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“Did it taste good, though?”
Done with his hand cleaning, he dropped the napkin on the tarp-covered ground. “It was all right. I heard you fell in your dance.”
“No, not me, but a few of the girls did slip in the second routine and a few of them went down. They’re all ok, according to our group chat,” I said, although he didn’t seem too curious about their injury status. I picked up the discarded napkin.
“It’s like a mud sauna in these tents. Is there anyone good here?” he asked. “Is Warren Wilde around?”
“I haven’t seen him.” The former Woodsmen quarterback sometimes made an appearance, but maybe he wanted to stay out of the rain. I watched Ward’s eyes sweep around the tent, and I already knew where they would stop.
“There’s that fucker Garrett Bowman,” my boyfriend announced. “Were you over there trying to talk to him?”
“Absolutely not,” I lied through my teeth. I forced myself not to turn around to see if Bowie was looking back at us. “I always go into the players’ area. You know how I love to do all the Fan Day activities.”
“Yeah, sure.” He stepped to my side and put his arm around me, and then he swiveled us so that we were both facing Bowie’s table. Ward’s fingers gripped my arm for a moment, then brushed across my chest, making me jump in surprise. He looked at Bowie and deliberately put his palm over my breast, gripping.
“Ward!” I jerked and pulled away from him, but he didn’t release his hold. “Stop that. Don’t touch me like that, not here!”
He kept our position for another moment and then let go. “Relax, Sissy, it’s not a big deal. Now that stupid gorilla knows his place.”
“He’s not—”
Ward looked down at me and I closed my mouth on my objection.
“Let’s leave,” he told me, and totally embarrassed, I followed him through the doors of the tent. I could only hope that no one had witnessed him feeling me up in public. Again, I purposefully didn’t look over at Bowie as we walked out.
The rain had stopped but it was humid and drippy, just unpleasant. “I need to go home and take a shower,” I said as we walked toward the parking lot.
He looked me over. “I guess you do. We can hook up later.”
I nodded as if I agreed but actually, I didn’t want to see Ward again today. I didn’t want to see him right at this moment, either.
“Drive me out to my car,” he suggested. “I’m at the end of the fucking Earth.”
“Is that why you missed our performance?”
“Is that what you’re so pissed about?” he asked me. He took my jaw in his hand. “I’m going to see you dancing at every game this season. So what if I missed one show?”
“It was my first one back from when I got injured.”
“Oh, I get it.” His fingers got a little tighter, digging into my cheeks. “You’re going to start harping on that again.”
“No, I’m not.” I pulled my face away. “I’m just tired because I drove my dad to work last night.”
“I told you not to do that anymore,” he said, and we argued as we got into my blue car and I drove him out to the distant lot where he’d parked. When I pulled up behind it and stopped, he looked over. “I don’t want to fight with you, Sissy.”
“No, I don’t want to fight either.”
He took my face in his hand again, but much more gently, and pulled me over for a kiss. “That’s better, right? You’re still my girl.”
I nodded.
“Good. I’ll see you later.” He paused. “No, I won’t. I forgot that I’m supposed to go to my grandma’s house for dinner.”
His grandma was frightening, a truly scary person, and I hated her. The feeling was mutual, so I wouldn’t be included in that invitation and it didn’t bother me in the least.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Ward said. “We can go to dinner together then.”
“That sounds nice,” I told him, and he smiled. “It will have to be late, after my practice.”
