Give You A Kid? No Way!

Chapter 3

Aria



Aria stared at Poppie in surprise. “Your cousin?”

She nodded. “Yeah. As you can see, he’s a d**k and I don’t like talking about him.”

Aria wanted to know more but knew enough not to press the conversation, especially with Poppie. She was a chatty person but didn’t offer much information about her relatives. Well, except for her brother, who seemed to be the best thing since sliced bread. Poppie raved on and on about what a great guy he was and how she couldn’t wait for Aria to meet him. She’d showed her a picture of him once and he certainly was a good looking guy, with his blond hair and nice smile. They definitely shared the same genes.

Poppie closed her menu. “I think I’ll get the twenty-ounce sirloin dinner. Get whatever you want. I’m buying.”

“No, you don’t have to pay for everything. I told you that before.” Besides the shampooing job, Aria had a part-time job delivering groceries and tips were decent. Now that she had the summer to add on more hours, she didn’t want Poppie paying her way all the time. It was a nice gesture but it made her feel a little embarrassed.

“Actually, I’m not the one paying. Mick is and I told you before, he has more money than God. So, don’t feel bad about it. He wants us to enjoy ourselves.”

“Oh.” Still, Aria wasn’t going to take advantage of the kind gesture.

Poppie’s stomach growled so loud, both girls laughed.

“Told you I was starving. You know what you want yet?”

“The cheese curds for sure and… maybe some French fries.”

“Though you said you were getting a burger.”

Aria shrugged. “I changed my mind.”

“You’re getting a real meal. French fries are for the side, not the main course.”

A woman stopped at their table. She was tall, curvy, with short red hair and heavy makeup. Dressed in ripped jeans, cowboy boots, and a black halter top, she reminded Aria of a biker chick. Especially with the tats on her chest and arms. Thankfully, she was smiling and didn’t look as menacing as Dante.

“Poppie, nice seeing you. Who’s your friend?” the woman asked pleasantly.

“Shay. Wow, it’s been a long time,” she replied in a voice that Aria knew was reserved for people Poppie didn’t care for. “You look great by the way. Are you still a carpet muncher?”

Aria’s jaw dropped.

Shay smirked. “Why, you need some advice? I thought you were strictly into men?”

Poppie burst out laughing. “Yeah, I couldn't live without d**k. Although,” she looked over at Aria with a twinkle in her eyes, “I have nothing against being a lesbian. Love is love and that’s all that really matters, right?”

The way Poppie was staring at her, it was almost like she was directing the statement toward her.

She wondered if her friend thought that maybe she was gay?

She wasn't, although Aria had experimented as a teenager with a girl named Gina. They'd messed around a little for fun, but she didn't really consider herself a lesbian. She was definitely more attracted to men.

“At least you’ve got that correct. I imagine your brother wouldn’t want those words coming out of your mouth, considering he’s anti-everything.”

Poppie’s eyes hardened. “He doesn’t control me so I can say what I want.”

Shay laughed dryly. “Right.” She looked over at Aria. “So, are you two heading to Shore Lake?”

Before Aria could reply, Poppie cut in.

“So, what’s with all the questions? First Dante and now you. It’s kind of rude, don’t you think?”

“It’s called making conversation, my dear,” Shay said. “You know that’s what people do in the real world.” She looked at Aria. “I’m sorry if I’ve offended anyone.”

“No, not at all,” Aria said quickly, smiling. The woman seemed nice enough. She didn’t know why Poppie was getting all bent out of shape. Maybe she was Dante’s mother, her aunt? “And yeah, we’re heading to Shore Lake. Just for a few days.”

“Interesting. Well, be careful up there. It can be quite dangerous, especially if you’re not familiar with the area.”

“Dangerous,” scoffed Poppied. “ I guess if you’re afraid of fishing, boating, and swimming… or hell, just having a great time… then it might seem a little dangerous.”

Ignoring her, Shay smiled again at Aria. “What did you say your name was, honey?”

“She didn’t,” Poppie snapped rudely. “And doesn’t need to.”

Aria stared at her friend, her mouth open. She couldn’t believe the animosity coming from her. It was so bizarre. She knew that Poppie was probably hangry by now, but this was a lot, especially for her. She was nicer to unwanted attention from frat boys.

Poppie started scooting toward the end of the booth. “Maybe we should just leave. We haven’t even gotten our waters yet and the waitress seems to be ignoring us. That’s shitty service, Shay. It warrants a bad Google review if you ask me.”

Shay chuckled. “Oh my, Google threats. I guess you really do mean business. Listen, I’ll take your orders and to show you some hospitality, I’ll even give you your meals… on the house. How’s that?”

"That would be great," Aria said brightly, not wanting to leave.

Poppie smiled coolly. “I guess it would be stupid of me to say 'no'.”

Shay smiled and put her hand on her hip. “Good. What can I get you?”

“I’ll take the twenty-ounce sirloin, medium rare, with all the fixings.”

“Baked potato, coleslaw, or fries?” she asked, not writing anything down.

Poppie grinned again. “How about everything, since you’re being so hospitable?”

Shay snorted. “Okay. And what about you, dear?”

Aria opened her mouth to reply.

“It won’t be tuna, I can tell you that much,” Poppie mused.

Growing weary of Poppie’s insults, Shay gave her a dirty look.

Looking rather proud of herself, Poppie raised her hands defensively. “Hey, I’m just saying. In case you were trying to feel things out with my friend.”

Shay’s eyes narrowed. “Just looking out for her well-being. Someone should be.”

Poppie’s smile faded. “She has me.”

“Does she now?”

Feeling very uncomfortable, Aria cleared her throat and ordered quickly. “I’ll have the turkey burger with fries.”

“And two orders of cheese curds,” Poppie added.

“One is fine,” Aria said.

