Page 63 of Defend Me

He nudged my shoulder with his. “Any time one of the employees knows what I’m doing, they don’t give a shit. They don’t get paid enough to simp for this business.”

We got through the ticket check without issue and he looked a little smug about it. I was just glad I could unclench my teeth before I fucked up my jaw irreparably.

“Can I at least get a drink?” I asked with a healthy dose of snark.

“Sure.”

I started toward the counter, but he grabbed my arm and dragged me toward a lonely trash can. As he plucked a cup from it, my mouth dropped open.

“The fuck are you doing?” I hissed.

“We’ll just wash it out and get a new lid and straw. The drinks are self-service, so they won’t know we didn’t buy it.”

“That’s disgusting. You’re joking, right?”

He had to be joking. This was a prank. Nobody in their right mind would drink from a trash cup.

“I’ve gone along with this entire nightmare and I’ve been a good sport.”

“Debatable,” he said.

“I’m drawing the line here.”

“Nah, I believe in you.”

My eyes narrowed. “I’m buying a drink.”

I reached into my back pocket, then turned an accusatory glare on him.

“It’s in the car,” he informed me. “For someone from the city, you’re very easy to steal from.”

“This was supposed to be a fun night.”

“It is. I’ve done this a hundred times, man. Let go a little. I swear you won’t die.”

“The person who drank that could’ve had a disease.”

He laughed.Laughedabout a valid concern. “Go find our seats and I’ll meet you there. You’re gonna do great.”

Under my breath, I cursed his name and his firstborn. He just looked extremely entertained by the whole thing.

*****

I was still a little pissy when Dean joined me in the theater. He held the cup out to me and I eyed it suspiciously. Either he’d come to his senses and bought one or he was a psychopath and was actually offering that to me.

He took a long drink from it, probably to demonstrate that it wouldn’t kill me. I didn’t believe that, but I grabbed it and took a tiny sip before I put it in the cup holder, stifling a gag.

“Look at you,” he teased. “Slumming it looks good on you.”

“Yeah, yeah. Next, you’re gonna tell me that I have to beg someone to buy me dinner.”

“That sounds horrible. We’ll do it your way after this.”

“Thank fuck.”

I pulled out my candy, then reclined my seat and perched my feet close to me so that my knees were up. Dean stretched out his legs and casually opened the bag of popcorn, which was very loud in here.

The theater was nearly empty, which was nice. Hopefully, that meant there’d be less people talking. That shit pissed me off.

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