“Of course.” The waiter tipped his head discreetly and headed for the bar.
“You’re really going to do that straw and water thing again?” Derek asked.
“You know he is, so why bother questioning him?”
Kade shook his head. “Four or five drops of water helps a whiskey—”
“Open up in the glass,” Derek and Luke said, repeating his often-used refrain at the same time.
“If you remember, why ask?” Kade posed the rhetorical question.
They did it to give him a hard time as only they could. Because they knew he liked his scotch a certain way, compounded by his need for routine. Only these two men could get away with making fun of him.
The waiter returned and placed Kade’s fresh drink, bottle of water, and straw beside his plate.
After the waiter poured the fresh spring water in a glass, Kade used the straw to deposit exactly four drops into his drink. Too much diluted the whiskey. This, at least, he could do without too much help. He’d had an appointment with an orthopedist, who’d merely confirmed the ER doctor’s diagnosis and had given him the same talk about not overdoing things. Though he’d said he’d take another look in a month and consider removing the splint then.
Derek placed his napkin on the table. “I’m not ready to go home yet. I heard some people from work say they’re hanging at Lights. Want to stop by for a drink?”
Kade hadn’t planned on going out late, but he couldn’t say heading home alone right now appealed to him either. “Why not?”
“I’m in,” Luke said, signaling to the waiter for a check.
“Who’s going to be at Lights?” Kade liked to know what he was walking into. “Is that where the coders hang out?”
Luke accepted the folder with the check from the waiter before turning his gaze on Kade. “Actually it’s Tessa and Becky,” he said, flipping open the billfold.
Kade’s stomach twisted at the mention of their personal assistants, who, he’d noticed, Lexie had grown more comfortable with over the course of her first week of work.
He glanced from Luke, who was busy putting the company credit card down, to Derek, who, as usual, had a guilty look on his face.
Don’t ask, don’t ask, don’t ask. “Anyone else?” he asked, hoping that was vague enough to keep his friends from giving him a hard time.
“Let’s go find out,” Derek said, meeting Kade’s gaze with an amused one of his own.
He should have known better than to underestimate his friend and had a feeling he was in for an interesting night.
* * *
Lexie didn’t own funky clothes, so she borrowed an outfit from her sister. Dressed in a short black leather skirt and red bustier—she figured if she was going out, she was going all out—and her own pair of heels, she joined the other women at Lights.
She walked into the club to flashing lights and mirrored walls. All that was missing was a disco ball. Still, with the music flooding around her, her mood lifted even more. Her sister was having dinner with a friend, a guy Lexie knew and liked, so she was here with a clear mind and intended to enjoy it.
She joined Tessa and Becky, who already had a table and were sitting with their drinks. “Hi, ladies.”
“You made it!” Becky, wearing a black dress with a deep V and cut-outs on the sides, jumped up from her chair. “Here, sit.” She gestured to another seat and Lexie slid into it.
They pulled their chairs closer together, easier to be heard over the loud music.
“Nice outfit,” Tessa said, raising her drink in approval. The blonde wore a royal-blue bandage skirt and white cropped top.
“You two look great,” Lexie said.
Tessa flipped her long hair off her shoulder. “Thanks! Let’s order you a drink. You need to catch up. We’re on our second.”
The cocktail waitress walked over, and Lexie, who hadn’t had alcohol in a good long while, ordered an old standby, an apple martini.
While they waited, they talked about office gossip and other benign subjects, before inevitably the conversation turned. “Any idea how your boss hurt his hand?” Tessa, who Lexie had already determined enjoyed gossip the most, asked.