“Damn, so you decided to come after all,” Alex said as he hugged me. He wore so much cologne that I swear it stuck to me as I pulled away.

“Of course I came,” I said, as if it should have been obvious. “Wouldn’t want to miss seeing what your baby can do, right?”

He gave me a strange look, one I couldn’t quite discern. His competition hadn’t arrived yet, so there was nothing else to do besides drink and wait. Danielle had brought wine coolers for us, and the three of us sat on a guardrail beside the bridge as we sipped.

“I’ve been telling Nate to put in a little tip to his dad that Lucas will be here tonight,” Danielle said, laughing as she watched her fiancé throw his glass bottle off the bridge to shatter on the rocks below. “The cops would jump at the chance to arrest him.”

“For what?” I said, my fingers tapping rabidly on my drink. “Drag racing? Alex would be screwed too.”

Danielle sighed. “Yeah, I think that’s why Nate didn’t go for it.”

“A guy like Lucas will end up in prison eventually anyway,” Candace said. “Runs in the family.”

I was about to ask what she meant, but a distant rumble caught my attention. As the sound grew closer, the crowd fell silent, staring across the bridge in anticipation. Alex leaned against his car, tipping back a beer as he watched the new arrivals.

Lucas’s El Camino sat low to the asphalt, covered in gleaming chrome and midnight black paint. The engine rumbled loudly as he cruised down the road to stop alongside Alex, but when he tapped the gas, the noise roared to an ear-shattering pitch. The familiar blue Subaru behind him parked on the opposite side of the road, and Vincent, Jason, and Manson emerged.

“Don’t you think it’s weird they’re always together?” Candace said. “Like, do they all go on dates together too?” She laughed and so did Danielle, but I couldn’t muster up the amusement.

It was smart of them to stick together. Coming here alone would have been asking for trouble, but so was showing up at all.

I guess trouble didn’t scare them. Manson had told me as much, hadn’t he? If there’s no risk, where’s the fun?

Lucas got out of the driver’s seat, stubbing out a cigarette on the asphalt. It took only a few seconds for his wandering eyes to fall on me. I’d always thought I could give a mean dismissive look, but Lucas proved he was fierce competition in that department. He gave me a once-over, then turned away as if I wasn’t even there.

So much for not getting flustered. I was instantly peeved.

“Gross, here comes Miss Drama,” Danielle muttered. I hadn’t even noticed anyone else arrive, too distracted watching the boys as they gathered on the far side of the El Camino. But I turned my head at Danielle’s announcement and groaned when I saw who was walking up, surrounded by a pack of friends.