Page 25 of Acid

“How about we just get a taxi this time?” Maggie suggests.

Star’s eyes light up. “No, no, let’s hire a limo!” she says excitedly. “That way you can drink Dixie, if you want to have a drink. It can be a real night and we can all let our hair down and have some fun.” She looks to Belle with sympathetic eyes. “Well, as much fun as you can have with food.”

Bell shrugs. “Meh,” she grunts. “I’m not complaining. This is the first time I’ve been able to eat and keep food down, so I’m making the most of it. By the time this baby is born, my ass will be so big you’ll need to make the doorway wider.” She snorts with laughter.

“Something tells me Beast wouldn’t care if your ass got bigger. I reckon he’d probably like it even more,” Maggie points out.

“Men are all about the tits and ass.” Nova nods in agreement.

“Nova, you’re in, right?” Star clarifies.

She nods. “I’m in. A bit like Rhea, I’ve never been out with friends. You know, apart from last time,” she says, wincing.

“Seriously, what happened on the last night out?” I press.

“Just a dickhead guy thinking he could get away with drugging and raping me,” Nova states casually. My mouth hangs open, not quite sure what to say. “Don’t worry, he didn’t get very far. Thanks to Spider.” She smiles.

I place my hand across my heart and reach for her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I… Is it weird if I say that maybe because of past trauma, that is why I feel so comfortable here? So relaxed?” I ask.

“Maybe you are right. I mean, it’s probably why the guys have all bonded so well. Why they have this club, the brotherhood. I mean, I know Spider and Acid grew their bond, their brotherhood, in that evil kid’s home, but maybe you are right. Maybe that’s why we feel settled. This is our family,” Nova states.

I keep my expression neutral as her statement settles within me. Evil kids home. I knew Acid hadn’t had a great upbringing. He had briefly mentioned it, but I had no idea that he didn’t even have his parents.

Star cuddles a sleeping Enzo into her chest. She looks down on him and smiles, placing a soft kiss on his head. “So, girls’ night, in a few weeks. You keep it to yourselves, not a word to any of the men,” she says in a quieter voice, so not to disturb Enzo. We all nod, although I don’t have a man I could spill to. She looks up at Queenie. “And that means you not interfering this time, too,” she warns.

Queenie smirks. “What? It paid off. Are they not happily together?” She smirks before bending down and takes Enzo in her arms. “I will put him down for you while you plan this thing that I know nothing about because I was busy putting Enzo in his cot.” She winks over her shoulder as she walks off.

Star goes to open her mouth, but Maggie beats her to it “Already booked the limo. It will pick us up from the mall 3 weeks from today at 3pm,” Maggie states, tapping away on her phone.

“I will call Nina at the store and tell her what’s happening. She can have outfits ready for us. I just need to tell her all our sizes,” Josie states.

“I can book us in at the salon for hair and make-up,” Belle adds. “Oh, and a foot massage.” She groans.

“I can bring us some baked nibbles to eat while we are in the salon,” Nova offers.

“I’m not sure how I am going to do this without telling Rage. He gets really testicular if he doesn’t know where I am,” she sighs like a lovesick puppy.

“Particular?” I ask, frowning.

Star pats my leg and nods. “But that’s the beauty of it. He will know where you are. We will be at the mall. That is not a lie,” Star points out.

“But what about after? When it rolls through to the evening and the mall will be closed. What then? What do we say then?” Maggie points out.

Star opens her mouth to say something but pauses. “I’ve got it!” she claps, making baby Maisy jump in her sleep. She winces. “Sorry,” she whispers. “What if I ask Rose to be our cover?” she states.

“We could say we are all attending one of her sisters’ charity fundraiser things, a Gala,” Star suggests.

“But what if Ghost speaks to Rip between now and then and he confirms there is no Gala?” Belle points out.

Star pulls out her phone and scrolls for a minute. “Well ladies, then I guess we are luckier than a prostitute getting the all clear for the clap, because Daisy, Rose’s sister, is in fact having a Charity Gala in 3 weeks’ time. Admittedly, it’s not the same night, but they won’t talk dates, just simple about the upcoming gala. And if he finds out, we can play dumb and say we got the dates wrong,” she says, smiling like she’s solved the world’s problems.

“Or I could just change the booking for the limo, and we actually go out on the same night as the Gala?” Maggie asks, raising a brow.

Star clicks her fingers and points to Maggie. “Yes that, do that,” she asserts.

“Do we have a name for this covert night out?” I ask.

“Gno,” Josie says, smiling.

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