“Oh yeah?” I tried to keep things moving. The show was going so well, I wasn’t going to let him ruin it.
“Yeah, but she’s with someone else.”
“That seems to always happen.” Jade took over. “I always seem to fall for the guys with girlfriends. I never act on it, of course—but it’s seriously annoying.”
“Tell me about it.” Ava joined in. “It’s worse when the guy pretends he’s single until you’re completely hooked and then the bomb drops.”
“This girl was upfront. I still want her though.” His eyes were back on me, and I had a feeling I knew the girl he was talking about. Ugh.
I wasn’t going to let him make it any more awkward. “Why not try to find someone else? If she’s unavailable, you’re just wasting your time. Should we take another caller?”
“I’m young. I have plenty of time to waste.”
I shot a look to Kyle. This seemed like something he could fix.
He mouthed, “Music.” Oh yeah, perfect.
“All right. Let’s hear some Pearberry unplugged.”
The band got going, and I tried to ignore the way Jimmy watched me as he played his tambourine. I started to laugh. I couldn’t help it. I tried to stifle it, but I couldn’t. I caught Jade’s eye and she laughed too.
Kyle threw us a dirty look, so we did our best to stop. Luckily, we’d composed ourselves by the end of the performance.
Jade nodded for me to continue. “Thanks for hanging out with us tonight. We loved having you.”
“We loved being here.” AJ smiled. “And anyone who wants to hear more, check us out online to listen to our debut EP.”
“You can also check them out on the station website as well. And don’t forget they’re opening for Real Bay on Wednesday night at the Draft. Hope to see some of you there. For now, here’s some Airbus.” Jade put on a song and turned off her mic. I did the same.
“That was a lot of fun.” Ava hopped off her stool. “Such a fun way of interviewing a group.”
“It seemed to go over well with Maddox, so we decided to make it a thing.” I was giddy. Despite Jimmy’s weirdness, it had been a seriously fun time again.
Chapter Eighteen
I’d never wished time away more in my entire life. The road trip visit had helped, but I was ready to see him again—especially considering my period was long gone. Chase was getting in to Savannah on Saturday afternoon, and I could barely wait. By Friday night, I was counting down the hours, so I was thrilled when my roommates decided we needed a girl’s night out.
I dressed up, excited to have an excuse to wear something a little bit nicer for a change. I was generally a dress kind of girl, but when you spend the majority of your nights at home, it’s hard to rationalize changing out of your jeans.
“Someone’s looking hot.” Juliet grinned.
“Same to both of you. Watch out, Charleston.”
Mallory laughed. “Well, since we’re all officially unavailable now, that’s okay.”
“Are we definitely going to Club Tango?” I put on some lip gloss.
Juliet slipped on her strappy sandals. She wore sandals nearly year round. “Yes. I’m not pushing my luck at Ion’s again. They are cracking down on IDs.”
I tossed the lip gloss in my favorite go-to black purse. “I don’t care where we go as long as we can dance. We haven’t been out in so long.”
“I know. We have to start making this a monthly event at least.” Mallory slipped into her black three inch pumps. I was wearing an identical pair in red. As much as I wanted a girl’s night, part of me wished Chase was around to see me. I shrugged off the thought. I could dress up another night for him.
“You both ready?” I asked, itching to get out.
“Absolutely.” Juliet headed to the door and we both followed.
We slipped into a cab so we didn’t need to worry about a designated driver, and ten minutes later we were pulling up outside the club. We waited in a small line before showing our IDs to the bouncer. No matter how many times my ID worked, I always worried.
“What do you guys want to drink?” I asked. “I’ll buy the first round.” Even though I was nervous about getting carded, I liked to get my turn over with.