Page 1 of Not My Finest Hour

ChapterOne

“Bottoms up, ladies!”

You know that feeling you get when you’re about to do something you know you’ll probably regret later? That’s me right now. And this shot of tequila I have in my hand? It’ll probably be my downfall tonight.

But you know what? You only live once. And really, what’s one more shot? It’s not like I’ve had that many tonight. This is only my second…or maybe third or fourth. Who’s counting? I tip the shot glass back, feeling the burn as the alcohol slides down my throat. One by one, my two girlfriends and I chase the tequila by sucking on a wedge of lime.

Chelsea slams her shot glass down on the bar. “That’s it. That’s my last one,” she says, talking loud enough to be heard over the bass that’s thumping throughout the place.

Lorelei raises a brow. “You tapping out?” When Chelsea nods, she replies, “Wuss.”

I push my shot glass toward the pile of empties. “Remind me why we’re celebrating again? I’m having a hard time remembering why we decided to go out tonight when we all have to work tomorrow.”

“Because it’s the second anniversary of the day I almost threw my life away.” Lorelei’s eyes bore into mine like I should know this already. But really, the girl has so many anniversaries and celebrations, I have a hard time keeping them all straight. Just last week, we all went out to celebrate her dog’s fifth birthday—never mind the fact that her dog wasn’t even there.

“Thank God you didn’t go through with it,” Chelsea says, referring to the day Lorelei’s fiancé (at the time) wanted her to uproot her life and move with him to Florida.

Lorelei flicks her jet-black hair behind her shoulder. “I know, right? Me a Floridian. Can you imagine? Florida is so…so…flat. And swampy.”

I shrug. “I don’t know. Florida sounds kinda nice right now considering it’s been raining almost nonstop for the past two days. I could go for a little sunshine and heat.” It’s not like me to let the weather get me down. I mean, I grew up here so I know what the weather’s like. But lately, there hasn’t been much in my life to get excited about. Not to mention that almost every other day I have to see my sister and her fiancé, Brett, be all lovey-dovey with one another. These little outings with my friends are a nice reprieve from having to witnessthat.

“Yeah, the weather latelyhasbeen a drag,” Chelsea agrees. “But we shouldn’t let that bother us tonight. Have you seen the scenery in here?”

I scan the bar with my gaze. Chelsea’s right. Therearea lot of hot guys in here tonight.

This exclusive bar is the latest to open up in Capitol Hill, and the line to get in wrapped around the building. Luckily, Lorelei was so desperate to get us all in to celebrate, she paid someone to stand in line for us.Who knew that was a thing?By the time we arrived, we only had to wait a few minutes, which was good because my outfit and hair wouldn’t have held up in the rain. I almost felt sorry seeing some of the drenched women totter in after us on their sky-high heels, hair limp like wet noodles.Almost.

“I feel like we’re surrounded by hot guys,” Lorelei says, the excitement of the evening apparent in her eyes. “I wouldn’t mind taking that one home right there.” She points to a guy who’s about six-two with sandy blond hair. The guy throws her a wink, causing her to almost faint on the spot. “Did you see that? He winked at me!”

“We saw. And it’s a miracle you’re still standing,” I say, nudging her arm. “Maybe you should go and talk to him.”

“You think so?” Lorelei asks. Chelsea and I nod in agreement. She turns to walk away, then stops. “No, I can’t. I came out tonight to celebrate with my friends, and it wouldn’t be right to leave you two.”

“You came out tonight to have fun. And maybe hooking up with that guy is part of it,” I say, trying to get her to leave. I know if she doesn’t leave, she’s going to spend the whole evening regretting not talking to him, and then getting angry when someone else moves in.

Lorelei shifts her gaze toward me, then toward Chelsea, then back to me. “Are you sure? I feel bad.”

“Just go,” Chelsea says, pulling her chestnut-colored hair into a ponytail. “We’ll be fine here.”

Lorelei’s mouth spreads into a wide grin. “Okay. Wish me luck.” She leaves the table and joins Blondie on the other side of the room.

“Thank goodness. I thought she was never going to leave,” Chelsea says with a laugh.

“And look,” I say, nodding toward Lorelei. “Things must be going well over there. She’s already touched him at least twice.”

“Now that we won’t be seeing her the rest of the evening, it’s time we find someone for you.”

I shake my head. “Not interested. I didn’t come out tonight looking for a hookup.”

“Then whatwereyou looking for when you put on that short skirt and top that barely covers your midriff? And those heels? Come on.” Chelsea narrows her eyes.

She’s got me there. I put these clothes on tonight to look hot, andmaybeget the attention of a guy or two. But I only did it to score some free drinks and give my ego a little boost. “Just because I’m dressed like this doesn’t mean I want to go home with someone.”

“I never said anything about going home with anyone. It’s just some harmless flirting.” She looks around the room, a space no bigger than your average Starbucks. “What about that guy right there?” She points to a guy wearing glasses who’s talking with another woman.

“Taken. Look how close that woman standing next to him is,” I say.

“That’s his sister. That’s why they’re so close.”

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