Page 40 of Beyond the Hate

“Drinking one standard alcoholic beverage a day at least two hours before breastfeeding is not known to be harmful to a baby.”

Nova snatches the shot glass from me. “Leave it to you to fact my excuse away.”

I hand a glass to Maya but she holds up her hand. “I’m trying to get pregnant.”

“Just accept the glass. Paisley is going to fact your excuse away anyway,” Nova mutters.

“Maybe I want to hear the fact,” Maya says.

I oblige. “If you are trying for a baby,it is best to limit alcohol consumption to four drinks total per week. Since you haven’t been drinking at all, this one shot will not hurt your chance to conceive.”

I hand her a glass before pouring a shot ofBuccaneer’s Whiskeyin each glass. “Raise your glasses. Here’s to thebootleggers. Masters of sneaky snips and secret stashes. Thanks for keeping the party alive!”

“Bootleggers!” they shout in return before downing their shots.

“Wow.” Nova rubs a hand over her chest. “I forgot how whiskey can burn.”

Chloe smacks her lips. “But it’s a good burn.”

I gather the glasses and place them in my bag with the whiskey. Usually, we play a drinking game while we work our way through the nine holes of miniature golf but considering Nova’s breastfeeding, Maya’s trying to get pregnant, and Chloe’s trying to get pregnant but doesn’t want anyone to know, I didn’t bother bringing any beer with me.

“Time to kick some mermaid ass!” Chloe shouts.

“Mermaids don’t exist,” I say because I enjoy ruffling Chloe. It’s almost ridiculous how easy it is.

She glares at me. “Mermaids do exist.”

Sophia threads her arm through Chloe’s and nudges her toward the office. “Come on. Let’s play some mini golf.”

Cindy, the teenaged girl working in the office, groans when we arrive. “I thought you’d given up on mini golf. And now I’m going to have to kick you out.”

Chloe scowls. “We’ve never been kicked out.”

“But we have been politely asked to leave before,” I add.

Chloe holds up a hand. “Not the same thing.”

“Never said it was.”

“What if I politely ask you to leave now?” Cindy asks.

“We’d decline and tell all the smugglers you have a crush on the captain of the football team,” Sophia says.

Cindy rears back. “The captain of the football team is my best friend’s boyfriend. She’d kill me.”

Sophia hands her a wad of cash. “Give us our putters and scorecard and we’ll be on our way.”

Cindy groans. “I’m never working on Thursday again.”

Once we have our putters and Maya has the scorecard – she’s the only one trusted to keep score without cheating – we proceed to the first hole. Chloe skips to the tee.

“Anyone else tired of Chloe going first each time just because her name starts with a C?” Sophia asks. Nova and Maya raise their hands. I join them. I don’t care who’s first but I do enjoy teasing Chloe.

Chloe glares at Sophia. “What do you suggest?”

“Reverse alphabetical order.”

“But you’d be first every time.”

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