DANGEROUS (EXCERPT ONLY)

Chapter Two

Callie

A week had passed since the race. My twenty-fourth birthday had arrived, and I'd been smart enough to request off work. I woke in the morning to Candice's bright smile. She ushered me into the cubicle sized bathroom with words like 'shower' and 'going out.' I slipped a lavender shift dress on with a cream cardigan and suede booties. My hair was tamed into a large halo braid. Candice waited in my living room. She sat on my black suede couch staring intently at her cell phone screen. I cleared my throat to get her attention.

"Are you ready to go?" She asked while setting her cell phone aside.

"Yeah," I answered. I grabbed my cross-body brown leather purse from its perch on the back of one of the wrought-iron dining chairs. "Where's Megan?"

"She's going to meet us there," Candice promised. Her honey-toned hands reached back to adjust the bouncy ponytail her silky curls were in. We walked silently to her vibrant blue sedan. "You've got to move into a better neighborhood." Candice fussed. She drove towards downtown, eventually turning onto the bustling Main Street. It didn't take long before we were parking along the curb outside my favorite café. Jeremy's silver sports car zipped by pausing long enough for Megan to slide out.

"You sure do know how to make an entrance," I teased as Jeremy peeled away.

Megan pursed her lips with satisfaction. "He offered to drop me off. It's on his way home."

"On his way home?" Candice titled her head to the right. Amused curiosity raised her eyebrows.

"We had a long night." Megan winked while sauntering into the café. We took our usual seats at the small white square table in front of the bay window. The table had four mix-matched chairs. I sat in the zebra print armchair, Candice took the retro dinner seat, and Megan sat in the wooden kitchen chair. "So, Callie, how does it feel to be twenty-four?" Megan clasped her hands and perched her chin on top of them.

I shrugged, "It feels the same as being twenty-three." My eyes roved over the menu.

Candice giggled, "We're going to make sure you have more fun than you did on your twenty-third birthday." She promised. My twenty-third birthday was a blowout. I had a severe case of the flu. I spent the day in bed surviving off of Gatorade, Theraflu, and chicken noodle soup.

"We're going shopping, Jeremy's treat." Megan waved the black credit card proudly. She was not shy about spending her boyfriend's money.

"Must be nice to have a rich boyfriend," Candice muttered taking a sip of her lemonade. Her relationship and Megan's relationship could not have been more different. Jeremy was a rich jerk and believed that if he bought Megan anything she wanted, then she would overlook his indiscretions. Sam was openly affectionate towards Candice. Even when she wasn't easy to get along with, he had never cheated on her. And he always seemed to be around when she needed him. I didn't care for Jeremy, but Sam was a good guy. Of course, I kept my opinion on Megan and Candice's relationships to myself. They both seemed happy with their men. Who was I to judge? At least they had someone.

"Maybe we'll find you a boyfriend tonight." Megan wiggled her perfectly trimmed eyebrows.

Candice nodded her head eagerly. "You've been single too long. How long ago did you and Clay break up?"

My index finger tapped my chin in thought. "Um, I think it's been four months." 

Megan rolled her eyes. "That's more than enough time to grieve."

My head cocked to the right, questioning her choice of words. "Grieve? You know he's not dead, right?"

Candice held up her hands. "Where the hell is your rebound? Callie, you're dragging your feet."