Kings and Queens

“Called it,” I sang to my baby sister as we hopped out of the cab in front of the club.

“Called what?” Bridgette asked as she smiled down at her phone.

“Oh, I don’t know,” I sighed dramatically, “Mike and Bridgette kissing in a tree…

“Kiss my ass,” she finished.

“Hey,” I pulled her arm back and fixed her hair, “Knock em' dead.”

She held out her hand and wiggled her fingers and I did the same. It had been our little thing since we were kids and we had carried it through up until now.

Bridgette looked adorable in her pink dress with cut outs on each side. It was a bold dress, borderline slutty, but she pulled it off, like always. I, on the other hand, felt a little overdressed in my black, long sleeved dress. It was simple with lace over the top and down the sleeves, but Bridgette had said that the deep, v-neck back was perfect.

The bouncer grinned at us, “VIP section ladies?”

“We’re actually meeting some of the LA Kings,” Bridgette smiled back at him as I stood next to her.

“VIP,” he winked and then smiled at me, “My girlfriend loved you on Grey’s Anatomy."

“Awe, thank you,” I walked past him.

I had been on the show for two seasons with a reoccurring role as a doctor. It was great, but in typical Grey’s fashion, I was killed off. That was almost a year ago and I was still hearing about it. Then again, I was glad that people had watched the show and liked my character.

“Ladies,” we were immediately greeted by the giant, good looking blond, Jeff Carter.

“Jeff, right?” Bridgette smiled sweetly as he laid his arms over our shoulders.

“Right,” he smiled down at her. God he was tall.

He led us right to Mike, Dustin, and a few others we didn’t meet. Mike immediately gave me a half assed hug and then literally wrapped my sister in his strong arms. I held back a snort as she looked at me with a “What the fuck?” look on her face.

“Drinks?” Jeff asked.

“Sure,” everyone agreed.

“Come with me,” he touched my arm.

I went with him, just for something to do.

The club was loud and the crowd was large for a Thursday night, but Jeff managed to keep me close by him so we wouldn’t be separated as we walked to the bar. He ordered the guys’ drinks and then smiled at me, “What’ll it be?”

“Rum and diet coke,” I told him.

He added that to his list and then nodded, “Two shots of tequila too,” he turned to me and looked me up and down, “Training wheels please,” he added to the bartender.

“You need those?” I raised an eyebrow.

“You might, just being considerate.”

“Such a gentleman,” I shot back at him.

He turned his back and leaned against the bar, “So, how’d I do out there?”

“Well, since it was your first game here, I’d say you did well. Some guy was a little jealous I already had a Carter jersey, your reputation precedes you Carter.”

He let out a laugh, “My reputation is…”

“Awful, isn't that why they got rid of you in Philly? You and Mike spent too much time partying it up?” I glanced over at my sister and saw her giggling with the guys.

“He won’t hurt her,” Jeff told me, “He’s different out here.”

The tone in his voice was completely genuine and completely threw me for a loop. I knew he was a cocky guy just by looking at him, but the softness in his tone when he talked about his friend was endearing.

“She thinks he has a thing for me,” I shook my head as I kept my eyes focused on the group, “She’s delusional.”

“I think it’s safe to say that you’re off the hook with Mike,” Jeff turned to hand me my shot.

I took it from him and smiled, “To your first game in LA.”

“To new ...relationships,” he gave me a perfect smile that actually made me blush.

We clinked shot glasses and threw our heads back. Both of us coughed when as the liquor slid down our throats. He turned to grab the drinks and I took a few into my arms before walking back toward everyone.

He started handing out the drinks ordered, “Who’s got mine?” Dustin asked, revealing he was missing a tooth.

“Langley has it,” Jeff nodded at me.

I walked over to him with the two drinks I had left, “Which one?”

He took the beer from me, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” I smiled sweetly at him.

He looked upset, like there was a lot going on in that mind of his, but it wasn’t my place to sit down and have a heart to heart with him.

Bridgette grabbed my arm and pulled me aside, “You looked like you were having fun with Jeffy.”

“We were talking,” I shrugged, “I do socialize once in a while.

“Sure,” she rolled her eyes, “That one looks sad, go cheer him up,” she nodded at Dustin.

“Bridge, I don't know him.”

“His name is Dustin Penner, he'll be thirty this year, and he's going through a divorce."

I made a face, “Poor guy.”

“He’s barely said a word since we got here,” she gave me a pleading look, “You can always get anyone to talk to you, just go say hi.”