Page 83 of Dirty Martini

He scoffs and raises his hands. “I wasn’t shit talking.”

“Fine,” I mutter, not acting cool or chill anymore.

Elton stares at me for a beat, partly like he doesn’t recognize me, and partly like he’s lost in the conversation. After a second of boring his eyes through my forehead, he sighs and takes another sip of his beer. “Fine. What about you? What’s new?”

Now this is something I can talk about easily. I take the respite and bring up one of the most recent changes in my life. “I got a job as head bartender.”

“Seriously?” he asks. He laughs and claps his hands together before reaching to shake my arm. “You’re going to rock that.”

“And…” I gulp, feeling like I might sound a bit ridiculous, but too excited not to share with him. “I might go back to school.”

His jaw hangs slack. “Are you kidding?”

I was expecting surprise, sure, but disbelief? “Why would I be?”

“You’ve never shown an ounce of interest in going back to school. Like, at all,” he says, brow furrowing. “I know you’re all about learning and shit, but this is a pretty big step.”

I know it is. He’s right that I’ve never considered it before, but things are different now. Everest opened my eyes to a future I could still believe in, to a dream that I buried a long time ago. “So? I can change my mind.”

“You? The most stubborn man I’ve ever met? Doubtful,” he scoffs. “What would you even study?”

“Mechanical engineering. To build roller coasters, you know?” My cheeks heat involuntarily as I scrape at the plastic lining of our menus.

“You mean from your doodles?”

“They’re more than doodles,” I defend.

He nods slowly, biting his bottom lip before smirking. “So, who is she?”

If I were drinking my soda, this would be a spit-take moment. I stop fucking with the menu and let out a forced laugh. “Excuse me?”

“The woman,” he presses, wagging his brows. “The one who’s making you think of a bright and shiny future.”

Even though he’s being lighthearted, I feel like I’ve been put under the spotlight. I swallow harshly. “There’s no woman.”

“Bull. Shit.” He enunciates each word with a suggestive smirk and a pointed finger. “You’re…different.”

“No, I’m not.”

He holds up a hand. “You’re my best friend, bro. I can tell. You seem lighter. Happier. I don’t know, it’s like you’re glowing or something.”

I can’t help but smile at his words, bashful, chuckling under my breath. “Yeah, I feel like that.”

“What’s her name?”

There’re a lot of things I could say. I could tell Elton to mind his own business, even though that’s a sentence I’ve never uttered to him before. But I owe it to my best friend to be as honest as I can, considering the circumstances.

My attraction to Everest came suddenly, and I never really processed it. I didn’t have to. I became so consumed by him that any sort of freakout just got put to the side. So, with a deep breath, I tell him, “She’s actually a he.”

He blinks at me and, for a second, I think that maybe the rustling of dishes in the background might have prevented him from hearing me. “I said?—”

“Wait, you’re into guys?” he asks, bulldozing through my admission.

“Bi, I think,” I say with a shrug. “I’m not too sure. I’m only attracted to him so far.”

He nods slowly, taking in my words. Downing his entire drink, he rubs his hand down his mouth before speaking. “So, you’re in love with a man.”

I don’t know how he jumped straight to love, but there’s no denying it. I might not be able to tell him who I’m completely gone for, but I can admit how incredible I feel. “Yeah, I am.”