Page 19 of Just One of the Groomsmen
The two years they’d spent apart melted away, and just like that, things realigned. It was as if something she hadn’t even realized was broken was fixed.
The rest of the guys would drop whatever they were doing if she needed help, but it never went as smoothly as when she turned to Tucker and he somehow knew exactly what to say. Or what to do to take her mind off everything.
Back in high school, she’d often been left behind in the name of pursuing girls, and while Tucker had done plenty of that—and a fair amount pursued him, too—he’d always made sure she wasn’t stranded after a ball game or at a party.
Still, she’d missed out on a few big things like senior prom. Her boys had dates, and thanks to always hanging out with them, she hadn’t made other friends and had recently broken up with her boyfriend at the time.
Occasionally she regretted missing out on rites of passage, dress-wearing and heels, notwithstanding.
But that was neither here nor there.
A truck with a growly engine approached, and she recognized the black Dodge Ram with its massive grill, roll bar, and lights. Ford was ridiculously proud of his “badass truck,” but considering he was a firefighter who pulled double duty on the Talladega Search and Rescue team, it was also a necessity.
Where most people ran from trouble, he ran toward it.
Ford opened the door and stood on the frame. “There you guys are. Remember how we’re supposed to meet Shep and his fiancée at the Old Firehouse ten minutes ago to watch the game?”
“Oh, shit.” Addie looked for her phone so she could check the time, but it was tucked into her duffel bag in her truck. Once Tucker had issued the soccer challenge, she’d forgotten about everything else.
The light bulb over Tucker’s head remained unlit. “We had plans to watch the game with them?”
“Well, the rest of us did. You would’ve gotten an invite had we known you were moving back.”
“Good, because watching football without you guys isn’t nearly as fun.” He hopped to his feet and extended a hand.
Addie finger-combed her ponytail, trying to dislodge as much grass as she could. “Crap, do I look okay?”
It popped out before she’d thought better of it. Years of being told she needed to look and act more like a girl if she ever wanted to snag a man, and the brainwashing had chosen now of all times to kick in.
“Never mind. We’re just going to the bar, duh.”
She wasn’t sure what to make of Tucker’s crooked grin. “You look great,” he said, and it warmed her from the inside out, even though she told herself she’d asked, and he’d simply answered a question. The “you look like you,” he added left her wondering what exactly that meant.
Of courseshe looked like herself.
When she caught her reflection in the window of Ford’s truck, she decided that for all Tucker’s talk about not liking having to lie, he was a big fat liar. Thelastword she’d use to describe the girl in the reflection with the grass-stained clothes and lopsided ponytail was “great.”
Not that she cared.
She used to not care.
She’d always been comfortable with who she was, but lately she didn’t feel feminine enough, or attractive enough, or a whole mess of other things she didn’t want to examine.
And she couldn’t help noticing that while she looked like a dirty mess, Tucker looked sporty and sexily disheveled.
Guys took so little effort, which was supremely unfair.
Lately she’d had to deal with the possibility of seeing the dentist everywhere, which made her feel even more self-conscious. She wasn’t even sure how she felt about David besides the general hallelujah, a single man her age actually moved into Uncertainty, and this might be her only chance to date in who knows how long.
No pressure or anything.
It’d sure be nice to fill my life with more than long days at work where my boss slowly drives me insane, followed by quiet nights spent mostly alone, only to get up and head to work again.
The plastic of the bench seat gripped her thighs as she scooted to the middle, Ford on one side, Tucker on the other. She used to complain about always having to sit bitch, but at one point, they grew taller and filled out, and then she was the only one who fit in the middle, so she dealt with it.
“Dude, it smells like ass in here,” Tucker said.
“Piece of ass, actually,” Ford replied. “You probably don’t recognize it, because of your lack of game. I can give you some tips if you’d like.”
