck (The Lost Boys MC)
She giggled. “Trust me, you’ll like my broccoli.”
I rolled my eyes. “Maggie.”
She scoffed playfully. “Look, you can either have a chef at a four-star restaurant whip you up an outstanding meal or you can go to Applebee’s. Your choice.”
I grinned. “And here I thought you liked Applebee’s.”
She swatted at me. “You’re a real jerk, you know that? Of course, I like Applebee’s. Their drinks are bangin’.”
I barked with laughter as we cruised down the highway that stretched along the ocean. I rolled down my window and let my wild red hair flutter around my face as I drew in lung fulls of the decadent air. I loved the way it smelled here. I loved waking up every morning to the draw of an ocean that held my heart. I always knew that I’d never live away from the ocean. I had known my entire life that while my childhood hadn’t been easy, the ocean was always there to wash my fears, worries, and sins right away with the tide.
So, I drank it all in as Maggie continued down the road.
“Penny for your thoughts,” she said.
I sighed heavily. “Just wondering where we’re going.”
“Yet, somehow, I find that hard to believe.”
I peeked over at her. “No, really. Where the hell are we going? We’ve never been to this end of town before.”
She giggled. “Do you trust me?”
“Uh, yeah? What the hell does that have to do with anything?”
She snickered. “Then, trust me that where we’re going is going to get our night off to a really great start.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What did you do?”
She shrugged. “I might have invited Laurie and Tennessee to come hang out with us.”
I gasped. “I haven’t seen them since we all graduated!”
She squealed. “I know, right?! They’re both in town for family shit, so I figured we could all get together. You know, since classes don’t keep us together any longer.”
I clapped my hands and rubbed them together. “Tonight is going to be legendary.”
“That’s the spirit I was looking for. Hell, yeah!”
I moved and weaved with the car as Maggie blew past all of the regular joints we frequented when we were all in community college together. And the further into town we got, the less I recognized. I enjoyed being on the outskirts near the ocean. I never wanted to be too far away from the one thing that made me feel cleansed in the midst of a life that should’ve made me feel alone, abandoned, and dirty.
Then, Maggie turned down a street I recognized.
“You’re kidding,” I said flatly.
Maggie furrowed her brow. “What?”
I rolled my eyes. “We’re going to the Gaslamp District? Seriously? That place is nothing but a damn tourist trap.”
“Oh, come the fuck on, girl. It’s the one place in this town we haven’t been yet. So, why the hell not!? Live a little with me. Let’s go see what the tourists find in this place.”
I leaned heavily against my car seat. “Just a bunch of pot-smoking hornytoads if you ask me.”
“Then it sounds like we will also get you laid tonight.”
I balked. “No.”
“When was the last time you got a good dicking down, Brigid?”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “That doesn’t matter.”
My best friend barked with laughter. “That long, huh?”
I sighed heavily. “I’m not taking some weed-hungry tourist home just to get a little dick.”
“Well, then let’s find you a big dick.”
“Maggie!”
“What?!”
I whipped my head in her direction, unable to stop myself from falling apart in laughter when I caught the seriousness of her face. She was legitimately serious. I couldn’t believe I had let her trick me into coming out tonight.
“I should’ve known there was a catch to all of this,” I murmured.
Maggie reached over and patted my knee. “At least you know it comes from a place of love. But I’m tired of seeing you alone. You’re a beautiful, intelligent woman, and you deserve all of the good that life has to offer.”
“You know why I don’t want to start anything, Maggie.”
She groaned. “I know, I know, because once you get your fancy four-year double-degree or whatever, you’re going back to Ireland to help with your family business. I know.”
“Right.”
She peeked over at me. “That’s why I’m not telling you I’m going to find you a relationship.”
“Maggie!”
She mocked my voice. “Brigid!”
I glared at her. “You better get me back home at a reasonable hour then. I’m not letting some random man take me home just so he can come back and stalk me later.”
Maggie giggled. “It’s tourist season. If anything, the person you hook up with is only in town for a few days at the most.”
“How long did you think this through?”
“Girl, I know how you operate. I also knew you’d throw absolutely everything at me in order to get out of this. So, if you promise to live a little and take that stick out of your ass, I’ll make sure to have you home at a reasonable hour.”
