Page 55 of Out of Place

Shaking the thought out of my head, I grab her hand. “Let’s go dance.”

She looks out onto the dance floor, where everyone is doing a line dance. It’s one I’ve done since I was a kid. Her brows furrow. “I don’t know how to do that.”

I smile. “I’ll show you.”

She hesitates for a second longer before scooting out of the booth with me.

We find a spot toward the back of the dance floor. Keeping our hands linked, I start moving my feet, and she attempts to follow. She trips over her feet a few times. I can’t imagine those shoes are easy to dance in, but eventually, she gets the hang of it. By the time the next song starts, she’s laughing and having a good time, not even caring that she’s messing up or turning the wrong way.

The crowd pulls her into the middle, taking it upon themselves to teach her the moves. I stay as close as I can, but I love seeing her have fun and love to see the town embracing her.

When she finally makes her way back to me a few songs later, she’s sticky with sweat, barefoot, and smiling.

We head back towards the table, where everyone tells her how good she did. Even Cam seems impressed.

“Olivia, you might be starting to fit in here after all,” he tells her.

She smiles apprehensively. When she puts her hand on his shoulder, he doesn’t shrug her off. “Honestly, I’m surprised you haven’t had the sheriff throw me out of town yet.”

It’s the first time they’ve joked with each other since she showed up here months ago. Everyone is quiet for a minute as we wait to see if Cam will get pissed or laugh.

Thankfully, he tips his head back in laughter. “I should’ve thought about that. The sheriff is friends with my dad.”

“Too late now,” she tells him. “You’re stuck with me.”

He studies her for a second. “Yeah, well, maybe you aren’t so bad. And you make my best friend happy, so. . .”

“Camden. That might be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me. You better stop now before I think we’re actually friends.”

He laughs. “You’re right. That’s enough for tonight.” He pauses and looks at her. “Your makeup is running. You look like a raccoon.”

She laughs at his attempt to be mean to her. “That’s better.”

They bump shoulders before he turns his attention back to the rest of the table. “Let’s get some food.”

I pull her back toward me and kiss her. It’s a silent thank you. Thank you for putting up with Cam. Thank you for being here. Thank you for being with me.

We order a round of appetizers for the table and get refills of our drinks, except for Olivia, who is still nursing her sparkling water.

My friends interact with Olivia like they’re finally starting to accept her into our little group. It’s what I’ve wanted from the start.

When the wings are delivered to the table, Olivia grabs a fork to get one off the plate, and Cam grabs her arm. The look of pure horror on his face makes me laugh.

“Olivia,” he says sternly. “You do not eat a chicken wing with a goddamn fork.”

She looks from him to the chicken wing. The entire table is trying to stifle their laughs.

“Bless your heart, honey,” Cat calls out from across the table.

“You eat it with your hands,” Cam explains as he grabs one and brings it to his mouth, showing her how it’s done.

Olivia looks back at the plate. “You just. . . grab it? Isn’t that messy?”

I chuckle. “Yeah, sweetheart. It is messy. But they’re so good, you won’t care.”

She cringes. Before I think better of it, I grab one for her and hold it up to her mouth to take a bite.

“Jesus Christ,” Cam groans. “She has you pussy whipped already.”