Bet the Farm Read online

  “Well then, carry on,” Ellison said with a wink. “Oh, Trina, by the way, this dress looks killer on you. Is this a Talia special?”

  “It is—she’s the best. Thank you for letting me borrow her,” Trina said, and Lauren had to agree—Trina’s red dress tonight was amazing. But pretty much everything that Ellison’s personal stylist Talia French recommended was. Including the gown Lauren had on tonight. She was a phenom, that one.

  “Anytime,” Ellison said before stifling a yawn. “I’m heading out, but I just wanted to congratulate you, Trina”—she placed her hand on Trina’s shoulder before addressing Lauren and Jax—“and you two for making this night possible. I know Trina would agree with me when I say this was a team effort in every sense of the word. You guys killed it to make sure Trina was successful, and she should pay for every drink you consume over the next year to show her appreciation.”

  Trina winced. “Fair.”

  “Best. Boss. Ever,” Lauren said.

  “That’s my cue.” Ellison waved. “See you all at the office on Monday. Enjoy your night. Make good decisions. Get home safe.”

  “Well, you heard the boss.” Trina held up her glass. “To my best friends, who will not spend one single dime on a drink until a new Realtor champion is named—I love you. I need you. Drink bottom shelf liquor only.”

  Lauren burst out laughing as Jax snorted their drink and started coughing next to her.

  Trina patted them on the back as she wiped tears from her eyes. “Jax, the point is to swallow, not gag.”

  That caused Jax to choke mid-recovery sip, and Trina cackled. Her friends were idiots.

  “I freaking love you two,” Lauren said as she shook her head. “Let’s do shots.”

  “Shots?” Kendall stepped up behind Trina and wrapped her arms around her waist, kissing her neck until Trina turned and joined their lips. They were so cute together that it was almost too much to handle. Lauren decided she needed to get laid soon, or she was going to start getting resentful of her bestie. Of course, if she could find someone to date, that would certainly help in that department.

  She looked over at Jax, who still had not recuperated from the snorting and choking. It appeared she’d be making this mission solo. She glanced over to judge how busy the bartenders were, but instead she got distracted by the attractive brunette in a leather jacket sitting at the bar. When did she get here?

  “I’ll grab them,” Lauren volunteered. She wanted to get a closer look at the mystery woman. “You in for shots too, Kendall?”

  “Sure.” Kendall was gazing moon-eyed at Trina. Lauren wasn’t sure Kendall even knew what she was agreeing to.

  Yeah, she needed to get laid. It was decided.

  “Awesome, top shelf shit it is,” she said.

  “Bottom!” Trina called out, and Lauren smiled. She had a good life even if she was in the middle of a romantic and sexual dry spell.

  Chapter Two

  “Hey.” Teagan nudged her hand from across the bar. “You there?”

  “Hmm?” Thea Boudreaux was staring at the melting ice in the bottom of her cup, wondering how she’d ended up here.

  “I asked if you’d like another,” Teagan said, motioning toward her glass.

  “Uh…” Thea wasn’t so sure about that. She wasn’t so sure about anything right now.

  “Yes,” Avni Patel supplied from beside her. “Make it a double.”

  Teagan reached for the glass but hesitated, waiting for Thea’s approval. Thea and her coworkers came to The Mirage often, and Teagan was one of her favorite bartenders. She wasn’t pushy, which Thea liked.

  Thea nodded. “With a lime, please.”

  “Thatta girl.” Avni slapped her on the shoulder as she sidled up next to her at the bar.

  “You’re a terrible influence,” Thea said, surveying her best friend. They’d become fast friends when Thea started working at Boston Bio five years ago even though they couldn’t be more different. Avni was the lead developer at the tech start-up and was barely half Thea’s height, but she had double the personality to make up for any vertical deficits. She’d been in a committed relationship with her boyfriend Raj for ten years, and she was stable. Reliable. Solid. And brilliant. She was brilliant in every sense of the word, especially with work stuff. But outside of their small friend group, she was shy. Almost insecure. Thea knew she could start her own firm and be twice as successful as she was at Boston Bio, but she doubted herself too much. Thea was working on that with her.

