Troublemaker - Lisa B. Kamps Page 0,6

any money to pay for anything."

"Don't worry, it's my treat."

"Well in that case—" I motioned toward the door with a smile. "Lead the way."

Chapter Four

Morgan

I totally should have changed. The bar and restaurant wasn't fancy or dressy and everyone we had passed on our way to the seating area in the back corner was dressed pretty casual. If we had taken a seat at the bar, or if Dylan had gotten us our own table, I would have fit in with no problem.

But we weren't at our own table.

And I couldn't have felt more out of place if I had walked in wearing the wedding gown.

The other men seated around the lounge area were dressed pretty much like Dylan: jeans, t-shirts or polo shirts, loafers or tennis shoes. But the two women with them—yeah, I was definitely out of place.

The younger one was around my age, maybe a year younger. Any younger than that and she wouldn't be able to legally drink the fruity concoction in front of her. She had long, black hair, thick and wavy, and wide dark brown eyes framed in lashes that had to be fake. Maybe. She was petite and curvy—everything I wasn't—and I was doing my best to hate her. It would have been easier to do if she wasn't being so damn nice. Or maybe it was just her accent that made me think she was nice. I mean, could anyone who spoke that way, with her soft voice and rounded consonants and drawn out vowels, really be all bad?

The other woman was older and maybe even a little harder. Definitely bigger—I figured she was at least a head taller than me without those ridiculous heels she was wearing. With them, she'd probably tower over me—and a lot of men, too. Her hair was jet black, the kind of color that could only come out of a bottle, and the dark lashes that framed her clear eyes were definitely fake. There was nothing soft about her, from the heavy make up on her angular face to the sinewy muscles of her arms and rock-hard legs.

I also picked up a subtle warning vibe from her, like she was almost daring me to look closer and judge. Ha! Like I had any room to judge anyone else? Not hardly. That, and I didn't really care. At all.

You do you, boo.

I didn't say that out loud, though. I might be guilty of doing some stupid stuff in my life, but that didn't mean I wasn't smart enough to keep my mouth shut. Not that I could have gotten a word in edgewise even if I had wanted to because the men were all talking. I had tried following the conversation for a total of five minutes after the introductions were made but quickly gave up. They were talking about sports and something about a game coming up. I had zero interest in sports and quickly tuned them out. Besides, I was more focused on the food in front of me. As hungry as I was, it would have been easy to inhale every last bite. If I was alone, I'd probably do just that, but I couldn't, not with the two women watching me.

Like, really watching me. It was almost enough to make me want to stop eating.

Almost.

"Dylan said you're a runaway bride."

"Jacqui! I swear, you are the least subtle person I know." The younger girl—Addy—turned to me with an apologetic smile. "Just ignore her. It's really none of our business if you don't want to talk about it."

I popped a fry into mouth, chewed and swallowed, then offered the two women a brief smile. "Good. I don't."

Addy's eyes widened a bit and I got the feeling that she was just as curious as her friend, only she was much too polite to say anything. Jacqui, on the other hand, threw back her head and laughed, the sound deep and throaty and oddly genuine.

"I think I like her, Addy. Something tells me there's no bullshit with this one." She studied me over the rim of her drink as she took a small swallow. "Secrets, maybe, but no bullshit."

I raised my brows in mock surprise. "Doesn't everyone have secrets?"

"Touché, cher. Touché." She took another sip then placed the glass on the low table in front of her. "The groom you left behind isn't related to the Masons, is he?"

"Who?"

"His last name. It's not Mason?"

I cut off a piece of the crab cake with my fork and dragged