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if her daughter was only a room away.
    When the boy broke up with her, Lara said it felt like “hanging off the side of a building and having another finger stepped on.”
    Now this Hunter Wallace situation. Ugh. If that college boy had stepped on one of Lara’s fingers, Hunter would stomp his black boot down on her whole hand.
    Rene took another sip of coffee and noticed she was rapidly reaching the bottom of the cup. She was about to pull out her cell phone to call Lara, but her friend finally appeared in the doorway.
    Lara wore a black string tank over blue jeans. She looked seriously exhausted as she wandered through the shop and dropped into the chair across from Rene.
    â€œDon’t even start the disappointed-mama lecture. I am so not in the mood.”
    â€œI wasn’t going to lecture.”
    â€œYes, you were,” Lara said. “I saw it in your eyes when I walked through the door. But I already got my fill of life lessons from Melanie, so my quota has been met.”
    Melanie was Lara’s mother. Rene was always thrown off when Lara called her parents by their firstnames. Rene couldn’t imagine calling her parents Lorelei and Phil. Of course, Cassie called her parents “ma’am” and “sir,” which was really weird too.
    â€œWhat happened?” Rene asked.
    â€œI was trying to get out of the house this morning, and she texted me about some BS that threw my happy in the furnace. Apparently, I have a curfew now.”
    â€œA curfew?”
    â€œYeah,” Lara said. She snatched Rene’s cup and drained the remaining coffee from it. “I mean, it’s like I see my parents every eighth day and on national holidays. They so don’t keep track of what’s going on, and that’s cool. But last night, Melanie decided to put on her mama-crown and got up in my grill about being out too late. And I’m all, too late for what? It’s not like they ever said, ‘You have to be home by ten or no allowance, young lady.’ It’s all so stupid.”
    â€œHow late were you out?”
    â€œLike midnight.”
    â€œOn a school night?”
    â€œChill out, Mary Poppins. I wasn’t doing anything. I was just out.”
    â€œWith Hunter?”
    Lara broke into a broad smile and looked up from the empty coffee cup. “Yeah. Hot, right?”
    â€œHardly,” Rene replied, despite knowing Lara wasn’t going to like it.
    But Lara didn’t seem upset at all. “You just don’t get him.”
    â€œThat’s true enough. I don’t get some slacker who deals drugs and carries a gun.”
    Lara laughed and flipped her hair back. “See, that’s what I’m talking about. Hunter doesn’t deal. He just lets people say it because it makes him sound like a badass.”
    â€œLara, he does deal, and you know it.”
    â€œFine. So maybe he pimps Tina for some spending cash. So what? Most of us were choking down Ritalin when we were six. We’re a chemical generation. Why should we let the adults take all the profits?”
    â€œThat’s Hunter talking.”
    â€œWhatevs,” Lara said. “I like him. He’s hot.”
    â€œHe’s dangerous.”
    â€œThat’s what makes him hot.” She giggled loudly.
    â€œLara, you shouldn’t…”
    â€œOh hell no,” Lara interrupted. She lifted a hand and showed Rene the palm. “I told you, no lectures. It’s too early, and I am wholly decaffeinated. So, if you want to buy me a latte, I might let you frown at me, but you keep the shoulds and shouldn’ts in the original packaging. I so can’t deal with them right now.”
    â€œOkay,” Rene said with a sigh. “Fine.”
    But she couldn’t help imagining her friend hanging from the side of a building with Hunter Wallaceglaring down on her as he positioned his boot over Lara’s clutching fingers.
    Â 
    The morning rain had left