Fight Me(56)
I’ve been told that after dinner we will hit a few bars, have a few drinks, dance, and end up at Jack’s Pub at the end of the night. I’m not sure exactly what the guys are up to tonight. Jake was pretty vague about it and I didn’t want to push the subject too far. He did mention, though, that he would be seeing me by the end of the night.
I’m having a great time at dinner. It feels like I’ve been friends with these women forever. We all laugh and joke and carry on like friends do. Even Mrs. Stevens and Mrs. Jackson join in the fun by sharing jokes and stories that have us practically rolling on the ground laughing with tears streaming down our faces.
Our first stop after dinner is to a country bar in St. Charles. I’ve never been a big fan of country music and have no clue how to line dance, but the girls seem excited so I just go with it.
After the first round of drinks are purchased, Holly announced that the “games” are beginning.
“So, here’s the deal. Avery has a few games to play tonight. First, we’re going to have a Bachelorette Scavenger Hunt! Here’s the list of all the ‘goodies’ Avery needs to collect or tasks she must complete by midnight tonight. We have one more stop here in St. Charles before we head back to Rivers Edge. Once we’re at Rivers Edge, we’ll hit up the saloon first and end the night at Jack’s where we have some very special end-of-the-night partying to do,” Holly says with a wink.
“Okay, so first on the list is find a guy to buy you a shot at each stop,” Mrs. Stevens says. “That’ll be easy. Excuse me, young man,” Mrs. Stevens says as she turns to the first guy walking past our group. “It’s my daughter’s bachelorette party. Would you like to buy her a shot?”
“Mother!” Avery exclaims, looking horrified.
“What? He’s cute. Let the boy buy you a shot!”
I drop my little penis straw into my draft beer and take a big swig. Oh, this is going to be a great night! I look over the rest of the scavenger hunt list. Avery has to find a guy to serenade her with song, write her name in lipstick on some guy’s chest, get a guy’s phone number on a bar napkin, be the only girl on the dance floor full of guys, body shot off of a guy’s stomach, and talk the bartender into giving her an interesting souvenir at each stop along the way. I can’t forget that she has to distribute condoms to three different guys at each of our four stop. Oh, and did I mention she has to offer a condom demonstration with each one?
All I can say is thank goodness it’s her and not me!
Chapter Thirteen
Jake
At six sharp, I’m pulling into the driveway of my best friend and sister’s house to pick up Maddox. I have Nate, James, and Maddox’s brother, Aiden, squeezed in the backseat of Maddox’s crew cab like sardines. My dad has Maddox’s dad, Will, Travis, and our cousin Barry following behind us in my mom’s car. The other guys from the force or friends of Maddox’s are meeting us at Jack’s Pub after dinner.
I wanted dinner to be small with just a few family members and close friends. I’m also footing that bill, so smaller works better with the budget. We are fortunate enough to get the back part of the dining room at Laverne’s Steakhouse reserved for tonight. Usually, since Laverne’s is the best Saturday night dinner location in Rivers Edge, they use the back part for regular seating to accommodate the crowd. But since I went to school with Pete, I was able to pull a few strings.
When we walk inside, of course, Lauren is the hostess. She looks up at the big group of guys and flashes her best ‘do me’ smile as she looks from guy to guy. I can see her checking everyone out like dessert at some man-buffet. When I walk up to the booth, her smile falters as she looks up at me but doesn’t disappear completely from her face.
“We have a reservation for the back room.”
“Oh, yes. The bachelor party.” Lauren purrs as she grabs a stack of menus, and announces, “Right this way, gentlemen.” As she saunters to the back, her hips sway so far to the left and right that I’m surprised she doesn’t throw a hip out of whack. She shows us to our table and starts to place a menu at each setting, leaning over seductively and giving the room as many full cleavage shots as she can get in.
“There you are gentlemen. Will there be anything else?” she asks and bats her eyelashes.
“Nope, we’re good,” I reply and turn away from her. Lauren huffs off and we all take our seats around the large table.
Two waiters arrive at our table a few moments later. I order two pitchers of beer and a bunch of appetizers to get us started. As soon as the waiters return with our first round of drinks, I take the opportunity to say a few words. “Gentlemen, tonight is about celebrating Maddox’s last weekend as a bachelor. Next Saturday, he will be marrying my little sister. I couldn’t picture Avery marrying a better man than Maddox. So, let’s raise our beers and toast our friend, son, and brother, Maddox Jackson. And may he remember how much we love him when he’s puking his guts up tomorrow morning.”