He's as curious as the rest of them, but he keeps his trap shut and works on her order.
"All right, ready for the rules?" I ask.
She nods, studious all of a sudden.
"We covered hydrate and carbs. First, liquor before beer, never fear. Beer before liquor, never sicker."
Molly seems to be calculating something in her brain, and I huff a little laugh.
"You can go down in alcohol content, but not up. Not unless you have a thing for regrets. Really, the best rule is not to mix liquors at all."
"Got it."
"Pace yourself. It's easy to slam drinks like this because you can't taste the booze. But next thing you know, you're hammered and you don't know it."
Her brows nock together. "You don't know you're drunk?"
"You don't know how drunk you are, or will be in an hour."
"Ah, okay. Makes sense."
"If you're feeling spinny, it's time to slow down, not order shots. Trust me, it'll be your first instinct, especially at last call. Learn from my mistakes." I continue as she laughs. "Make sure you're always out with a buddy, and never take a drink you didn't see poured unless it's from one of our girls. Oh, and don't leave your drink sitting around either."
"Why?"
"Because men."
"Ah," she says again with a nod. "What else?"
"I've got Gatorade and crackers in my truck for the ride home and Tums and Advil in my pocket. So if you start feeling squirrelly, come find me. Okay?"
"Okay."
Leo hands her fancy drink across the bar, even put sugar and a twist on the rim and everything. I get my water. "Open a tab."
He winks, his eyes cutting to her briefly, but I just shake my head and turn my attention to her. Holding the antique coupe glass with both hands, she brings her nose close to the rim and inhales deep.
"Oh, that smells so good."
Cass gasps from my elbow with a whoosh of air that leaves me thinking she ran over when she saw Molly with a legit glass in her hand. "Hang on, wait! Are you drinking?"
Molly nods brightly. "It's my first drink--I'm gonna get drunk tonight! Coach is gonna coach me!"
Cass pouts. "Why not me?"
Molly bumps her hip. "Because you're a bad influence."
A laugh shoots out of Cass. "Good call. Wait! We need to do a toast!" She grabs Molly's arm and pulls, her drink sloshing dangerously, but I save it, giving a look to the back of Cass's head as we truck through the crowd for our table. She stands on a rug of her barstool--Wilder has a foot on the other side so she doesn't eat shit--putting her a few feet above us.
"All right, all right, y'all raise a glass to Molly for her first ever drink!" When everyone has complied, myself included, Cass grins. "To Molly--may your cocktails be strong, your choices questionable, and your hangover gentle!"
Hear, hear!"we cheer, clinking our glasses together, Molly's and mine last. With a conspiratorial smile, we take a sip.
I watch the wonder slip across her face, turning to delight, then to surrender. Her lips glisten briefly before she pressesthem together, her eyes meeting mine with heat I don't see coming.
Just like the rest of her.
"Well, I get it now," she says.
