Free La Vie en Rose {Life in Pink} by Lydia Michaels Page B

beard, looked right at the camera, parted its bucked teeth, and screamed. She was done.
    “Yes!” Riley shouted, leaping off the couch and snatching the money. “I knew you wouldn’t make it.”
    As he danced around kissing her twenty-dollar bill, she collapsed on the couch, holding her stomach in a fit of laughter. One goat after another screamed into the camera. They weren’t in pain. Apparently, these were the sounds goats naturally made. How had she never known they could baa like that?
    Their screams grew more ridiculous and her laughter turned into pure hysteria. Tears, she was in tears! A cramp formed in her side and she moaned, but couldn’t stop laughing. For two solid minutes she struggled to breathe as this absurd compilation of goat shrieking went on.
    And then, there was a new sound.
    Riley froze. “Oh. My. God.”
    She stilled, eyes wide, not a single breath moving through her lungs, her laughter completely gone. That did not just happen. The clip stopped and the room silenced.
    “I can’t believe you just did that,” he whispered, face set in stunned amusement.
    Her skin heated to a scorching burn. If he were anything close to a gentleman he’d pretend nothing happened. She waited for him to change the subject, give her a mulligan. Friends did stuff like that.
    His head fell back as laughter erupted from his chest and he pointed. “You farted!”
    “Shut up! It was an accident! Those stupid goats made me laugh and it just slipped out!”
    He collapsed onto the chair and held his stomach. “You should totally give me another twenty for that. Not only did you laugh, you released the Kraken!”
    That was it. She stood, grabbed her cup of water and dumped it on his crotch.
    “Hey!” He continued to laugh.
    “You, Mr. Lockhart, are no gentleman.” She stomped to her room where she slammed the door.
    “Oh, come on, Emma! Don’t be mad. Friends don’t let friends fart and walk away angry!”
    “I hate you!” she shouted, but laughed silently.
    Eventually she’d get over her embarrassment. She’d have to face him sooner or later, but at the moment she was hiding. Stupid goats.
    ****
    T he following morning when Emma awoke she found a surprise in the kitchen. There was a lily, like the ones that grew outside of the inn, sitting in a beer bottle on the counter. He was a pain in the neck, but he kept her smiling.
    Dear Ma’gotes McHobbit Toes,
    Roses are red, violets are blue,
    You farted.
    You can’t hide in your room forever.
    Let’s have a Ferris Bueller day and go sightseeing.
    Wake me up at noon.
    #GoatFartsForever
    -Ri
    And just like that, she got over her embarrassment.
    The idea of a day wasted on the sights of New York sounded awesome. She dressed in a navy blue skirt and a white tank, taking an extra few minutes to rub sunblock into her shoulders. As she tossed the lotion in her purse, her phone rang. Reading the screen she smiled.
    “Hey stranger!”
    “Is that you, toots? How are things?” She hadn’t realized how much she missed Rarity until hearing her voice.
    “Things are wonderful. How’s the shoot?”
    “The shoot’s fine. Lexi surprised me and came to the hotel last night, so that was awesome.”
    “Cool.” There was definitely something to envy about Rarity and Lexi’s relationship.
    Her friend laughed, but her next question was cautious. “You...you sound really great, Em. Did something happen with Becket?”
    She scoffed. “No, screw him. I’ve just been enjoying my time off and hanging out. Not taking life too seriously as I try to figure out where I go from here and who I want to be.”
    “Um...what?” She laughed, sounding dumbfounded. “When I left, you were a puddle of emotions fused to the couch. I thought I’d have to set it on fire to get you up. What the hell happened?”
    She didn’t know how to explain her rapid transformation, because even she was surprised by her resilience.
    “Well, Riley got me drunk one night, I put on my wedding gown, and