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"And you need to put your eyes back on," I added. "Looks like you washed your face."
"I did." She lifted her lids and already looked like she was feeling better. "I just don't know what to do, J.D."
"Get pretty, get pictures," I told her. "That's what you wanted, right?"
"But should I even try?" she asked.
"Do you wanna?" I shot back.
"It's all I've ever wanted to do, but I'm tired of fucking it all up."
"Fuck," I grumbled. "Stop acting like a girl, Cody. You don't gotta take all the blame for someone else's shit. Maybe that dick you dated before told ya that, but it's bullshit."
"And none of this is your mess," Tanner said, catching on quickly. "What didyoudo wrong?"
"Dumped Ty," she mumbled as she opened the bag and started digging inside.
"Was it wrong?" Max asked. "Sounds to me like he was taking you for granted, and trust me, that is not the right way to treat someone you care about."
"He was treating her like an object," Tanner said.
Cody's hands paused. "Yeah, pretty much."
"Face," I reminded her. "If you're too high to get pretty, then you ain't gettin' pictures today."
"And my dad has been waiting for them," she explained. "He likes showing me off to his friends. And he works with my ex, so he tries to do it loud enough that Cole hears."
"Which is why we're doing this today," Max realized, turning to look at me. "I tried to convince her to go home and recover. I mean, missing next weekend won't knock her down far enough to prevent her from making finals, and she'll ride better when she's healed up."
"And it's Tanner's home show," I pointed out. "Naw, Max. We'll take care of her. If she scratches, then she does. Can't see it happening, though. Not that one."
"Don't make her feel like she has to," Tanner told me.
Cody just giggled, proof the pot had hit her a little harder than it did me. "I can still hear you."
"And still don't have mascara," I teased. "C'mon, rookie. This is the real deal. You want to take these pictures, then you need to get your ass in gear. Shit's not gonna wait forever, and until you say you're done, I'm gonna keep calling you my rookie, you hear me?"
She began setting things out on the little end table beside her. "I hear you, J.D."
"You gonna lie to me about how you're doing?"
"Nope."
So I gestured for the other two guys to step back, then crouched down before her. "And you're ok? For real, Cody, are you actually ok?"
Those pretty blue eyes shifted over to meet mine. "I'm freaking out a little, J.D."
"And that's ok," I promised her. "Kinda normal. What about the rest? You hurting?"
"I'll be ok," she assured me.
"Just this one," I told her. "Right here, right now, Cody. One step at a time, and no matter what, I'm not gonna leave ya to do it alone. Not if you don't leave me neither."
"I just want to make it through the pictures," she admitted. "Right now, that's all I can handle."
So I nodded. "Then that's what we'll do. And if it gets to be too much, you speak up. This is all your call, Cody. Tanner and I are just here to back you up. Kinda what good men do."
She smiled, opening a bottle of something flesh-colored. "Yeah. It really is." Then she began painting her face. "And so you know, you two are very good men."
