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Chapter 2
Tyler
Why did I let Dag drag me to this party?Oh, right.He needs a designated driver because his friend Goldie is out of town.So here I am at a party where I don’t know anyone.
I pick up a soda out of the cooler, then wander out of the barn and toward the firepit.This whole place is packed and is vaguely reminiscent of a few parties I attended in high school when parents were out of town.Those always seemed to expand into some kind of untamable monster because people invited people, and the hosts didn’t know half the partiers crowding into their house.
Dag probably doesn’t know the woman hosting this party.He probably heard about this shindig from a friend of a friend.As soon as the guy with the skunk showed up, I should’ve followed my gut and insisted we leave.
But I didn’t, and now I’m stuck waiting.
People are pressed in close to the fire, but I find an empty bench that someone has dragged away from the crowd.That’s where I plant myself, not caring that I look antisocial.
Even out here, people are dancing.Some guys are tossing twigs and whatever else will catch fire into the pit.Hopefully, no one tries gasoline.Among the pyro drunk guys are some women, and most of them aren’t dressed for a barn party.
One woman stands out, a super cute brunette.She’s surrounded by a group of guys, but her expression reads boredom.Then she tugs her bottom lip between her teeth, and I know I need her number.But first I’ll have to lure her away from the group of guys.
As if sensing my stare, she leans around the man in front of her and smiles at me.
I wink, and when she leans again a few minutes later, I tip my cowboy hat.At least now I’m not bored.
A woman carrying a pitcher full of red slush walks toward the group and starts filling cups.The cute brunette shakes her head and holds out a can of soda in way of explanation.And while she sips her soda, she keeps leaning over to look at me.But each lean looks a bit less steady than the last.
For someone who is only drinking soda, she seems a bit tipsy.
She smiles at me again and steps away from the guy beside her.Then panic flashes in her eyes.Blinking, she inches farther from the group she’s with.
That’s my cue.I weave around people and ease up beside her.“Evening.”
She wraps her arm around mine and leans into me.“Hi, cowboy.”She hands me a can that’s practically full.“I don’t want this one.”
Asking why she doesn’t want it is probably a lost cause because she smells like alcohol and must’ve waited too long before switching to soda.The woman seems pretty drunk.
After tossing her can into the trash, I slip an arm around her waist.“Why don’t we sit down?”
“Okay.”She lets me lead her through the crowd to my bench, which is still empty.
We sit, and she rests her head on my shoulder.“I don’t feel good.Well, I mean.Um, I feel bad.”
When I’m sick, grammar isn’t one of my concerns.Grammar is never one of my concerns.Apologies to my English teachers, wherever they are.
While walking away from the drunk girl might be wise, I can’t forget the panic that flashed in her eyes.And who am I to judge?It’s not like I’ve never made a bad choice.
She might feel better if she ate.Taking this woman to get food and leaving Dag on his own crosses my mind, but then I’d feel rotten for ditching my friend.There were food tables in the barn, and I can probably steady her enough to fill a plate.
But just as I’m easing my new friend to her feet, a man walks out of the barn with grocery bags in each hand.“Who wants s’mores?”
Good timing.That’s food.And the fire is much closer than the food tables in the barn.
I rub her arm.“Maybe you should eat something.”
My adorable companion nods.“Yeah.”
With an arm around her, I lead her to the fire and wedge in between people.Someone hands me a roasting stick, and I thread two marshmallows onto the end.
Holding her up while roasting marshmallows takes a bit of concentration, but it helps that’s she’s leaning toward me and not away.I ask, “Are you here with friends?”
With glazed eyes, she scans the group.“She left with skunk boy.”Her shoulders push toward her ears, and her head wags back and forth.“Don’t know anyone else.But I have her keys.”
