“You talking to the girl?”
I look up and find Gio and Frank standing in front of me, dopey smiles on their faces. “Excuse me?” I ask, slipping my phone back into my pocket.
“Oh, come on, man. You’ve been staring at that phone since we got on shift this morning. The only reason a man watches a device that long is either he’s got porn on there, or he’s talking to a woman. I’m going with the latter,” Frank replies with a smirk.
“It could be porn,” Gio chimes in, making a playful grab for the device.
“Get your hands away from my ass,” I tell him, swiping at him to keep him from retrieving it.
“But…it’s a fine ass, friend.”
I roll my eyes, keeping my backside away from him. “What do you two assholes want?”
“When can we meet her?” Gio asks.
“Meet who?” Of course I play dumb.
“Oh hell,” Frank groans. “If we gotta spell it out for you, you ain’t doin’ it right.”
I shake my head and return my attention to finishing up the dishes I started before I got the first text from Lizzie. Frank and Emmitt cooked, and Gio and I were on cleanup and dish duty. “I’m doing it…just fine.”
“Fine. Another word you never want to hear whendoin’ it.” Gio’s just goading me at this point.
I don’t even acknowledge his comment, mostly because there’s nothingfineabout sex with Lizzie. It’s pretty fucking outstanding, really. Better than I ever could have imagined for a man who spent a long time just trying to keep everything about sex.
“How’s the bar?” Gio asks, leaning on the counter beside where I’m working.
“Good.”
“I was thinking of grabbing a couple of buddies and coming down for the band this Saturday night.”
“Really? That’s cool. You sure you want to make the drive?” I ask, knowing it’s an hour from Sycamore, where he lives.
“If you’ll let us crash in your guest room again,” he replies. About a year ago, he and two of his friends came to town during one of his breakups with Clara. One took the couch, while the other two shared my guest bed. Not super comfortable for two large, grown male adults, but it sure as hell beats crashing on the floor.
“Anytime. You know that,” I reply with a nod.
“I do, but I figured I should ask instead of just showing up. Hell, you probably won’t even be there. Five bucks says you crash with Lizzie.”
I don’t reply with words, because if I have it my way, that’s exactly what I’ll do.
“Have you told her about…you know?”
I exhale, waiting for the past to wrap around me like a hot, smothering blanket, but that’s not what happens. The heartacheI usually feel isn’t there. The pain isn’t completely nonexistent, but it feels different. It’s less consuming, less suffocating. I don’t instantly drown in the misery of those memories from a time I can’t forget.
“No, not yet. I almost did yesterday when we were on the four-wheeler, but I didn’t want to put a damper a pretty amazing afternoon. It felt like talking about Whitney and what she did would end the good time I was having with Lizzie.”
He slowly nods, understanding written all over his face. “I get that, but is there ever a good time to tell the woman you’re seeing about your ex?”
I consider his question, knowing he’s right. “No, probably not.”
“Just get it over with. Cooper Town is awfully small. The fact they haven’t run into each other is pretty rare.”
“Yeah, Cade said the same thing.”
He points at me. “And he’s right.”
“Yeah, I’ll tell her.”
