“Effa, the Effervescent, is mopey,” Casey says dramatically.
Andi’s mouth forms a perfect ‘O.’ “Ah, I see the crisis. Effa is never mopey. If she’s quiet, something’s up. We need our Miss Bubbles back.”
“Did someone say bubbles?” Kristy calls out as she rushes over, breathless, and slides into the booth beside me. Don’t ask me why she’s panting. Probably ran from the bar for dramatic flair.
“Guys, really, I’m okay. I need to open my chakra, let calming energy wash over me, be one with the free spirits in the room—”
The way they all stare at me pulls me up.
Kristy bursts into laughter. “Effa, I love you. You’re my best friend, but sometimes, opening your hoo-ha does more than opening your chakra.”
I giggle. “Firstly, it’s chakra, not hoo-ha—”
“Opening your hoo-ha couldn’t hurt either,” Casey mutters with a smirk.
I ignore that and tilt my head. “Guess I’m just a little rattled by Mercs.”
“Ooohhh,” they all chorus, like they knew that was coming.
“What?” I ask, eyeing them suspiciously as they trade glances.
Casey leans in. “Word is he’s just as rattled as you. What happened the other night?”
I sigh. “I don’t know. He kissed me, we fell asleep together, then the next morning he basically said he wanted to forget it ever happened.”
They all wince.
“I mean, I’m supposed to talk to him tonight, so maybe he didn’t mean it like that, but still… it stung.”
“Tank says he really likes you,” Andi says. “But he’s worried about job security.”
“Which is wild, considering we personally recruited him. His job’s more secure than half the crew. But maybe he doesn’t know that.”
Casey shrugs. “Maybe overhearing you mention Jett right after your night together messed with his head a bit.”
“Yeah,” I nod slowly. “You’re probably right. I need to fix this.Now.”
“Go get him, girl. Light up his world.” Casey grins.
“Seriously?” Andi deadpans.
Casey cackles. “Because he’s a lighting director—”
“Yeah, we got it. It was just…really bad,” Andi says with a smirk. “Eff, play it cool, okay? His job means a lot to him. So think about what this…thingis between you two before diving in. Remember the pact? No screwing around with him. We don’t want to mess up his spot on the tour just because one of us got caught up in a vibe.”
“I hear you.” And I do. “I don’t want to mess things up either. If the tour lost Mercs because of me, it’d suck. He’s good at what he does, and I like having him around.” I slide out of the booth. “Don’t worry, Andi. I won’t screw this up. I won’t be the reason he walks.”
Andi gives a tight nod, not totally convinced.
Kristy hugs me tightly. “I love you, Miss Bubbles. Go talk to your man.”
I smile, kiss her cheek. “Love you too.”
I glance back to thank Casey and Andi, but they’re already bickering over something, probably Mercs and me, so I leave them to it and head off to find Alana.
She’s in a booth with Luke, both of them deep in conversation. As I approach, they are both looking down at Luke’s phone. He’s scrolling through photographs while Alana leans into his side, laughing. The closeness between them makes my stomach twist a little. I slow my pace, trying not to read too much into it.
Alana’s eyes light up when she sees me. She waves me over without moving away from Luke or acting like she’s been caught doing something she shouldn’t. There’s no guilt in her body language—just excitement. “Effa! Come look. Luke got some amazing shots from the show for the website,” she says, grabbing his phone and holding it up to me.
