“Hello?” I answered groggily, trying to see the clock through a mass of Pickle’s fur as she slept soundly on my head.?
“Maggie, I’m on my way over,” Lee said, sounding rushed. “Ryan’s still drunk, I think, and he’s convinced he’s been kidnapped. Did you lock him in Cole’s room?”?
I jumped up, knocking Pickle to the ground. She let out a wild shriek and shook her body sleepily, then shot me a dirty look and stretched herself out.?
Throwing on a hoodie and sliding myself into some slippers, I flew down the back staircase and opened the door to the bar. “Yes, of course I did,” I said breathlessly into the phone. “Imagine waking up drunk and finding out you’re unattended in a bar. And let’s be real. I don’t know this kid from Adam. What if he crept up into my apartment last night and threw up in my hair?”?
Lee’s laugh came softly through the phone. “That’s what you’re worried about? Throw up in your hair?” I heard him getting into a car, shutting the door, and telling a driver where to go.?
“I mean, yeah, I just had a keratin treatment.” I slowly opened the door to Cole’s bedroom. Ryan was crouched in the corner, and the smell of urine smackedme in the face. I shuddered.?“Did you pee in the bed?” I bellowed, flipping on the light switch.?
Ryan shrank back and threw his hands up over his face. “Don’t murder me!”?
“Ryan, it’s Magnolia!” I put my phone down and flung back the sheets, checking for wet spots.?
“I peed in the bucket. I’m sorry. How did I get here?”?
“There’s a toilet over there in the bathroom, you idiot!” I put my hand over my nose to cover up the smell and to hide the fact that I was about to burst out laughing in this poor man’s face.?I marched past Ryan and opened the curtains and the window to let in some fresh air. “You were drunk last night. Very, very drunk. We let you sleep in the bedroom down here. This used to be my uncle’s room.”?
Ryan nodded and looked around. “Why did you lock me in here like a captive?”?
“Because I don’t know you, aside from the fact that you like to drink in excess, and there’s alotof booze out there.” I motioned to the barroom and saw a figure standing in the doorway, peering through the windows.?“Your knight in shining armor is here. I’ll go let him in,” I called behind me.?
I opened the door, and Lee, holding three delicious-smelling coffees, seemed taken aback. I was sure I looked like a swamp monster, but let’s be real, I was ripped from sleep by chaos. I still had no idea what time it was.?
Lee studied me for a second, and his eyes lit up. “Nice hoodie.”?
I grabbed the coffee from him and closed the door to the bar, locking it shut. I peeked down at my sleep shorts, fuzzy slippers, and my Savannah Academy hoodie.?
Or, rather, Lee’s Savannah Academy hoodie.?
“This old thing? No clue where it came from.” I placed the coffees down on a table in the middle of the bar and made my way to Cole’s bedroom to retrieve Ryan and my cell phone.?
I shot Charlie a text and dialed Sutton, watching Ryan slump down in an old mahogany chair. He let his cheek rest on the cool, sticky table.?
“We need pancakes,” I said when Sutton answered, hopping behind the bar to whip up a pitcher of Bloody Marys and some ice water. “And we need Advil.And Jesus. Charlie’s on the way—he’s grabbing candied bacon and some biscuits from Collins Quarter.”?
“I’m on it,” Sutton said before clicking off the phone.?
“Y’all are like the Avengers,” Ryan said, his face still smooshed into the table.?
“These guys are professionals,” Lee offered, watching me move quickly behind the bar. “There’s not a hangover in town this squad can’t handle.”?
I pried the lid off the coffee cup with my name on it and laughed. Light cream, no foam, sprinkle of cinnamon.?
He remembered.?
I dropped the waters and the pitcher of Bloodys onto the table, the sound of glass clinking against wood cutting through the low hum of conversation. As I unlocked the door, it barely had time to swing open before Sutton came barreling through, Charlie close on her heels. She threw a quick nod in our direction, her no-nonsense energy rippling through the room, and made a beeline for the bar.
In one fluid motion, she unpacked her portable griddle and plugged it in, her hands moving with the kind of precision that came from years of practice in the kitchen. The scent of warm oil and sizzling batter wasn’t far behind.
Meanwhile, Charlie eyed the layout of tables like a general plotting strategy. With a low grunt, he dragged one closer, then another, until he’d transformed the mismatched arrangement into a long, sprawling table that demanded attention. And a tablecloth. Ryan shot him a bemused look, but Lee just leaned back in his chair, smirking like he’d seen this routine a hundred times before.
“Do we need all that room?” I asked, plating the finished pancakes for Sutton.?
“Jordan and Doyle are coming by. They had a long night, too. Doyle’s sister, the one that lives in New York, just found out she’s pregnant. I guess she doesn’t even know the guy.” Charlie passed the Advil bottle down the table, then scooted into the back office and, as if having read my thoughts, reappeared with a long tablecloth.?
“Did they just seriously pull off a brunch in five minutes?” Ryan finally sat up and started in on the beverage buffet before him.?
