Blended Ch 33

Ellen slides up to the bar and leans beside Piper. She wears a polo and jeans, and it works for her. Her badge is clipped tastefully to her belt, and her gun is at her hip.

She has to raise her voice to be heard; the place is still buzzing. “What happens when I tell Mary about this, Piper?”

Piper bites her pinky. “Oh, no. Please don’t do that, officer. Is there anything I can do to make you change your mind?”

Ellen clears her throat and adjusts her position. “I’m just not used to seeing you two here.”

“Do I take that to mean that you’re here for all the wet T-shirt contests?”

“Someone has to keep the peace.”

“Glynda and Irina have a bouncer. Two of them, actually. I think you’re window shopping.”

“How many of those have you had, Piper?”

“That’s her first one,” Bella says.

Ellen looks away; she can’t handle Piper’s eye contact. “You guys have a good night.”

“Come try to **** me again real soon,” Piper calls after her.

“Why are you such a dick to her?” Bella asks.

“It’s a secret.”

“Whatever. Isn’t it going to be weird now that you made out with Kayla?”

“I doubt it. She’s a good kisser. And a little exhibitionism never killed anyone.”

“I am never doing this again.”

“We’ll see,” Piper replies, pinching her side. “You enjoyed it a little.”

She spots Meghan at the far end of the bar. She has Sasha cornered, and Sasha seems to like that. They look pretty cozy.

Kylie and Ying amble over. Kylie wears a free RaceHaus shirt while Ying looks unusually casual in shorts and a tank.

“You were amazing up there,” Piper tells Kylie. “Where’d you learn to dance?”

“A land down under,” Kylie grumbles, clutching a beer. “I feel like I should say something about depravity, but you’d just take it as a compliment.”

“You look beautiful,” Piper replies.

Kylie rolls her eyes. “Thank you. We earned twice what we thought we would.”

“It means a lot,” Ying says earnestly. “It’s hard for nonprofits right now. Everything helps.”

Piper shrugs modestly and puts her arm around Bella. “We do it all for the people. And it’s Bella you should be thanking.”

Ying’s expression softens. “I’m sorry, Bella. You did not look happy up there.”

Bella blushes. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be. A deal is a deal,” Ying says, nudging Kylie, who nods grudgingly.

“You couldn’t get Wendy to come? This would’ve been hers,” Piper says, lifting the cheesy little trophy.

“She’s shy,” Ying says.

“That’s called irony. It’s still pretty early. What do you guys have going on?” Piper asks, checking her phone.

“What are you proposing?”