Page 99 of Debts and Desires
“Mister Walter,” Carter spoke up finally. “He told Jameson we were just bein’ dumb boys, and he’d deal with us.”
“Did he? Deal with you?” I asked.
“If you call takin’ us over to Macon for some ice cream dealin’ with us, then sure,” Tyler replied.
“Heathens, the both of you!” I laughed, shaking my head.
“If you only knew,” Ty agreed. “If you weren’t my friend, I’d gladly tag you with Carter. But then again, maybe not. I don’t wanna make him jealous since I’m much bigger.” Tyler wiggled his brows. I knew he didn’t mean it. He was just trying to get a rise out of Carter, and by the glare he was receiving, it had worked.
“Go get us more beer before I kick your ass,” Carter growled. Tyler and I both laughed.
38. TRUST ME
October 22
Day Fifty-Six
198 Hours to Go
Not long after, we decided it was time to leave.
“I’ll get your pay before you go,” Ty said.
“We can get it sometime this week,” I offered, still bubbling with excitement that I was going to be doing a lot more shows at Pete’s. It felt right somehow.
“You sure?”
“Yep, don’t worry about it. You have enough to do as it is, and Carter’s fight didn’t help with that. I’m sure the town’ll be talking about it for months.”
“You’re right about that,” Tyler chuckled. “So, isthisyour first official date then, since he’s defendin’ your honor now?” Tyler raised a brow.
“No,” Carter grunted. I rolled my eyes.
Could’ve fooled me.
“Me, too,” Tyler agreed, and I realized I’d said my thoughts out loud. “You really wanna fuck with everyone? Give ‘em somethin’elseto talk about?” Tyler said. “Kiss Carter in front of ‘em all,” he said, nodding to his best friend. Both Carter and I almost choked on our drinks, but I smiled big.
“Will it really help them forget about the fight?” I asked.
“Emogen,” Carter warned.
“It absolutely would,” Tyler answered me. “C’mon man, you know this town needs somethin’ new to talk about before Shoemaker’s dad gets wind of it and you wind up in Randy ‘God’s-Greatest-Gift-to-the-Hudsonville-Police’ Jameson’s cell.” Carter rolled his eyes. “I don’t wanna tell you what to do, but you shoulddefinitelydo it, Emmy.” Before I could respond, Tyler said he was going to help one of the waitresses close out some tabs, and I let a moment pass. I leaned over, planting a slightly longer than necessary kiss on Carter’s cheek, the second one of the day and all together.
“There,” I said, triumphantly. “Now they can all have something to talk about.”
“If you’re gonna do it,” Carter started, turning his whole body to face me. “You might as well go all fuckin’ in.” He grabbed me by the back of the neck and leaned in, kissing me, though it felt more like he was staking his claim in front of everyone. He pulled away, leaving me breathless. “Now everyone knows you’re mine,” he said, pulling away. It took a moment for me to find my bearings, making him give another lopsided smirk. He loved making me squirm.
Two can play.
“It’s a shame thisisanother ‘not-a-date’ night,” I said. “I was planning on putting out the moment we got in the Blazer. To celebrate such a great performance tonight.” I pulled away and winked. Carter swallowed hard, his eyes staring at me so intensely I was sure one of us was about to burn.
“You drunk, Emogen?”
“No. A little buzzed, but I can still walk straight and make responsible decisions.”
“Good.” He leaned in. “‘Cause thisdateis over. We’re goin’ home.”
“So, itisa date then?” I giggled. He smiled.
