Page 39 of Tattered and Torn

“I’ll bet,” Maya says with a snort.

Maggie blushes. “Let’s not go there, okay?”

While they all catch each other up on what’s going on in their lives, I sit back and listen. The only one I know here is Hannah, and honestly, I don’t know her that well. We met only a few times back in Chicago when she attended McIntyre family events—weddings and baby showers. I was at those events because one of my best friends, Beth, married into the McIntyre family. That sort of made me an honorary member.

It’s nice they’re welcoming me into their group here. I assume that’s Hannah’s doing.

“Eat something, Gabrielle,” Jennie says to me, motioning to the tray of appetizers.

A shouting match at one of the pool tables breaks out, and Ruth hollers, “Mark Mitchell, you settle your ass down right now, or I swear I’ll kick you to the curb.”

The argument quickly dissipates, and I’m impressed with Ruth’s command of the situation.

Ruth shakes her head. “Idiots.”

Maya leans close to me. “They’re scared shitless of Ruth. She has a reputation around here.”

I’m not sure what kind of reputation Maya is referring to, but sure enough the two guys who were arguing have made up and are back to playing pool.

The conversation continues.

A blond guy wearing a red plaid shirt walks up behind Maya. “Hey, Maya. Wanna dance?”

“Get lost, Tony,” she says, not even bothering to look at him.

“Who’s your new friend?” the guy asks. “Care to introduce me?”

I glance up and realize he’s looking at me.

“Forget it, Tony,” Maya says, still not bothering to look at him. She takes a long swig of her beer. “The girl has standards, and you don’t meet them.”

Ruth makes a shooing motion. “Move along, Tony. You’re barkin’ up the wrong tree.”

Once he’s gone, Maya says to me, “Be prepared to get hit on a lot, Gabrielle. This is a small town, and there are way more single guys than girls living around here. They get overly excited when fresh meat rolls into town. They’re like sharks at a feeding frenzy. If only half-a-dozen guys hit on you tonight, consider yourself lucky. I’ll let you know which ones to avoid. Like Tony. He’s after only one thing.”

The night proceeds. Someone from the bar brings us another pitcher of beer, and later someone brings us another tray of appetizers. The beer is good, as is the food. I’m not very familiar with country music, but I do recognize some popular songs that I know and like.

Over the next hour, three more guys come up to Maya and ask her to dance. She says no to the first two, but she says yes to the last guy—someone named Kent. “I’ll be back,” she says, rolling her eyes at me. “It won’t kill me to dance one dance.”

Jennie dances several times, with a different guy each time. Ruth turns down several offers. No one asks Maggie or Hannah—I guess everyone knows they’re already taken, and therefore off limits.

Even I get a couple of offers, which I politely decline. It’s not that I don’t want to dance, or that I’m against meeting someone. It’s just—well, I keep thinking about John. I almost wish he were here. Maybe after a couple of beers, I’d get up the courage to ask him to dance. But then I wonder if dancing would hurt his leg. If it did, I’d be just as happy to sit it out with him.

“You’re not dancing?” Ruth asks me when I turn down a third offer.

I shake my head. “I had a long day. I’m tired.”

“Suit yourself,” she says.

It’s almost eleven-thirty, and we’ve been here a little over two hours.

Hannah catches me yawning. “We should think about getting back,” she says to the group at large. “Tomorrow morning will be here before we know it.”

As soon as we say our goodbyes, Owen appears out of nowhere, walks up behind Maggie, and puts his hands on her shoulders. He leans down to kiss the top of her head. “Ready, babe?”

“Yes,” she replies, looking up to smile at him. This time, he leans down and kisses her on the mouth.

“Hi, Gabrielle,” Owen says. “I’m glad to see you came out with the ladies. Welcome to the club.”

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