Bridget nearly slammed into Vinny as he stopped dead in his tracks and turned back towards the restaurant. There was no way he was going back to jail. He had a stiletto knife hidden in his steel tipped boot which he would use to take people hostage if he had to. It was about to get interesting. Soon lots of cops would surround the place and the newsies and the rubbernecks would show up. His mother Theresa would probably see him on television.
As Vinny briskly walked back into Woky's Sushi Bar and Grille Bridget ran after him flailing her arms like she was surrendering. He would devise a plan. A master plan. Maybe they had propane tanks near the stoves in the kitchen that he could turn into a bomb. He was the Gadget Man. He could do anything.
"Wait!" Cried Bridget almost catching up to him. She grabbed his arm as he went to open the door.
Vinny vigorously shook her cherub arms off of him."You set me up!" He shouted.
He opened the door and she followed him into the vestibule where he stopped and placed his hands on his hips. He glowered at her and waited for a reply.
"Babe, you're paranoid and drunk. Nothing is happening." She said with imploring eyes.
Vinny scrutinized her face carefully looking for any signs of deception. Quivering of the lips, averting of the eyes, or even redness in the face. A little trick he learned from his mother. Bridget showed none of these signs but kept her gaze fixed directly at him. She was telling the truth or else she was a really good liar.
Vinny peeked through the glass entrance doors and looked at the cop still sitting in the cruiser. The cop didn't budge but it looked like he was putting something in his mouth. Maybe the pig was just taking a doughnut break?
Vinny's jitters slowly faded away and he placed a hand on Bridget's shoulder."I'm sorry...it's just...well..I'm on probation and I'm not supposed to be drinking. My friends used to tell me stories of their girlfriends setting them up. I didn't know what to make of this." He said taking his hand off her shoulder then a step back to search for signs of foul play.
Bridget gave him a reassuring look then crossed her arms and tapped her foot. Her patience was finally running thin. "Well, what are we gonna do? Are we just going to hang out here and wait until he goes away?" She said caustically leaving the ball in his court.
Vinny peered through the glass door again to get a look at what the cop was up to. The interior light was on in the cruiser and the officer appeared to be reading a newspaper. "That's exactly what we're gonna do." Muttered Vinny.
He wondered if she would go along with it. Would she pass stage 4? Having patience? He really doubted it.
Then Bridget came up with an indecisive idea. "Why don't you just let me drive? I'm more sober than an airplane pilot." She said holding her hand out for the keys.
Vinny mulled over the acquisition for a few seconds and then reluctantly handed over his keys. She smiled fervently like he had just handed her keys to a brand new Mustang Convertible. "Be careful with my baby." He said now recalling that Shaggy had once mentioned her reckless driving.
As they headed out into the parking lot Vinny flipped his hoodie over his long unruly hair and kept his gaze focused on the ground. Bridget walked in front of him and didn't take notice to his impromptu incognito attempt.
When they got inside the truck Bridget had to move the driver's seat up as far as it would go. As she started up the Tacoma Vinny noticed the cop put down the newspaper and give him a curious look. Bridget put it in drive and inched her way past the cruiser and out of the tight parking spot.
"See, that wasn't so bad." She said in her Irish accent as they exited the parking lot.
Vinny looked behind him and noticed the cop was following them. "He's following us." He almost stammered. His whole body began to shake convulsively especially his hands. Gosh,he really needed to control the incessant shaking of his hands when he got nervous. Professional killers usually learned how to control that. He felt like such a novice.
Bridget turned left onto the highway and went exactly the speed limit. The cop continued to follow and she thought nothing of it. But Vinny sure did! He shook like he had legions of demons trying to possess his body. He kept scratching his right ankle and she thought she saw something shiny. All she could think about was her mother's warnings and the foreboding knowledge that she tried to instill into her only daughter's introspective mind. Please Bridget please....don't make the same mistakes I did. They'll never change and you can't change them. She could hear her mother saying.
Her father used to come home drunk and beat on her mother. Then one day he just suddenly disappeared and they never heard from him again. She wasn't even sure her father was alive. Her mother always approved of Shaggy but he was just too easy. Bridget liked her men cocksure just like Vinny. But right now he was acting like a pantywaist and it wasn't exactly a turn on.
"What are you so worried about?" She finally asked,"I'm the one driving."
The comfort of her reassuring voice actually settled him down. He looked in the side view mirror and watched the cruiser merge into the exit lane. Whew! The pig was finally gone.
"Oh giddy! Looks like the doughnut eater is going for another snack." Said Bridget trying to be funny and stepping on the gas. It was her show now. Vinny was inebriated and she now felt that she had him wrapped around her little finger. She pushed down harder on the gas pedal as if she was driving her own car. Vinny gaped when he watched the needle on the speed odometer climb past 80 mph. Now Bridget was the one acting like a child.
"Vroom! Vroom!" She muttered, "This truck has lots of Vroom!" She said excitedly as she began to weave through traffic. If the Gadget Man was sober right now he would be irate at Bridget Jones' carelessness but the alcohol in his body played it's role and made him a cheery person. He slouched down in the passenger's seat like any drunk would and placed a warm hand on Bridget's shoulder. She was now doing 95mph and loving every minute of it.
"We're having a good time aren't we?" He said slightly slurring his speech.
Bridget did a quick vice-grip with her hand right above his knee just not nearly as hard this time. "Yes we sure are." She said happily.
It was going to be a beautiful night and the Gadget Man had one last surprise for her.