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"Yep." I jab the poker so hard, black soot flies in the air.

She crunches through the snow.

"Lainey," I call out.

She glances over her shoulder.

I want to tell her not to go mad. I want to pull her against me and fix this before she gets in that truck. But I'm not good when my emotions run high. And I still have my pride. So instead, I force out, "Have fun with Carla."

Something in her expression softens, but only a little. "I'll try." She gets into the truck, the engine roars to life, and a second later, gravel and snow crunches beneath the tires.

I watch her taillights disappear down the drive, my stomach twisting tighter the farther she gets.

"Well, that looked fun." Mason steps next to me and hands me a beer.

"Fuck off."

He grins. "Take the beer."

I take it, twist off the cap, and toss it in the fire.

He pulls his keys out of his pocket. "Come on. Let's go to Red Dirt."

"No."

"One drink."

"I have one." I hold up the bottle.

"Let's get out of here. We'll watch Old Man Petrie embarrass himself on the dance floor, have a drink, and get you out of your own head for a couple hours," he claims.

I shake my head. "I'm not in the mood."

Wyatt joins us, with a beer in his hands.

Mason insists, "That's precisely why you need to go."

Wyatt asks, "Where?"

Mason says, "Red Dirt."

Wyatt grunts. "I'm gonna disagree with that."

Mason points out, "Nobody asked you."

"You're trying to drag him to a bar after he just fought with Lainey? That's the dumbest idea you've ever had. And you've had a ton of them," Wyatt claims.

"I'm trying to stop him from burning his eyes from smoke and staring down the driveway until she comes home, like a lovesick puppy."

Wyatt counters, "Bonfire seems like a better plan than Red Dirt. Jagger, be smart."

I stare at him, knowing he's right. But I also know that if I stay here, I'll spend the next few hours checking the clock, wondering whether Lainey's still pissed, and fighting the urge to text her.

Mason claps me on the shoulder. "Come have one drink. You'll be back before she is."

I glance toward the empty drive.

Dad's voice in my head says, "She needs space…"