“Liquid Cocaine.” Aiden does a little shimmy as he passes the first shot to Anika, who’s still crouched on the floor, then one to each of us. He lifts his own into the air for a toast. “To settling.”

“Settling?” I furrow a brow, pausing midway to my mouth.

“Down,” he adds, smacking himself in the forehead, as if he can’t believe he messed that up. “Settling down.”

Nick scoffs, shaking his head at the foolishness. “Bottoms up, boys.” The beefy blonde giant extends his in the air for a second before tossing back the shot of sparkling water Aiden prepared just for him.

Nick’s recovery is something the entire group takes seriously.

We all follow suit. My boy was not messing around. The combination of Bacardi, Rumple Minze, Jägermeister, and Goldschlager leaves a prickly burn in my throat as it settles warm in my stomach. The smell alone could clear your sinuses.

“Take your shirt off.” Anika reaches for the bottom of my tee, offering her assistance with the endeavor.

“Hey now…” I swat her hands away, taking a step back. “I’m all for strippers, but I’m the guest of honor tonight, not the entertainment.” I cross my arms on my chest, lean back, and quirk a brow. “You take off your shirt.”

Aiden reaches for something beneath the bar then tosses a wad of black cotton at me. “Put that on, dumbass.”

I shake it out to read what it says. “One clit, that’s it,” I mutter before busting out with a laugh. So fucking Aiden…the self-proclaimed connoisseur of cooch.

“I just landed myself the Cristal of pussy, my friend.” I roll my tongue over my lips, my heart rate increasing as I recall her unique taste. “My girl is a fucking delicacy,” I say, swapping shirts.

Aiden sneers. “There’s not a woman on this planet I’d swap my diverse palate for.” He makes a V with his pointer and middle fingers and laps his tongue greedily between them. “Variety is the spice of life, after all.”

“That kind of variety also leads to STDs, but do you, booboo,” queen bee says, giggling as she brushes a hand over his chest on her way to the massive stage set up on the back wall.

“Testing, testing…” Anika’s voice booms through the surround sound, followed by the thump of her finger tapping the mic. “Lyle…” She motions toward a lone chair in the center of the dance floor. “Take a seat and prepare to be entertained.”