  Not that Thea was exactly excelling at life. She was recently promoted to administrative manager at work, but she wasn’t curing cancer or anything. And though she had no trouble finding a bedroom partner, she’d never managed to maintain a relationship more than a few months. But she knew she was charming like her dad. And loyal. Though not always punctual. But she tried. There was credit in trying, right?

  “You love me,” Avni said with a shrug. She was watching Teagan work, which was nothing new. Though Avni and Raj had been together since college, Avni had a super crush on Teagan. Thea secretly loved it, even though she felt a little sorry for Raj.

  “Just ask her out.” Thea elbowed her.

  “I have a boyfriend,” Avni repeated like she had so many times before.

  “Just ask for a weekend pass, and get on with it,” Thea said with a teasing smile. “You know you want to.”

  Avni rested her head on her hand and sighed. “We both know that this crush works because it’s never going to happen. It’s like a forbidden fruit kinda thing. I’m curious, but—”

  “A total coward.” Avni punched her in the arm. “Ouch.”

  “That’s a lot of talk coming from someone who’s been holed up for the last week like a freaking hermit, afraid to call her mom back.”

  Thea dropped her head. Shit.

  “I’m sorry. That was a little harsh, huh?” Avni rubbed her back. “I’m in love with Teagan’s ass in those jeans. Fine. I admit it. I’m lashing out because I’ll never know if those buns are as firm as they look.”

  Thea laughed. “I bet if you asked her if you could squeeze her booty, she’d let you.”

  Avni looked scandalized. “And take away all the fun of torturing myself? I could never.”

  Thea watched as Teagan bent over. She did have a nice ass. But she wasn’t her type. Though clearly, she was Avni’s.

  A loud cheer came from the back of the bar, and a group of well-dressed people danced and sang in a small circle. They all looked so happy. Thea felt envious.

  “What do you think their deal is?” Avni asked, nodding toward them.

  “A coworker celebration thing. One of them just got a big award,” Teagan said as she placed a drink in front of Thea. She took Avni’s empty martini glass and pointed to it. “Refill?”

  “S-sure,” Avni stuttered, and Thea laughed.

  That earned her another arm punch.

  “That’s gonna bruise,” Thea said as she rubbed her arm.

  “Don’t embarrass me in front of my soul mate,” Avni hissed.

  Thea rolled her eyes. “Did you trip over your tongue when you met Raj? Or is this just a Teagan thing?” she asked, but she already knew the answer. Avni got so nervous around Teagan it was comical.

  “I hate you,” Avni whispered as Teagan placed a bright red cosmo in front of her.

  “I added a cherry. Just the way you like it.” Teagan gave her a wink before moving on to another order.

  Avni held her hand over her heart and pretended to die on the bar top when Teagan walked away.

  “You’re so dramatic,” Thea said.

  “She knows how I like my cosmo,” Avni said, like that was some big deal.

  “We come here all the time. She’s our regular bartender. And all you drink is cosmos. That’s, like, her job,” Thea replied.

  “You’re ruining this for me.”

  Thea frowned. “Sorry. I know I’m not much company. I shoulda stayed home.”

  “Ugh. No. Wrong.” Avni
pointed to the drink in front of her. “Take a big swig and tell me what’s up. And I know something is up, so let’s not dance around it.”

  Thea sighed and obliged, letting the cool liquid and the tangy lime taste coat her mouth before taking a hearty swallow. The gentle burn on the way down was satisfying in the most delightful way.

  “My mom called me the other day and told me she has to sell the farm.” Saying it out loud made it hurt all over again.

  “What?” Avni’s drink was suspended in midair. “Your dad’s farm?”

  “Yes.” That fact hurt doubly hard.

  “Whoa.” Avni placed her glass down and reached for her hand. “That’s a big deal.”

  “I know.” Thea sighed, feeling lost all over again. “I can’t help but feel like it’s my fault in some way.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe if I hadn’t left. Maybe if I’d helped more…” Thea had never regretted leaving the family dairy farm until that call. And now she hated herself for it.

