* * *
BY the time they sat down for dinner at Denver’s hot new western-styled Mexican food cantina, they were ready for a pitcher of margaritas.
“So how often do you shop like that?” Fee asked, helping herself to chips and salsa after the waitress took their orders.
Katie shrugged. “Not as often as I used to. Now I understand the term shopping spree because that’s how I do it.”
“What about you, Shi?”
“In Japan I used to shop with my mom. I miss that. I miss her.” Ever since she’d walked away from the career path she’d been on at the family company, she and her mom had drifted apart. But part of that was their physical distance.
“You seemed familiar with the stores here,” Katie pointed out.
“I am. I mostly shop when I’m bored. When I first got here, before I was teaching at Black Arts and I had a plane at my disposal, I’d fly to Vegas or Chicago to shop.”
Molly’s hand holding her margarita stopped in midair and she gasped, “For real?”
“For real.”
“That’s so crazy to me. I’m saving up to take a vacation in Daytona. And you can just jet off whenever you feel like it.”
“I have to admit I didn’t realize it was so far to fly—for a foreigner it’s hard to grasp the size of America. Flying off to shop wasn’t something I did regularly in Japan. My job with Okada was seventy hours a week, so Saturday was the only day I had off. It was tempting to sleep, but I forced myself to have a life. So in my younger years, in order for me to have time to go to parties or events or the clubs, I hired a personal shopper so I didn’t spend my one free day shopping and I always had the hottest clothes.” The way they were looking at her after she finished speaking, she wondered if she’d said too much.
No, you didn’t tell them shopping had been your refuge during your marriage. That no matter how chic or well adorned you were, it didn’t hold your husband’s interest for long.
“I never had to work for the money I got from my family,” Katie offered. “My dad didn’t think I had the drive or the brains to be part of any of his businesses. I fell into that mind-set for a while—if he thinks I’m a fuckup, why shouldn’t I just be one?” She paused. “I got over that attitude after some bad choices. But I still live off the family trust fund, because what I’m making at Black and Blue Promotions definitely won’t keep me in designer shoes.”
They all laughed, and Shiori’s tension lessened.
“So is having that kind of money almost like it’s not real money?” Molly asked. “Because if I would’ve bought those cute boots that were five hundred bucks, I’d have to cut back on something in my budget to make up the difference.”
Fee snorted. “I’d have to tell my brother, hey, I can’t pay my portion of the mortgage this month, but look at these awesome new shoes! He’d bury me in them.”
Another round of laughter. The conversation lightened up. Then the food arrived—good thing because they’d downed the pitcher of margaritas.
While Fee and Molly were discussing roller derby, Shiori brought up Black and Blue Promotions.
After some casual back-and-forth, Shiori said, “I’d like to see your proposals for promotion.”
“All of them?”
“Yes. Even if there are ones that Ronin and Blue discounted, I’m still interested in them. And I’d like to take a peek at the remaining schedule for this year.”
“Absolutely.” Katie bit her lip and leaned forward. “But I suggest we do this after hours, when Blue is gone. He’s constantly looking over my shoulder. He doesn’t have any faith in me or trust that I can actually do this job and do it well.”
Or maybe there was another reason Blue monitored Katie so closely.
“Hey, no telling secrets,” Fee said, butting into their conversation. “And no work talk.”
“We’re not talking about work. We’re arguing over what flavor of margarita we should order next,” Katie retorted. “Blood orange? Or blueberry?”
“Yuck. Neither. This mango kind is good.”
“I vote mango too,” Molly said.
“Mango it is.” Katie gestured with the pitcher to the waitress for another round. “So where are we going tonight?”
“Not Diesel,” Fee and Shiori said in unison and laughed.
“Agreed,” Molly said.
“Do we wanna dance? Or just drink? Or watch hot guys dance together at a gay club while we drink?” Katie asked.