Page 6 of Waste Some Time
“Me? You’re the one with checklists and goals.”
“That’s only me in competition with myself,” she said. “You were always the one to lose it when I beat you at Battleship.”
“Well, whatever. I’m still not giving up. Maybe not this year. Maybe not next. But I’m gonna find something to help me convince you to move back here.”
An image of Katie nodding toward the back of that house flashed in her mind.
Nope.
Not a reason to stay here. Even though Sydney was already considering the move, she wouldn’t let a woman she barely knew factor into that huge decision.
Sydney didn’t have a plan for this week, but the one plan she did have was to not jump into a relationship with the first woman she’d made out with. That had been her plan for going to the party. Kiss someone and move on.
She was never supposed to see that person again, of course. It had been her ridiculous luck to pick her brother’s best friend for that first delicious experience.
3
KATIE
The Northshore dancehall buzzed with the conversations of tourists and locals gathered for Cajun food and music. The band wrapped up the end of their first set, which took place on a stage in front of a swamp-themed mural, complete with alligators and cypress trees with Spanish moss dangling from their branches.
Katie made a point to watch her cousin’s band play whenever she could, especially at low-key gigs. She could sit at a table beside the stage and sip a bourbon and Coke away from the crowds at the bar and line dancing on the expansive floor. She could even grab a snack from the adjoining restaurant to eat in peace in the corner.
The band had outgrown venues like this and were one of the best known country bands in the state, but they still played in this dance hall occasionally. It had been among the first places they had regular gigs, so a couple of times a year they showed their gratitude by dusting off some swamp pop tunes and drawing a huge crowd.
Her cousin, Rachel, the band’s mandolin player, bounced over to where Katie was sitting. Her sunny expression was quickly replaced with one of disgust and concern when she saw Katie. “Ew.”
“Ew, what?” Katie touched around her mouth and looked down to see if she’d spilled something on her shirt.
“Your face. It’s sad.” Rachel pointed at the small plate in front of her cousin. “You can’t be sad with fried boudin balls.”
Katie tossed a cocktail napkin at her. “My face is fine.”
“No, it isn’t. You can’t con me. I know the difference between fine and whatever this is.” Rachel sat beside her, stirring her plastic cup of vodka and soda. She bumped her shoulder against Katie’s. “What’s up?”
Katie put her plate on the table next to her and took a deep breath. Might as well tell her. Rachel would stick around until she could make Katie feel better, just like she did with the stray cats she took in. Rachel’s boyfriend was offshore that week, so her full attention was available to press Katie for details.
“So remember that party we went to the other night?”
Rachel looked up as if the answer was in the ceiling or she was physically retrieving the memory from some storage shelf in her brain. “Last weekend? The one just before Christmas?”
Katie nodded. “Remember that woman I met?”
Rachel looked back at Katie with wide eyes. “I thought you said that was a nonstarter? Did you call her after all?”
“No. It’s still a nonstarter.” Katie let out the heavy sigh she’d been holding in since she first started this story. “Turns out she’s Stephen’s sister.”
Rachel’s big hazel eyes widened even more. “Nooo.”
Katie could only press her lips together and nod.
“You’ve never met her before? I thought you were pretty tight with his family.”
“I am. But she lives in San Diego and doesn’t visit often. She was supposed to be with the family that night, so I didn’t connect the name at all.”
“How did you find out? Honestly, I’m guessing Stephen is probably over the moon that his sister and his best friend were making out.” Rachel nearly choked on her drink to circle back. “No sarcasm. I can see that legitimately tickling him.”
“Maybe,” Katie said. “But he doesn’t know. She met us outside the aquarium and was just as surprised to see me there. I got the distinct impression that she didn’t want Stephen to know about what happened between us, so I had to play along like I was meeting her for the first time.”
