Page 53 of Long Shot

“Erm . . . no, thanks.”

“Okay, how about a Dick Sucker?”

Carrie chokes. “A what?”

Marco grins. “Dick Sucker. Made with Blueberry Pucker, and pear vodka.”

“Um . . . it sounds good.”

“Gotta love a good Dick Sucker,” Marco says with a dirty grin.

I laugh along with everyone else.

“How about you, Reese?” Cade asks. “A Juicy Screw?”

I laugh, my body tingling with awareness of Cade standing near me. Speaking of a juicy screw . . . “While that does sound tempting, I think I’ll have a glass of wine. The Sauvignon Blanc.”

“Coming right up.” He pours me a generous glass of wine.

“What other crazy drinks do you have?” Carrie asks, now sipping on her turquoise drink.

“Pop My Cherry,” Beck answers. “Lick Her Right.”

“Oh, my God.”

“Hey, they’re very popular.”

Marco leaves briefly and returns with the bottle of tequila, which he sets on the bar and strokes reverently. “We’ll crack this baby open in a while.”

“I can’t wait!” Hayden bounces a little.

“Me, too,” Sid says. “I’ve heard of this but I never thought I’d ever get to try it.”

Cade grabs himself a beer and moves around the bar to stand with the group now mingling there. Despite not having to cook, I’ve set out bowls of chips and salsa so we have something to nibble on while waiting for our pizza.

“So.” Carrie turns to face me. “I was right. You’re not just a waitress.”

I grimace. “I am a waitress, right now. And I’m sorry that I misled you.” I do feel bad about that. And I know there are going to be questions.

“Was there really a bad breakup?”

“Mmm, not really.”

Carrie gives me a searching look, but rather than ask about my reasons for lying, she says, “Tell us how you got to be a chef. Did you go to chef school?”

I smile. “Sort of. I did go to community college after high school for a year. My first ever job was working in a kitchen as a dishwasher. Luckily that didn’t last long and I got promoted to a prep cook, but the kitchen fascinated me. Then I got a job at Piccolo.” I pause, not sure if anyone there will recognize the name.

“Oh, my God,” Carrie says. “You worked for Graham Sand?” Her mouth falls open.

“Yes.” Graham has become even more famous the past few years because of his reality cooking show.

“Wow. He’s . . . an asshole.”

I laugh. “Yeah. But he’s very talented.”

“Yes, I guess so.”

“It was a great experience,” I go on. “I quit school to work there full-time. I learned a lot and I wanted to move up, but I knew I had to learn from others, so I left there and traveled in France for a year.”

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