  “Hey.” Avni squeezed her hand. “Don’t do that. I know how hard it was for you after your dad died. The farm was his life, not yours. You told me that a hundred times when I asked you to wear plaid and overalls to casual Friday. You don’t own overalls. You’re a terrible farmer.”

  Thea laughed. “This is true. I’m literally the worst.”

  “What happened?” Avni asked.

  Thea wasn’t totally clear on the details, but from what she gleaned from her mom’s call and her texts with her brother Carl, the farm was deeply in debt, and her mother had been keeping it a secret until it was too late. Until now.

  “The farm got to be too much for Mom and Carl, and they started getting behind on mortgage payments. They’ve had to lay off a bunch of staff and are trying to downsize, but it’s not working fast enough. Mom thinks we have to sell by the end of the summer.” Thea took another sip and swallowed hard. She couldn’t imagine her life without the farm she grew up on being just a few hours away. There were so many memories there, even though some of them were painful. That farm had been her whole life.

  “Thea, I’m so sorry,” Avni said. “I had no idea.”

  “Me neither.” At first Thea had been mad at the revelation. She was angry her mother hadn’t told her sooner, so she could try to help. But she realized she wasn’t mad at her mother. She was mad about the life she left behind, and that pained her even more. She’d left them. And this was all her fault.

  “What are you going to do?” Avni asked. Thea hadn’t quite figured that out yet.

  “Call my mother back. Then head up there and see what I can do to help, I guess.” Not that she was sure there was anything she could do, but she’d certainly try.

  Avni nodded. “Well, that’s a plan, at least. If I can help, let me know.”

  “Thanks.” Thea sipped her drink, glad to have gotten that secret off her chest. As much as it sucked to talk about, she felt better having Avni in the know.

  “I know what will make you feel better,” Avni said with a mischievous grin.

  “What’s that?” This should be good.

  “Getting laid.”

  Thea laughed. “Oh yeah?” She didn’t doubt that rationale, but she’d like to hear more.

  “Yeah, you need some really great sex to forget about your worries. In fact”—Avni sat up a little straighter and looked around—“I bet there’s a lucky lady here in this bar that could be that distraction for you.”

  “Aren’t you always trying to stifle my—what do you call them—player ways? Something about getting me to settle down and be unhappy like you?” Thea teased.

  “Well, yes. Though I resent you saying I’m unhappy.” Avni shot her a look. “But in this instance, hot sex is exactly what the best friend ordered.”

  “I certainly wouldn’t say no to that. As long as she’s not a stage-five clinger or anything,” Thea mused. It had been quite a while since she’d scratched that itch. Avni’s suggestion was intriguing.

  “See? I’m always right. Remember that.” Avni looked down at her buzzing phone and sighed. “Goddamn it, Raj. I swear to God, I’m dating a child.”

  “What?”

  Avni grabbed her coat off the back of the chair as she motioned to the text on her phone screen. “I have to go because my darling boyfriend was watching YouTube videos while he took the trash out in his boxers and got locked out of the apartment building. And now he’s near-naked, hiding behind the back dumpster, afraid that Old Lady Creedon will see him in his state of undress and call the police.”

  “She totally would,” Thea said. The way Avni told it, Mrs. Creedon was the apartment building’s self-proclaimed neighborhood watch, and she took joy in reporting everyone for anything. Supposedly she hated Raj because she said he never closed the trash bins and was inviting critters to take up residence out there.

  “Of course she would. And she should. Because he’s in his underwear outside her windows hiding behind a trash bag of empty take-out containers while watching Call of Duty walk-throughs in the dark and shivering in his skivvies.” She pulled on her jacket with a huff. “I would call the cops on him, too. Moron.”

  “You know”—Thea picked a piece of lint off Avni’s jacket—“I bet Teagan has never gotten locked outside in her underwear because she was distractedly doing chores while also watching videogame tutorials on her phone.”

  “You’re probably right.” Avni frowned. “But maybe? I mean, it’s possible, right? She can’t be that perfect, can she?”

  Teagan was walking past, so Thea decided to ask.

