Page 18 of Old Acquaintances

Tucker’s eyes drill into mine, and I’m awash with that same feeling I got when Hattie mentioned him over the phone.

Stomach pain, dry mouth.

Half of me wants to slap him in the face and the other halfof me wants to wrap my arms around his neck. I never felt safer or more grounded than when Tucker held me. I want to tell him that I’ve missed him. I want to tell him a million things.

“Let me go, Eli,” I mutter, my voice clogged.

“Yes ma’am,” he murmurs back, letting my shoes hit the ground.

There are two Tuckers. The one who is my friend and the one who is not.

This person in front of me is the latter.

“How was the flight?” Johnny asks when I climb back into the passenger seat.

“Long,” I answer.

“I thought it was like two hours from Charleston?”

“Longest two hours of my life.”

Johnny clears his throat. “So, I take it you two didn’t see each other at Christmas?”

“No.” I look out at the road ahead as we drive out of the airport. It’s bright, sunny and warm. I left the rain and forty-degree temperatures back home.

“And I assume you didn’t talk on the plane?”

There’s silence in the backseat. So, I answer again, “No.”

Johnny relaxes in his seat and says, “Well, we’ve got about an hour’s drive to Key Largo if anyone wants to clear the air now.”

Tucker sniffles and leans forward. “No, I’m good.” His hands tap on the console beside me.

I spin around. “You are unbelievable.”

He blinks but doesn’t respond.

“This is fun,” Johnny sighs. “The three of us back together again. You two fighting. I was feeling a little homesick, but I think I just missedthis.”

As we continue down the highway, I take stock of the blue ocean just beyond the road and the strip of sand beside thepavement. Johnny’s bare arms are pink from this morning’s sun and the temperature reading on the screen says it’s seventy-nine degrees, so I peel my sweater off. I fix the straps of my brown tank top and tuck the edge of the built-in bra under my boobs.

The side of my face feels hot.

I glance at the back, where Tucker’s eyes stare sidelong at my nipples. I wait for him to meet my face. He jolts, caught out.

“Sorry,” he grumbles, looking out ahead.

I hold my hand backward.

He gives me a high five.

“Mybag,” I argue.

“You need your butt cream now?”

“I’m going to change my pants.”

“In the car?” He shakes his head. “We’re not ten years old anymore, I’m not closing my eyes so you can change into your bathing suit.”

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