Page 27 of The Brave and the Reckless

She also paid for my cocktail when we ended the day at the Rattlesnake Saloon.

The place was packed. Queue-out-the-door kinda packed.

We had to push past a few people and flash our staff badges just to get upstairs to a designated premier-access balcony, and the staff section behind it. The chatter and music mounted at peak volume under the vaulted ceiling, people shouting louder and louder just to hear themselves over the other groups shouting at each other.

Even the staff section was tight by the time we plopped down at a table with our drinks. Vivi and another girl, who I didn’t recognize, were already seated.

I shot a quick look around, but I didn’t recognize anyone else besides Adriana behind the bar. Considering how busy it was, there should have been a few more familiar faces.

“Where is everyone?” I asked, joining the communal shouting match.

“What do you mean?” Zuri asked.

“Sanny, Lucas, Austin or…” I squinted. My eyes skipped from our table to the next. A group of middle-aged women. The next table was surrounded by more women, all styled to the nines, one of whom I recognized as Heather, the leather-corset thirst-trap queen. One demographic was noticeably in the minority though. I leaned over the balcony to check the crowd in front of the stage, too. “Men. I mean men.”

Zuri giggled. “Not here tonight. Or on any first Wednesday of the month.”

“There’ll be men, don’t worry,” Vivi said, and leaned over to pat my hand. “They’ll just be on stage.”

Ah.

Okay.

I was halfway through my cocktail when the lights dimmed. All that chatter had nothing on the screams that suddenly tore through the saloon. My options were to cover my ears or roll with it– and the second seemed like more fun, so I whooped and hollered alongside everyone else when the Stallions took the stage.

In all his stories about Bravetown, my brother had forgotten to mention that the entertainment included a Magic Mike cowboy show. Okay, it wasn’t quite Magic Mike, but it was a dozen shirtless men in cowboy hats and boots, dancing and doing strangely wholesome comedy bits.

Vivi explained that the show was officially classed as burlesque.

It still involved just as much body glitter as a strip show.

“Hold my seat,” I yelled over the squeals of hundreds of women. On stage, two guys dance-battled to a Kacey Musgraves song around a girl with a bachelorette sash and crown. I needed a refill for the second-hand embarrassment of audience participation.

Zuri was already slightly wobbly on her feet when she followed me to the bar. That girl could not hold her liquor. Adriana took our orders, as well as Zuri’s car keys for safekeeping.

I didn’t notice the man approaching until a tall glass was plonked down right in front of me. Condensation pearled down the sides, but the drink was clear. “Here,” Noah barked.

“Noah!” Zuri squeaked and threw her arms around him in a happy hug. I almost got jealous. Zuri Hugs were thebest and Noah barely returned it, patting her shoulders. So undeserving. “Whatcha doin’ere?”

“Just checking up on you all,” he replied.

“Sanny?” Zuri asked, eyes going big. She leaned around him to check for my brother’s presence.

“Nope, just me.”

“Aw man.” She deflated. God, that was cute. Watching cowboy strippers with eight-packs do body rolls, and still missing her fiancé. “I’m ’onna call him,” she announced before she grabbed her freshly made drink and sulked back to the table, phone in hand.

“And what’s this exactly?” I picked up the glass he’d served me and sniffed. Nothing. He was either serving me water or pure vodka. Most likely water.

“Final costume rehearsal tomorrow. You shouldn’t be hungover for that.” Rationally, I knew he was shouting because of the volume of the crowd, but his stupid authoritarian demeanor needled me even more this way.

“I figured it out,” I replied and grabbed my caipirinha instead of the water.

“What?”

“Your zodiac sign. It explains so much.”

Noah heaved a deep sigh, leaning on the counter and tilting his head. “Astrology is a scam. You know that, right?”

---