Free Tipsy by Cambria Hebert

as he slid into another of “his” booths and then I
looked away.
    A waitress came by with a tray full of
drinks. I grabbed one. “Hey!” she said, annoyed.
    I pulled a couple bills out of my pants
and slid them in the front pocket of her apron. “Thanks, sweet
cheeks.”
    The annoyance slipped right off her
face and she winked.
    I downed the drink, knowing I shouldn’t
drink any more, but not caring. This night had been all kinds of
messed up.
    Slater and I sat there a while,
bullshitting with the girls, listening to the music and Slater
making out with any girl he could get his hands on. Man, he really
got into his undercover role.
    After a while, I slid out of the booth.
“Later, man.”
    He pulled away from the brunette in his
lap and got out of the booth to offer me his fist. I bumped mine
against his and he said, “He’s gonna check you out with Pike. You
pass that and you’re in.”
    I’d pass. I knew I would.
    Slater clapped me on the shoulder and
leaned in. “Thanks for the info.”
    I didn’t acknowledge his words as I
walked away. Is that why he was undercover? Was he investigating
the “leave of absence” by one of the crew? I thought he was called
in for the drugs as well, but now I was beginning to wonder if
maybe there was more.

9

    Julie
    I pretended to be drunker than I was on
the ride home. I didn’t want to face Dee’s never-ending questions
about the guy she saw me with, the other guy I was dancing with,
and if I saw what happened when a fight broke out.
    Luckily, she had been too far away to
see I was practically in the center of the fight. Luckily, she
didn’t know what Blue looked like, because if she’d realized the
man in the gray knit cap was Blue, there might have been a second
fight that night.
    I leaned my head against the cool glass
of the backseat window and stared out into the darkness. Every once
in a while, I would let my eyes droop closed so Dee would think I
was close to passing out. Really, I wasn’t nearly drunk
enough.
    The alcohol I did drink seemed to
vacate my system the minute Blue started beating up the guy I was
dancing with. My eyes closed again, this time not because I was
trying to fool Dee, but because I couldn’t stop thinking about
him.
    The way it felt to be pressed into his
side as he steered me toward the exit. It was a casual touch, but I
was close enough that I felt the tension in his muscles; I felt the
awareness in his body. It didn’t make me afraid… It made me feel
protected.
    I wasn’t the kind of girl who needed to
be protected. I lived alone, I took care of myself, and I refused
to rely on a man. But that didn’t mean the inner princess in me
didn’t squeal in delight when his arm draped around me and I felt
small.
    Even tough girls want to feel safe
sometimes, too.
    When Craig pulled the Hummer up to my
house, I got out quickly, shocking them with my movements. Dee
probably thought she was going to have to peel me off the backseat
to get me inside.
    She climbed out of the SUV and met me
on the sidewalk. I smiled at her. “Thanks for the ride and for the
fun.”
    “ You gonna be okay?” she
asked, concerned.
    My heart softened at her genuine
concern, and I pulled her into a big hug. Maybe the alcohol was
still in there somewhere after all. “Thanks, Dee. You’re the
best.”
    “ I know,” she agreed when I
pulled away. “I’ll walk you in.”
    “ You don’t have to,” I said,
grabbing my keys. “I’ll be fine. I’m going to pass out
anyway.”
    “ Call me
tomorrow.”
    “ You know it.”
    I knew she wouldn’t leave until I was
inside, so I trudged up the steps and unlocked the front door. It
took a couple tries to get the door open because my hands were
shaking and my vision was slightly blurry. Yeah, the alcohol was
definitely still there.
    Still, I couldn’t pretend.
    I couldn’t pretend that everything I
was feeling was liquor-induced. The blurred vision, yeah. The
exhaustion I was feeling? Probably the liquor. But