Page 101 of Downpour

Three pairs of eyes stared at me from across the table. Their gazes made me hesitant to reach for the shared basket of chips and bowl of salsa.

Becks had a mostly pleasant smile on her face, but it could have been fake. She was accustomed to faking it on TV. Cassandra didn’t bother putting on a polite smile. She seemed to be contemplating whether I was small enough for her to dig a hole by hand to bury me in, or if she’d have to borrow a backhoe from the ranch.

Charlotte—or Charlie as most people called her—was unusually quiet for a toddler.

Becks nudged Cassandra. “Well?”

“Well, what? What do I do with her? Can she even drink?”

Becks laughed. “You hang out with Bree and Gracie all the time.”

“I’m used to them!” Cassandra said.

“And of course she can drink,” Becks said, then paused. “Wait. You can drink, right? We usually have margaritas and talk shit.”

“I can drink,” I squeaked.

“See?” Becks said. “Ray wouldn’t… whatever you guys are doing with someone that young.”

Cassandra let out a relieved sigh and gestured to the waiter. “I’m going to need tequila to get through this lunch.”

We filled the uncomfortable silence by munching on warm tortilla chips while the waiter took our orders. Charlotte had found the perfect triangle chip, then proceeded to smash it to smithereens as she let out a mischievous giggle.

Finally, margaritas were doled out to each of us. Cassandra grabbed hers and sucked down half of it.

“Dramatic much?” Becks said, licking the salt rim and taking a sip.

“You know I don’t like people,” Cassandra said.

I wished I could disappear into the vinyl booth. The music playing overhead felt far too cheerful for the level of awkwardness I felt with the two Griffith sisters.

It felt like a job interview that I was woefully unprepared for.

Becks and Cassandra were stunning and sophisticated and mature and everything that I wasn’t.

Hell, Becks was probably old enough to be my mom. Or at least close to it.

“Just ask her a question to get to know her,” Becks said as if I wasn’t sitting across from them. “Start with something easy. That’s what I do when I’m interviewing people.”

Cassandra took another sip. “So, are you fucking Ray?”

Becks choked on her chip. “Not that!”

“Well! You said to ask a question.”

Becks rolled her eyes. “Yeah, but we already know they’re sleeping together.”

I had just taken a long drink of my margarita and choked. I sputtered into my napkin as the tequila and salt burned my throat.

“Great,” Cassandra deadpanned. “We took her out once and killed her. Ray’s gonna be pissed.”

Charlie crawled out of her mom’s lap and ran around to my side of the booth. I was grateful when she climbed into my lap and giggled. I loved spending time with kids. They weren’t judgmental.

Cassandra leaned back in the booth. “Alright, little miss fairytale princess who loves children and talks to animals, what’s your deal?”

Becks giggled. “I think that’s just called being a normal person.”

“My deal?” I squeaked.

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