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An awkward bit of silence falls as Wes pulls a red can of cola out of the cooler and hands it to Maeve. Then he starts pouring the contents of a few different bottles into a red cup.
“You don’t actually have to make me a drink, Wes,” I tell him. “I can fend for myself. It’s your birthday.”
“Nah, I want to. One sec.”
I glance at Maeve, who’s still standing there. We face off on either side of Wes, who’s mixing alcohol obliviously. Is she mad he’s making me a drink? Or does she just not know what to say either?
“When are you guys leaving for South Carolina?” I take a stab at neutral conversation.
“Next week,” Wes answers, leaning down to scoop some ice from the cooler. “I forgot I mentioned that to you.”
He didn’t, I suddenly realize.Liamis the one who mentioned Wes was joining his family.
I latch onto the excuse, mumbling a vaguemm-hmmand deciding it’s best to stick to nonverbal conversation.
Wes straightens and hands me the cup. I take a long sip. It’s tangy and a little sweet, the burn of alcohol evident when I swallow. I smile. “It’s good.”
“Of course it is. It’s strong too. Fields’s ego won’t recover if you beat him at pool basketballagain.”
I laugh, but the amusement fades as soon as I register the two guys approaching.
“You bartending for everyone, Cole? Or just the girls who have spread their legs for you?” one asks.
“Fucking watch it, Crawford,” Wes snaps.
The guy who spoke—who I now know must be Matt Crawford, infamous in Alleghany thanks to a certain photo of him kissing Maeve Stevens on our football field—glances at me. His eyes widen a little as they skim over my body.
I hope he hits on me. It would give me a chance to use one of the retorts sitting on the tip of my tongue.
“No offense,” he tells me.
I snap my fingers. “Ah, shit. There went the last chance of any respect. If you’re going to try to insult me, at least have the balls to back it up. But I forgot, you’re from Glenmont.So you don’t have any.”
If things were awkward in the group before, it’s nothing in comparison to now.
Maeve clears her throat. “And this is my brother, Liam.”
“Right.” I meet his gaze. “Barely recognized you not wearing your uniform and a scowl.” I’m not entirely faking the annoyance in my voice. I wonder if he would have said anything to his friend if Wes hadn’t. Liam’s features darken into a glare. “Ah, there it is. Now I recognize you.”
“Natalie,” Wes warns.
At the same time, Maeve chastises Liam. “Be nice.”
Under other circumstances, I’d laugh. But we’re putting on too good of an act to mess it up. Except…I’m not sure if Liam is actually pretending. He looks genuinely pissed about something. I’m not sure what he has to be mad about. I was the one just called a slut.
“Be nice?” Matt laughs. “She’s from Alleghany, Maeve. Their fucking head cheerleader. Remember the stories Maggie has told? Your boyfriend cheated on you with her!”
“Enough, Matt,” Liam says. He doesn’t dispute anything Matt said, though.
“You’re asking to get thrown out on your ass,” Wes tells Matt.
“Is there a problem over here?” Chris appears, with Josh and Adam right behind him. Charlie ambles over as well, arms crossed.
Liam and Matt both shift uneasily as the numbers rapidly shift in Alleghany’s favor. If we’re dividing down town lines, there’s three of them and six of us.
“It’s fine, Chris,” Wes replies.
“Uh-huh, sure,” Chris states. He glances at me. “You good, Natalie?”
