Page 37 of Screwed

We all order the burgers and fries with chocolate milkshakes.

“It’ll be right out,” Suzie says and we thank her as she heads back behind the counter.

As soon as Suzie walks away, the girls are on me.

“Tell us everything,” Madelyn says, practically leaning halfway across the table.

“How was your date last night?” Sutton asks and I lean in closer to them before I answer.

I know that we’re alone but I don’t really want anyone else overhearing me talking about Arlo and everything that we did together.

“It was really nice,” I say and Sutton nods, encouraging me to go on by waving her hand. “We had pizza and hung out at my place.”

“And then what happened?” Madelyn asks with a sly grin.

“I showed him my bedroom…” I start and Madelyn and Lyla both squeal.

Wide grins stretch across their faces and I laugh. I can’t help but grin too. I feel like I’m in high school a bit, giggling and gushing over a guy but it feels good. I’m not so stressed or worried about the business or my lack of relationship with my parents.

I’m happy.

“Was it good? I bet it was good,” Lyla says, bumping my shoulder with hers.

“It was really good,” I say and I can’t hold back my grin.

My face heats and the girls all cheer. When Suzie comes back with our drinks, we quiet down but as soon as she’s gone again, they’re back to asking me questions.

“Are you guys exclusive then now?” Madelyn asks.

“I think so? I mean, I’m not seeing anyone else.”

“I doubt he would either. He’s been half in love with you since I got to town,” Sutton says.

I take a sip of my milkshake and try not to wonder if Arlo could be seeing someone else. I know that Sutton is right and I think that one of us would have heard if he was going out with someone else. This is a small town, after all, and gossip here spreads like wildfire.

Things are going so well between us and I don’t want to let my own doubts or insecurities get in the way and cause us issues.

Arlo doesn’t seem to mind how awkward I am about all of this dating stuff. Whenever I say something wrong or feel like I messed up, he just smiles. It makes me feel like I can do no wrong when I’m around him and I love that sense of security that he gives me.

Suzie comes back with our burgers and we start to talk about upcoming plans for the weekend. Madelyn and Flynn rented a cabin in the woods up in Honey Peak and I smile as she tells us about their plans.

“Are you going to the festival that’s happening up there? We were thinking about going after work,” Sutton says, popping a fry into her mouth.

“Maybe? We mainly just wanted to get away and relax for a few days,” Madelyn says.

Madelyn is a bit of a workaholic and I’m glad that Flynn has convinced her to take a break and have some fun. She’s been better about it since they started dating and part of me wonders if she only worked so much because she was trying to stay away from their shared house and him so that she wouldn’t have to face her feelings for him.

We split the bill and head back outside to Madelyn’s car.

“Want to hit up The Fainting Goat?” She asks, looking at me in the rearview mirror.

“Sure,” I say and she smiles as we reverse and head down the street to the bar.

It’s pretty busy when we pull into the parking lot and it takes Madelyn a second to find a spot. We head inside and Lyla leads us right up to the bar, pushing through the crowd like she owns the place. I just smile at her confidence as I follow in her wake. We have to stand off to the side for a minute until a spot opens up and then I’m being pushed up to the bar.

“Hey, I didn’t know that you were coming in tonight,” Arlo says with a grin once he spots me.

“Yeah, it was a last-minute thing,” I say, wondering if he doesn’t want me here.

---