“Okay,” I said, sticking another few fries in my mouth.

Mattie slipped on her coat and pulled the zipper up all the way to her neck. “You coming?”

I gestured to my full plate of fries and barely sipped margarita. “Um, clearly not.”

“Seriously?” she asked, pulling on her mittens.

Instead of responding, I took a slurp of my drink.

Mattie pinched her lips together and gave a disapproving shake of her head. “Fine, whatever. But I’m going to be at least an hour.”

“Have fun.”

She turned to leave before whipping around. “You’re really going to stay here alone?”

“What better way to commiserate than with myself?” My attempt at a joke fell flat and Mattie’s eyes instantly softened. “I’ll be okay,” I insisted. “I remember the way back to your house. I’ll finish these and head out.”

“You have the address?” she asked.

Wow, either she was really worried about me, or seriously underestimating me.

“Yes, I have your address. And my phone. Plus, you live like two blocks away. Pretty sure I can find my way back.”

“Says the person who got lost walking back to her own dorm room freshman year of college and had to call the police,” Mattie said.

My smile froze in place. “That was one time,” I said through clenched teeth.

Mattie laughed, tossing her wild light-brown hair back in the process. “Call me if you have any issues.”

“I’ll be fine,” I insisted.

Mattie turned to address the bartender—Dave, was it? “She’s having a bit of a mental breakdown at the moment,” she said. “Please don’t let her drink too much.” With that, she walked away from us and headed toward the exit.

I scowled at her back, before turning back to Dave. “Am not,” I said, picking up another fry. Then I offered, “I got fired.”

Dave had already returned his attention back to the drink he was making. “I’m no babysitter,” he said.

“Then can I have one more drink?” I asked, batting my eyelashes innocently.

Dave chuckled and eyed the margarita still in front of me. Then, he slid a full glass toward me that looked suspiciously like straight soda water. Part of me wanted to object, but the more rational side of my brain recognized that I was plenty buzzed. The headache already threatening to make an appearance in the morning was thankful for this.

“Any plans while you’re in town?” Dave asked as he pulled the taps. Amber liquid flowed into the beer glasses he held.

“Umm…” I pursed my lips. In reality, I hadn’t spent a single minute thinking about what I wanted to do with my newfound freedom, or my time in Key Ridge for that matter. I had been thinking one singular thought when I’d bought that plane ticket—escape. “I don’t know, I guess.”

“Well, Key Ridge is a pretty magical place. I hope you find what you’re looking for here,” he said, before he walked away to serve the beers.

I frowned and took another large sip of my drink. Little did he know, the only thing that I was looking for was a new job that would get me out of this town as quickly as possible.