Shay shrugged. “No problem. We can do two. I know what kind of appetite Poppie has. Anything to drink besides water, girls?”

“A bottle of your best wine. What would that be, Boone’s Farm?” ribbed Poppie.

“Funny. We actually have a very nice red wine that would go great with your steak. It’s usually twenty-bucks a glass. I’ll throw that in as well.”

“Wow, twenty-dollars a glass. Ya’ll are getting really sophisticated here in North Dakota,” Poppie said sarcastically.

“We do have more expensive bottles, but those are reserved for Council members,” Shay said, staring hard at Poppie. “And they tend to drop by quite often. In fact, we should be seeing Easton Tabbert very soon. You remember him, don't you?”

Poppie suddenly looked uncomfortable.

Shay tilted her head, a small smile on her face. “Would you like me to tell him you said hi?”

“No, that’s okay,” Poppie replied, looking away now.

With a satisfied look on her face, Shay told them she’d put the orders in and have someone get them water. When she disappeared, Aria asked Poppie who Easton Tabbert was.

She shrugged, like it wasn’t a big deal. “Uh, he’s on this council committee and knows my brother.”

“Council committee? Like city council?”

“Something like that but on a grander scale. Anyway,” she scowled and nodded toward Shay, who was behind the bar now, “what a nosy b***h, huh? She was annoying the hell out of me.”

“I noticed. Is she related to you too?”

“Kind of, but not really. It’s… hard to explain. I’ll tell you about it later. For now, let’s just eat and ditch this shithole.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Poppie’s phone began to ring. She looked at it and swore.

“Who is it?”

“Just my brother.” She answered his call. “Hey.”

Aria didn’t know what he was saying, but Poppie looked like she was getting an ear full.

“I didn’t know,” she said angrily, scooting out of the booth, her face flushed. “No, I’m serious.”

The voice at the other end of the phone sounded pissed. Pursing her lips, Poppie covered the bottom of her phone with her hand and told Aria she’d be right back.

“Okay.”

As Poppie walked away to talk in private, Aria decided to use the bathroom. When the waitress showed up with their water, she asked where the restroom was.

“Back on the other side of the bar.”

“Thanks. I’ll be right back. Could you let my friend know that’s where I am if she asks.”

The woman smiled. “Of course.”

Once again, Aria felt like all eyes were on her as she made her way around the bar. When she was finished in the bathroom, she stepped out and ran smack dab into Shay, who appeared to be waiting for her. At least that what it felt like.

Weirded out, Arya stepped back. The woman had seemed nice enough, but she almost felt like she was being stalked.

Noticing her discomfort, Shay's softened. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. You seem like a nice kid and I really don’t want anything bad to happen to you. Here, take this and if you need help, call the phone number on it.” She held out a small folded slip of paper.

Aria stared at it in surprise. “Why would I need help?”

Shay studied her face. “You really don’t know, do you?”

“Know what?”

Shay glanced around nervously and then looked at Aria again. “I can’t say much. Only that Poppie’s brother is a very dangerous man. You need to watch yourself around him,” she warned.

Aria wasn’t sure how to respond to that. “What do you mean, like he’s in the mafia or something?”

Shay smirked. “He makes the mafia look like choir boys. Just do yourself a favor and watch yourself around him.”

Aria had learned how to read people over the years and the woman in front of her looked sincere and genuinely worried about her welfare.

Still, Poppie praised her brother up and down. Aria trusted her friend and couldn’t believe that she’d put her in harm’s way.

Shay held it out closer. “Please, take it. And... don’t tell Poppie.”

Still skeptical, but not knowing what else to do, Aria accepted the slip of paper and slipped it into her blue jeans.

“What is your name?”

Aria had no reason not to tell her. The war was between Poppie and Shay. “Aria.”

“Aria what?”

“Macy.”

Shay smiled gently. “Aria Macy, you stay safe.”

“Thanks.”

The woman disappeared and Aria headed back to the booth, meeting Poppie who was just returning from her phone call.

Poppie’s eyes narrowed. “Where were you?”

Aria didn’t like the way Poppie was looking at her. Like she’d done something wrong. It made her feel uncomfortable. “I had to go to the bathroom.”

Poppie stared at her, as if almost trying to tell if she was lying or not.

Why would she even think about questioning her?

Aria didn’t know but she hated this new feeling of unease around her friend. Her best friend. Enough was enough. it was time that she started asking the questions.

“Poppie, is there something going on here or what?”

Poppie stared back at her, surprised at her question.“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know, it just seems like you don’t trust me now for some weird reason. All I did was go to the bathroom and yet, I feel like you’re questioning whether I really did or not. Why would I lie about something like that? And even more so, why are you acting so sus?”

Her eyes widened and she put a hand to her chest. “Suspicious? Me?” Poppie smiled apologetically. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel that way. Just being in this dump, and not eating all day, is making me crabby. Then there’s my brother who called to ream me out about being here.”

Aria raised her eyebrows. “How did he know we were here?”

She smiled grimly. “He has this family tracking thing on his phone. I told you before, he’s over-protective. Anyway, he freaked out on me, saying this place is dangerous and blah blah blah.”

“Did you tell him about meeting your cousin here?”

She nodded. “He was pissed about that too. Those two can't stand each other.”

“Why?”

“Just… bad blood. Plus, you saw him. He’s an asshole.”

Aria couldn’t really call him an “asshole”, considering he hadn’t really said more than a couple of words to her. And when he had, she’d found herself feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. Asshole or not, he was hot and Aria had no beef with him. Still, she was curious as to why there was such animosity. She was also intrigued as to why Shay had warned her about Mick.

Was he really that bad of a guy?

Aria wondered now more than ever if she'd made a mistake of agreeing to go with Poppie to Shore Lak