Page 33 of For the Boys
Brent shrugged. “I’d admit to a lot more than that if she’d agree to go out with me.”
Lexie clapped a hand down on his shoulder. “You’re moving in the right direction, bud.”
Chapter Six
Berkley
If Berkley was being completely honest with herself, she would much rather be staying in with a bottle of wine, watching eighties rom-coms instead of going out tonight. The absolute last thing she wanted to do was go to the bar. But she couldn’t back out now. She’d never hear the end of it.
As she applied her makeup, her thoughts turned toward the conversation she’d overheard Parker and Mitch having the night Parker assaulted her. Berkley couldn’t ignore the fact that Brent had apparently slept with someone in Nashville, mere days after stating his desire to get to know her better. How could she believe anything he said to her after that? To Berkley, his actions were completely at odds with his words, and she didn’t have time for games.
Resigned to having a less-than-stellar birthday celebration, she grabbed her shoes and headed downstairs. She reached the first floor landing just as the door to the apartment opened and her friends breezed in, all wearing black to offset Berkley’s red dress.
Despite her misgivings about the night ahead, Berkley was looking forward to spending time with them. She truly had been blessed with the best of friends, who genuinely wanted her to be happy.
Lexie was the one who would go to bat for Berkley in any situation, no questions asked. She was also always the center of attention, as she had legs for days, and long, sleek dark brown hair she usually wore straight down her back or in chunky French braids. She favored red lipstick and preferred to be the one wearing the pants in a relationship, a trait that served her well in her job as a headhunter for the largest employment recruiting company in the Midwest.
Amelia, who was sweet, brunette and blue-eyed, was much more subdued than her tall-girl counterpart. She was crazy smart, took cycling classes as often as normal people changed their underwear, and ran marathons for fun. Friends since they were little, she and Berkley had been through a lot together. Amelia currently worked as a content curator for a travel magazine. The magazine was based in Los Angeles, but Amelia was lucky enough to work remotely from Detroit. Twice a year, they flew her off to some far-flung locale as a reward for her hard work.
Kimber was a born and bred Californian, giving off the quintessential surfer-girl vibe. With straight blonde hair and a curvy body, she appeared laid back—that was, until you got to know her. She was easily the loudest and boldest of their group, and you could usually find her hustling guys at pool or doing keg stands at house parties. Even three years post-grad, she had yet to outgrow the party-girl tendencies, but she was a hell of a pediatric nurse. The girls still couldn’t quite understand why she’d left the perpetual summer of California for the temperamental Midwest weather, but they had to admit she fit in well here.
After the usual chorus of compliments swirled around the room and died down, the girls settled on the couch in front of a coffee table laden with bottles of alcohol. Berkley took a deep breath, closed her eyes for five seconds, and vowed to have a good time. Slowly, she let out the breath, opened her eyes, and accepted the glass of wine Lexie was holding out to her.
“Happy birthday to our girl,” Lexie said, and they all clinked glasses.
Two hours, four bottles of wine, and hundreds of photos later, the girls were buzzed enough to call a cab and head to the bar. On the ride there, Berkley began to have second thoughts.
“I don’t know, you guys,” she said, opening the camera on her phone to examine her appearance in the dim light from the dash. “What if he’s not at the bar? Or what if he is, but he doesn’t talk to me?”Or what if I don’t want to talk to him?she added to herself. “ I can’t help but think this is just a waste of time. We really should’ve just done dinner and drinks. Plus The Backdoor is going to be packed with annoying college kids.”
Apparently, her brain was overriding her decision to forget about what could go wrong tonight. She was aware she was whining, but she didn’t really care.
“This is your night, Berkley Daniels,” Lexie said. “We’re not going to let anyone ruin it.”
When they arrived at the club, Berkley noticed the front door was roped off. A sign had been hung that read: Closed For a Private Event.
“How did we not know it was closed?” Berkley asked, suddenly disappointed despite her earlier protestations. A swarm of butterflies had set up camp in her stomach.
“That’s so weird,” Kimber said, shaking her head as she scrolled through her phone. “I didn’t see anything online!”
“Me neither,” Amelia chimed in.
“Well, hey, maybe the event is upstairs and we can still go in?” Lexie suggested. “Can’t hurt to try, right?”
Berkley shrugged and followed her friends out into the chilly mid-November night. The cab sped off, leaving them alone on the too-quiet city street. They made their way along the path formed by red velvet ropes until they reached the door to the club.
“Wait here,” Amelia said. “I’ll go see what the deal is.” She disappeared inside, leaving her three friends in the cold.
Several minutes later, the door cracked open, and Amelia popped her head out. “We’re in the clear! C’mon!”
The girls quickly followed her inside. Berkley could hear the music blasting just beyond the coat check closet, where they stopped to have the attendant take their jackets. Shoving her ticket in her clutch, she stepped back, waiting for her friends. She silently prayed it would be busy and that the sign out front hadn’t deterred anyone else.
Amelia led the way into the large room that housed the bar and dance floor. The moment Berkley stepped inside, she was assaulted by a bright light and a loud cheer of “SURPRISE!”
In the minute it took Berkley’s eyes to adjust to what she was seeing, she had already been hugged by at least thirty people. She had been handed several shots—which she discreetly dumped over her shoulder, not caring to repeat the experience from August—and was now holding a beer in one hand and a Jack and coke in the other. When she finally got some space and could breathe, she looked at her friends incredulously.
“Happy birthday!” Lexie yelled. “Were you surprised?”
“I was, which you know I hate,” she said, giving them each a pointed look in turn. “How in the hell did you guys pull this off? You can’t afford to rent this whole place out!”
