Page 52 of Forgotten Pieces

“Nah man. I still get that pussy. I’m just not tied down to one.”

Brooks reaches Mac and pushes him. “Fuck off.”

Raelynn walks up to me and sticks out her tiny hand. Seriously, this girl is nothing like Easton and Tacoma. Where they are both tall, she barely stands at five feet. “Raelynn Anderson. Nice to finally meet you. You have saved me and Brooks from constantly babysitting Mac’s whiny ass. I actually get to spend time with my husband now.”

That gets a laugh out of me, breaking my bad mood a bit. I shake her hand. “Well, I am glad I was able to rescue you from the constant headache he has now bestowed upon me.”

“You better watch yourself, cuz. I know your secrets.”

I roll my eyes at Mac. “Fuck off.”

He clenches his heart as he says dramatically, “Does anyone love me anymore?”

“No,” all three of us say in unison.

Mac grumbles as he walks inside and the three of us follow.

It only takes an hour or so to pack up the house and load it into the trucks. Most of our things were in storage and we have the moving truck delivering them around two.

I climb into the Tahoe with Shelley. We leave her car at the rental house, leaving it to be picked up after our final walk-through. Our ride to our home is silent. She doesn’t say a thing about the words she said to me in front of Mac and I keep my mouth shut about the conversation I overheard her having earlier. Her work phone sits in her hand and she checks it a few times but never lets it become her priority.

Thirty minutes later we pull up to our custom home. The ride felt like it took hours, but I am hoping that since we are now home, both of our moods will lighten.

Mac, Brooks, and Raelynn pull up behind us and we spend the next hour unloading boxes from the trucks and into the house. The moving truck shows up on time. They unload everything quickly and Brooks, Mac, and I spend the next few hours moving furniture around as the girls direct us.

We crack open a few beers and order pizza as we plop down into the brand new outdoor furniture we had delivered earlier in the week. The sound of the creek relaxing us all as we take in the killer view from the house into the woods.

Moving went smoothly, but the heat and exertion has us all worn out.

“I think we need margaritas,” Raelynn says, her feet stretched out in front of her, her head resting awkwardly on an armrest to the chair she is slouched in. “Where’s my phone? Let me text T to come bring some.”

Brooks must have Raelynn’s phone since he reaches into his pocket to grab one. Mac cuts in when he notices. “I’ll text her. I think she is working because she said something about maybe stopping by after.”

“Ugh, figures,” Rae says. “She has been workin’ all the time since she moved back here. It’s annoying.”

Mac types away at his phone. I am more than positive he isn’t texting her. “She is working. Can’t make it.”

I give him a discreet smile as a thank you and slam the rest of my beer.

Shelley walks out onto the deck at that moment, freshly showered. “Hey babe, wanna go get my car?”

I look at her then look around at our guests. “We just ordered a pizza, Shel. And we have guests.”

“I am sure they can hold the fort down for an hour so we can get my car.”

I toss my beer in an empty box and sigh. “Can’t we just get it tomorrow? Walk through the rental, make sure we didn’t forget anything?”

I can see the impatience on her face. “I worry about leaving my car there overnight.”

“I guarantee it will be just fine,” I say, trying to keep myself from getting frustrated.

“Can we please just go?”

I can tell from her tone she isn’t going to change her mind and she won’t be happy if we don’t go. I nod my head in agreement and stand up. “You guys can stay here. But there better be pizza when we get back.”

“Don’t forget to stop for margarita mix and tequila!” Raelynn shouts as Shelley and I head to my car.

“What was that all about?” I demand as we get in the Tahoe and I hit the start button.

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