Page 162 of Slumming It
"I’m just saying, go to that truck stop, and take a photo fromoneangle, and it'll look like you're in the middle of nowhere. But take it from the opposite side, and you'll see two restaurants and a gas station – all within spitting distance, too."
I blinked. "Really?"
"Hell, yeah. She wasn't hiking through the wilderness likesomepeople."
Obviously, she meant me. "I wasn'thiking. I was on the side of the road." My jaw clenched at the memory. "In high heels."
"Yeah. I saw, remember?"
"Oh, like I could forget." As I recalled the wedgie, I felt a new surge of annoyance. "Oh, and thanks for the Daisy Dukes by the way. Were they even washed?"
"They didn'thaveto be washed," Rita said. "They were brand fucking new. And not cheap neither."
"Oh, so they were meant to beflattering?"
Rita chuckled. "I never saidthat."
"So theyweren'tsupposed to be flattering."
"They were supposed to make you look ridiculous." Rita grinned. "And hey, I saw the pictures, so mission accomplished, you know?"
I gave her a stiff smile. "Gee, thanks."
She shrugged. "Hey, I was just doing what the boss said."
I didn't believe that for one minute. "So you were hereworking? That's what you're saying?"
"Hell no. It wassupposedto be a vacation – a nice long weekend to relax."
"With Reese?"
"Nah. I just went to the same placehewent." She chuckled. "You should've seen his face when he spotted me."
I tried to picture it. "Where?"
"At some convenience store. At first, he's all pissed off. But then he starts putting me to work." She did a rough imitation of Reese. "Buy this, find that. Pick up some chick on the roadside." She snorted. "Some vacation, huh?"
"But why'd you follow him here in the first place?"
"I'll tell you why. Because he was acting all funny before he left – and even funnier when I talked to him on the phone." Her voice softened. "And considering his history with the place, I figured he might need a friend."
It was actually kind of touching, but I didn't want to say so, because Rita didn't seem the mushy type.
On the sofa, she took another drink. "But then Reese gets all cranked, and thereIam, stuck pickingyouup." Her lips thinned. "And putting up with those two other bitches besides."
"Wait…did you just call me a bitch?"
She eyed me over the rim of her glass. "Honey, if I were calling you a bitch, trust me, you'd know." She shook her head. "But man…those other girls…were they assholes or what?"
I couldn’t argue withthat."Yeah, well, at least you got your revenge."
"What do you mean?"
"Well…after you told Reese how they acted, he draggedmeto the resort's nightclub so he could make fools of both of them." Under my breath, I added, "Threefools if you count me."
Rita shook her head. "I didn't tell him dick."
"Oh, come on! I know better."
