Page 95 of Racing Heat

“Yeah, I want something with some liquor in it.” Hendrix grabs Cassie by the hand. “Let’s go grab something on August.”

“Fuck you all!” August yells.

Everyone just laughs at him.

“Thanks for the drinks, fucker!” Hendrix calls as she makes her way to the bar with Cassie and Amelia.

“That girl cannot stand you,” Danny says with a laugh. “What the fuck did you do to her?”

“Why does it have to be me who did something?” August rebuts.

“Because it’s you, and she calls you fucker,” Danny points out. “That has to be because you did something.”

“Yeah, and Hendrix is usually a reasonable woman,” Mac teases him.

“Have you met her?” August throws his hands up in exasperation. “She dives on fucking balls for a living!”

“Hey! I used to do that!” I remind him.

“Well, no one claimed you were sane either,” Mac says with a laugh.

“Oh, sod off!” I tell her, which earns me a bunch of laughs and mockery. “And once again, I’m reminded why I try so hard not to use any English terms around you fuckers.”

Cassie comes back and brushes against me as she navigates the full bar. I lean back into her as she attempts to get around me. It’s a cheap way to get some contact, but fuck it, I’ll take whatever I can get tonight.

“What are we talking about?” Cassie asks, sipping on the glass of wine she’s holding.

“Look at you drinking wine,” Mac says, her eyes a bit glassy.

“I didn’t want a mixed drink,” she says with a shrug.

Hendrix and Amelia have what looks like the tiki punch that the bar is famous for. I’ve enjoyed my share of it too, but then I’ve also been rewarded with a hangover. That stuff will creep up on you. It tastes like candy going down.

“You have the punch?” Danny comments. “We’ll have to keep an eye on you tonight.”

“We’ll be good. But we can play a fun game…” Hendrix’s voice trails off at the groans from the other girls at the table.

“What?” I ask, looking around. Clearly, Danny knows what they’re talking about, because he’s laughing along with them.

“Hendrix likes to see if she can get us set up with random guys,” Amelia says with an eye roll.

“Oh, kind of like August,” I say, which earns a big laugh from Danny.

“You two are so much alike,” he says. “Maybe that’s why you can’t stand each other.”

“That’s not why we can’t stand each other!” Hendrix cries out.

“Then why?” Mac asks, looking between the two of them.

They stare at each other, like they’re both daring the other one to say it.

“Just drop it,” Hendrix finally says through clenched teeth.

“Okay, dropping it.” Mac places an arm around Hendrix’s shoulders. “I won’t bring it up again tonight.”

Hendrix just nods. “Thank you.”

“I mean, we could work on getting Cassie some action or something,” Mac throws out there, staring at me.