Page 18 of The Soldier

I won’t get any change.

“Water please.” Trina orders.

Thank fuck. I’ve been counting her drinks and estimating when I’d be coordinating with the guys to call the driver.

“My story is...read the room and leave me alone.” Trina gives me the bird, takes her water, and walks away.

I smile, lean back against the bar, and watch her.

God, she’s beautiful.

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AN HOUR LATER, we are all back in one place and Trina wobbles. While standing still. The girls start giggling like a bunch of hyenas. Snort laughing. Which makes them laugh even more.

“Jesus. Time to go,” I say, nudging Josh.

Some moron decided to get a couple rounds of Kamikazes—basically, vodka and Triple Sec. Apparently, it doesn’t blend well with tequila and champagne.

We round them up and into the limousine, then endure twenty-five long minutes of Taylor Swift and Kenny Rogers car karaoke.

Don’t ask me why.

That’s what they sang.

Ryder joins in, and Josh groans but doesn’t look all that unhappy when Cassy climbs on his lap with an invisible microphone. A related instrument to the air guitar.

Obviously.

“Your turn!” Savannah cries out, pointing at me. “What’s your song Marshall?”

“Nope.”

Josh and Ryder look way too happy about the attention landing on me.

“Oh, come on!” Cassy claps her hands. “Sing, sing, sing.”

I lift my brow and glance at Trina. Her damn dress is all twisted around her body and half her thigh is exposed. She twists her mouth cheekily and I know what she’s thinking.

“Toy soldier can’t sing,” she slurs.

That. That’s what she’s thinking. So, like any red-blooded man who’s challenged by a beautiful woman, while his friends respond withooh ooh,I rise to the occasion.

I clear my throat. Then...

“There's a lady who's sure all that glitters is gold,

and she's buying a stairway to Heaven,” I sing and everyone goes silent.

That’s right fuckers, I can sing.

Well, enough to silence these drunk assholes, in any case.

After the next line, Savannah’s face lights up and joins me in singing the Led Zepplin classic.

“Ooh, ooh, and she's buying a stairway to Heaven.”

By the next chorus the entire cab is singing, even the driver I think. The girls are swaying, and the guys are doing air drums on their thighs.

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