Overtime

2

Every year, Amber's father throws a charity event at their penthouse in Nashville. It's mainly the only reason I'm friends with Amber. Joking. Kind of. Hundreds of the wealthiest people I've ever met gather in the fanciest clothes, and I get to pretend I am one of them for one night. Amber always lets me wear one of her expensive dresses since we are the same size, and I give her company for the night.

The charity is a huge deal here in Nashville. People donate whatever they can to help children in need.

I stand in Amber's room, staring at myself in the floor-length mirror. I wore a gold sequin jumpsuit, white boots, and a cream-colored cowboy hat. Everyone in Nashville wore a cowboy hat, whether it was a fancy event or not. Go on a date? There is a 99 percent chance your date has one on. No one wants to be a fraud here and not seem country.

Amber wears a black sequin gown that has a slit down her leg. She wore it with black boots and a black hat. She straightened her long black hair, letting it fall almost to her butt. "You look gorgeous," I tell her as she looks at her makeup in the bathroom mirror.

She smiles, walking into her bedroom, "As do you, sexy. Your ass looks amazing in that jumpsuit." I laugh and turn to look at my butt in the mirror. She wasn't wrong. The material hugged my curves, leaving no room to imagine.

"Are you ready?" She asks, picking up her seltzer off the table and sipping from it.

I checked my blonde curled hair, making sure no pieces had fallen. I made sure there was no mascara smudges underneath my eyes and that everything was blended. So many cameras are here, so you want to look your best. "I think we've wasted enough time. Let's go."

The party started an hour ago, but we came back late from dinner, procrastinating getting ready. We have all night anyway.

We walk out of her bedroom and hear music and laughter filling the air of her penthouse. We reach the stairs and peek out to see the room is filled with people. Amber leads the way down, merging into the crowd of people.

Amber's house was gorgeous. She and her father were in this gigantic penthouse on the top floor of the Omni Hotel. It overlooks downtown and the Cumberland River. I understand why she still lives here in our twenties. Hell, I'd move in if she'd ask. They have plenty of room.

We find the waiter with a tray of champagne and grab one each. "Let's find Dad," she says, walking deeper into the crowd. She holds my hand as we navigate through the crowd. She says hello to the familiar faces, not bothering to stop.

We find her dad talking to another man. He sees us and perks up, "Nice of you two to finally join us." She let go of my hand and hugged her dad. "Mitch, this is my daughter Amber and her best friend, Julia."

We both wave, and Amber shakes his hand, "Nice to meet you."

"Well, you two go have fun. We have business to discuss." We have that as our cue to leave and head to the snack buffet.

There are a dozen finger foods to choose from, and I pile as much as possible onto a small plate. We find an empty table to set our things on and do what we usually do at every party: people watch. We scan the room for someone out of place, but I only find a familiar face.

My eyes widen as he grins, realizing who I am. "Oh, lord," I mutter to Amber as he walks over to us.

"Don't fuck up, Jules," Amber whispers.

I take a sip of my drink as he walks up to the table, "Magic Mike, what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same."

"You're in my house," Amber tells him.

He raises his eyebrows in shock, "You have a wonderful home. What's your name?"