Page 10 of Alice & Meg, Girls Trip

Greta, who had been quietly observing the whole exchange, grinned. “A multipurpose pen, huh?” she teased. “It sure looked like a vibrator to me. When you’re done giving yourself a little blast-off, you can take the top off and write out your grocery list.” She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, making the others chuckle.

I put the cover back on the pen and shoved it back towards Karmen. “You all need Jesus if you think I’d have four vibrators in my purse,” I said, shaking my head.

Karmen turned the pen over in her hands, inspecting it closely. “I just thought you were taking the Boy Scouts motto of ‘Be Prepared’ to the extreme,” she shrugged.

“Prepared for what?” I shot back, crossing my arms. “An impromptu writing session or...” I trailed off, letting the insinuation hang in the air.

“Or a little fun on the side,” Raven suggested, not missing a beat. “You know, in case camp gets boring.”

Wendy snorted, trying—and failing—not to laugh. “Oh my god, you guys,” she wheezed. “Poor Meg’s just out here trying to make dinner, and you’re accusing her of carrying around a secret stash of vibrators.”

“A girl’s gotta have her hobbies,” Greta chimed in, giving me a sly wink.

I sighed dramatically, throwing my hands up in mock defeat. “If I’d known this was going to be such a scandal, I would’ve left my purse at home,” I joked, though I couldn’t help but smile at how absurd the situation had become.

Lennox, who had been silently watching with wide eyes, finally spoke up. “So... no more pudgy pies?” she asked, her tone tinged with disappointment.

“I’ll make your pudgy pie,” I sighed, rolling my eyes. “If these hyenas can let me do my job without accusing me of hoarding vibrators.” I shot a pointed look at the others, who were still snickering.

Karmen finally handed my phone to me, the screen lighting up with a missed call notification. “Oh, by the way, I think you missed a call,” she said, all casual-like as if she hadn’t just instigated a whole conversation about my supposedly scandalous purse contents.

“No kidding,” I muttered, swiping through my missed calls. It was Lo. Of course, it was.

“Anything important?” Wendy asked, peering over my shoulder.

“Just Lo checking in to make sure we got set up okay,” I replied, pocketing my phone. “I’ll text him later.”

“And after I get my second pudgy pie,” Lennox piped up, not willing to let me forget she wanted a second pudgy pie.

“That baby has you on top of its priorities, Lennox.” Greta chuckled, patting her on the shoulder.

Reva shuffled her chair closer to the fire, rubbing her hands together. The flames crackled, sending warmth into the cool night air, but she still looked a bit uncomfortable. “I hate to say this, but I’m actually a little chilly,” she admitted, her voice a mix of surprise and reluctance.

From the other side of the fire, I perked up. “Oh!” I called, a grin spreading across my face as an idea popped into my head. “That reminds me. I brought presents!”

There were curious glances thrown my way as I set down my pudgy pie maker and bolted toward the RV. “Everyone stay right where you are!” I ordered, practically bouncing with excitement as I opened the door and ducked inside.

Behind me, I heard Lennox’s dramatic groan. “My pudgy pie,” she lamented, her tone dripping with exaggerated despair as the door swung shut.

With the windows open, I could still hear the chatter outside as I rummaged through the RV, searching for the big cardboard box I had hidden away earlier. It didn’t take long to find it, stashed under the table, just as I’d left it.

“Am I the only one who is scared at what present she got us?” Cyn’s voice floated in, tinged with laughter.

Nikki giggled. “It could be anything.”

“Maybe it’s a pair of overalls for all of us,” Reva guessed. “I could totally rock a pair of those while I’m grooming.”

I smiled to myself as I listened to them speculate. Reva in overalls? That would be something to see. I imagined her wrangling dogs in a pair of cow print overalls like Alice’s.

“Yeah, you are probably onto something,” Wendy chimed in, clearly amused by the thought.

Grinning from ear to ear, I hefted the box up and made my way back outside. “They’re all the same, and I hope I got the right sizes,” I announced as I stepped out of the RV, the big box in my arms drawing everyone’s attention. I set it down with a thud and beamed proudly at the group. “Well, to be honest, I got everyone the same size except for Lennox. I knew she would need a medium.”

Paige’s voice rang out, her curiosity piqued. “Girl, open the box because you’ve got all of our curiosity peaked.”

Before I could reach for the box, Karmen called out, “Wait, wait! We didn’t get you guys anything.”

Alice raised her hand, a mischievous smile on her face. “I actually got everyone something too,” she announced, a twinkle in her eye. “We’ll be even stevens.”

---