She squeezed my hand. “I’ll be happy no matter where you take me.”
“Where I’d like to take you is to bed. But I haven’t been to the diner in forever and I’m also starving for food. We’ll go there, if you don’t mind.” I opened the passenger door for her when we reached my car. I may not have been the most romantic guy, but I could still be a gentleman.
“This time can I order for myself?” she asked once I got behind the wheel.
“Only if it’s something I like, so I can eat your leftovers.”
“You’re horrible,” she scolded.
“No, I’m sexy, handsome and lickable. You said so yourself.” I pulled out of the parking garage in the direction of the diner. It wasn’t far from the apartment, but far enough not to want to walk.
Gianna leaned over to squeeze one of my cheeks. “Yes, you’re those things too, babe.”
We sat at one of Jean’s tables at the diner and she squeezed my other cheek. What the hell? Was I that adorable today? Her smile was motherly. “How’s the new school, Caleb?”
“Great.” I gestured to Gianna. “You remember my stepsister, Gianna?”
Jean gave her the same smile but left her cheeks alone. “Yes, nice to see you again, Gianna. What can I get for you two?”
I ordered my usual and Gianna ordered something I wouldn’t mind eating the rest of. We managed to finish our meal without any girls from my past showing up. After I paid for our meal, we walked back to my car and drove to a club where I knew the bouncers. I had a fake ID, but I wasn’t sure Gianna did.
On the way there, I finally thought to ask her, “Do you have a fake ID?”
“Yep.” She took it out of her purse and handed it to me.
I read off the name. “Gigi Ramirez. Isn’t that Jared and Cece’s last name? Funny, you don’t look Hispanic.”
“Jared got it for me.” She put it back in her wallet.
“He gave you his last name? Remind me to get you a new fake ID,” I muttered. I’d let her keep that one for now. It figured the douche would do something so cheesy.
We didn’t have to wait in line outside the club since Ned was manning the door. I joked around with him before we went inside. Ned was a nice guy despite appearances. He shaved his head and wore a tight black t-shirt that showed off his huge biceps and two arms covered in tattoos.
I introduced them, “Ned, this is my girlfriend, Gianna.”
“Girlfriend?” Ned repeated skeptically. “You mean, you actually claim this one out of the bedroom, Caleb?”
Gianna put out her hand. “Nice to meet you, Ned. Where did you and Caleb meet? In prison?”
Ned looked at me, still holding onto my girl’s hand. “I like this one.”
“I’m flattered,” Gianna said sarcastically.
“And I’m charmed,” Ned complimented, totally ignoring the line waiting to get in. “Actually, Caleb and I met when he was twelve. He showed up here with a shitty fake ID. When I called him on it, he tried to talk me into letting him in. He told me that middle school boys needed to get laid too. I told him to get his scrawny ass to the mall if he wanted somewhere to hang out. When I didn’t let him in, he started showing up every so often with his friend Dante. They would hang out at the door with me. Once they started growing some fuzz on their faces a few years later, I started letting them past the front door.”
“And now I get to benefit from their hormones’ hard at work. Do you need to see my fake ID?” Gianna asked like a smartass.
“No, you two kids have fun inside.” Ned waved us in, shaking head big head.
“Thanks for telling my girlfriend an embarrassing story, Ned. See you on the way out.” Holding her close, I guided Gianna inside.
Ned called after me, “I’ve got more where that came from!”
Maybe I’d take her to a different club next time. Somewhere where the bouncers hadn’t carried me out drunk or broken up catfights I’d unintentionally caused.
The music pounded inside and I led her to the bar. Ordering us both a drink from the bartender I sat Gianna down on an empty stool. The stools on both sides of her were taken, so I stood behind her with one arm around her waist. That was a sure way to keep other guys away. Once we were both finished with our first drink, Gianna pulled me onto the dance floor. After two songs, I pulled her back to the bar for drink number two.
Still working on our second drinks, someone I really didn’t want to see showed up. Actually, I’d been hoping to never see this fucker again.
He shouted over the music, “What’s up, Caleb? Still on probation?” I could see Gianna’s eyes dart to his face. I really hoped she didn’t hear that.