"Hand to God," the man across from Jasmine held up his right hand. "This bear was eight feet tall and had a swing Muhammad Ali would be proud of."
"I thought you said the bear was six feet tall," another man, Michael, questioned.
"I heard it was ten," a third, Axel, accused. Jasmine covered her mouth as another bubble of laughter grew from the mockery unfolding.
"Listen here, Weller," the man snapped pointing a finger to one of the accusers. "Why would I tell a story that involved a scrawny six-foot bear?"
"What about the ten foot one?"
"I would never lie about the attacker's height. The beast was massive."
"Bull shit, Pops," Axel interrupted.
"Mister has-to-break-it-first calling bull shit. How typical," the man affectionately known as Pops returned.
"Another round," Garrett asked as he slid his chair back to stand. His dress jacket had been discarded, and his tie hung loosely from the collar of his shirt. Everyone's hands rose lazily. He looked at Jasmine who shook her head.
"So, what is that," Axel asked Jasmine once Garrett left.
"What is what," she took a sip from her glass.
"What are you two?"
"Just friends."
"Just friends and an eight-foot bear. The tall tales keeping coming," the man known as Luca scoffed.
"We are," she looked at their waiting faces. She could feel her own growing darker.
"Any chance that'll change in the future," Michael asked, popping a chip into his mouth.
"Any chance he put you up to this," she countered, settling back into her chair. A coy smile played at Axel's lips.
"Since y'all aren't an item, and you clearly have no interest in being his devoted pen pal, do you want to be mine," Axel waggled his eyebrows.
"Pipe down all of ya and stop harassing the poor girl," Pops finally spoke up. He set his empty glass on the table and shifted in his seat.
"What did I miss," Garrett asked as he set down the glasses before passing them around.
"Nothing," Jasmine answered before anyone else could. Garrett looked at her then the men at the table.
"What did you guys say?"
"We didn't say anything, did we," Michael asked. All the men shook their heads except Pops, who had allowed his to hang perfectly over his beer.
"Whatever," Garrettgrumbled as he leaned back in his seat and looked over at Jasmine. Shecontinued to smile, listening to the insistent bantering. The gears in her headhad started and it was going to take a lot to slow them down.
YOU ARE READING
Back Roads | ✅ completed
Teen Fiction"What would you do?" Daisy raised a brow and an amused smile quirked up with it. "You want me to make the choice for you? Given my track record, are you sure that's a good idea?" "Your track record is the perfect reason. You've been with your share...
