FIRE & BLOOD • EVAN 'BUCK' BUCKLEY / 9-1-1

56.

Savannah appointed Buck. As legal guardian. To a child that isn't even his.

A crowd of young bachelors bursted through the door of Manny's. My mind tried its best to drown out the obnoxious shouting coming from the group but failed miserably.

"Another round?" Alex clears the empty rocks glasses from our table in one swoop, his eyes meeting everyone's as he waited for answers. Mazzey shrugs, "I'll take one more scotch"

"Dirty martini please, extra dirty with bleu cheese olives" Gigi gives Alex a wink. "You know how I like it." Alex chuckles and looks over to me and Amanda. I shake my head, which was starting to feel a bit fuzzy.

"Lemon drop shot?" Amanda says.
"You would order that" Mazzey teases. "All the quiet girls with that hidden wild side order that."

Amanda's innocence shines through as she looks at Gigi and I when we join in on the laughter.

"What is wrong with a lemon drop shot?" She asks, her wide eyes on Alex who had his head down, his shoulders shaking.

"Nothing love, I'll get those drinks right out for you ladies." His head shook as he walked away from our table and disappeared behind the bar.

"Lemon drop shots are delicious. And very sweet" Amanda says defensively.

We all nod our heads making no more comment on her drink choice. A little bit of the pain I felt in my chest eased hearing Amanda laugh. After everything that has happened, it felt good to hear that sweet laugh of hers and not seeing her be in a state of shock, completely shut down with no glimpse of light in her eyes. She needed this night out with us. We all do.

A bartender we've never seen before shows up at our booth. Her raven hair spilled over one shoulder, and her tank did not hide much cleavage as they were close to spilling out at any moment. And her shorts surprisingly held everything perfectly fine. An hourglass figure with a beautiful face working at a bar like Manny's. Made me wonder why she's working here and not on a magazine cover.

She held Amanda's shot and Mazzey's scotch in one hand and Gigi's martini in the other, not an ounce of alcohol spilling out of any of the glasses. I couldn't lie I was impressed with how she balanced those drinks in her hands.

"Here's that very dirty martini" she carefully places the glass in front of Gigi, "scotch aaaand the lemon drop." The girls say their thanks, the new bartender giving them a sweet smile before walking back to the bar. The group of young frat boys by the pool tables nearly broke their necks as they eyed the bartender girl, practically drooling like a bunch of dogs.

"Alright, cheers!!" Gigi raises her martini glass. Amanda and Mazzey bring their drinks up to meet Gigi's. I raise an empty hand.

"Cheers!" We all say.

"Rough night?" His husky voice causes me to sit up immediately. It was as if something were wired in me that made me fully alert when hearing his voice in that tone, that same tone he would use at work when he's asking me for an update. Victor shrugs his leather jacket off, throwing it over his arm.

"Rough life" I blurt out, instantly regretting saying that. How many drinks did I have again?

Lines appear on Victor's forehead, his eyes scanning my face.

"Well that got deep real fast" Mazzey slowly brought the rim up to her lips.

"I don't know why I said that." I was lying. A few drops of alcohol and anything I'm thinking comes out of my mouth. I said it because it is what I was thinking about. How rough life has been lately. Complicated. Frustrating. Exhausting.