  “Hey, Teagan, have you ever gotten locked outside in your underwear and had to call your girlfriend home from her best friend drink date because of it?”

  Teagan laughed and flashed her crooked smile. “I don’t wear underwear. So…no.”

  “I hate you even more now.” Avni groaned as Teagan moved on to take another patron’s order.

  “Why? Because now you know she doesn’t wear underwear?” Thea teased.

  “Yes. No.” Avni looked flustered. “I stand by my original statement—I hate you.”

  “You don’t mean that.” Thea blew her a kiss as Avni flipped her off before disappearing out the door of the bar.

  “Bad first date?”

  Thea turned to find an attractive woman surveying her curiously. Her long dirty-blond hair was up in a stylish twist, and a perfectly penciled eyebrow was raised in Thea’s direction.

  “No. What makes you ask that?” Thea turned to face her, appreciating the sexy black dress she was wearing and the green necklace that complemented her hazel eyes.

  “Well, she left in a hurry, with her drink still half full next to you,” sexy mystery woman said as she pointed to Avni’s forgotten drink. “That’s alcohol abuse. Or bad manners. Or you just really offended her. Because even on a bad date, I’ve never left a half-full glass.”

  “What makes you think I offended her?” Thea asked, charmed by this woman’s forwardness.

  “The well-manicured middle finger in your direction,” she said with a shrug.

  Thea laughed. “She’s my work bestie, and her boyfriend had an embarrassing emergency, so she had to split. But I appreciate the narrative you concocted. It’s quite imaginative.”

  “I’ve been known to have a vivid imagination,” she said. “I’m glad to hear you weren’t just dumped on the spot. I was feeling bad for you.”

  “Well, she did leave me with a full drink and no company,” Thea reasoned, in no rush to stop talking to this woman. “I’d be interested in hearing more about this imagination of yours if you’d like to join me.”

  She seemed to consider this. She glanced over her shoulder, and Thea realized she must be with the coworker group Teagan mentioned.

  “You’re with the fancily dressed people in the back, right? They probably wouldn’t miss you for a few minutes.” Thea motioned for Teagan to come over. “Can I buy you a drink?”

  “Sure.” She s
miled.

  “Great.” Thea pulled out the chair next to her, pushing Avni’s abandoned cocktail toward the back of the bar.

  Teagan stopped in front of them, and Thea was about to ask her new acquaintance what she’d like when she realized she didn’t know her name. “So, uh…?”

  “Lauren,” she supplied.

  “Hi, Lauren. I’m Thea.” She smiled. “What can I get you?”

  “A lemon drop with a sugar rim, please.”

  Teagan nodded and disappeared.

  “You’re into sweet things?” Thea asked.

  “Not necessarily,” Lauren replied, and Thea knew she’d met someone special already.

  “But you are into women?” Thea didn’t feel like wasting her time on a beautiful straight girl. She’d bedded plenty of those, and she hadn’t found them worth the trouble afterward. Not that she had any afterward in mind. But still.

  “Not necessarily,” Lauren repeated as Teagan dropped off her drink and walked away.

  “Really? See, I was hoping you spoke to me originally about feeling bad that I’d just gotten dumped on my first date because you wanted to join me for a drink. Because you’re into women.” Thea feigned sadness. “But I’m wrong, huh?”

  “I didn’t say that,” Lauren said as she sipped her drink.

  Thea took that as a green light to continue flirting. “Well then, in that case, I was just dumped on a first date.”

  “Seriously?” Lauren asked, shocked.

  “No, Avni’s boyfriend got locked outside in his boxer briefs,” Thea replied. “Though I’m sad she had to leave, I’m glad to have met you—Lauren, of the fancily dressed people.”

  “Oh, this old thing?” Lauren motioned toward that amazing dress, and Thea let her eyes linger on the way the fabric hugged Lauren’s curves just so.

  “If this is one of your old things, I’d be happy to watch you model some of your newer articles of clothing,” Thea said. When Lauren didn’t flinch at that comment, she dialed up her flirtation a few notches. “Or less clothing.”