“I’m having a conversation,” Josh said.
Tony took another step. “Now.”
That was enough. Josh gave me one more glare and scampered off to meet his friends at the door. They walked out, and I hoped they wouldn’t be back.
Giving myself a moment to get myself together, I thanked Tony and reassured him I was alright and didn’t need him to follow Josh out. I went back to work and forced myself to concentrate only on my tables and nothing else.
Deacon texted me in the middle of the afternoon to let me know he was going over to Harleigh and Brett’s cabin that evening and wanted to bring me with him. I had my jeep at the diner, but I immediately agreed. After the encounter with Josh, I wanted nothing more than to feel safe with Deacon. Spending time with him and the rest of our friends would mean I really was safe, and I wanted to feel that as soon as possible.
He picked me up right after my shift, and I didn’t even ask him to bring me home to shower or change. I took off my name tag and decided that was enough. They’d all seen me in the clothes I wore when I worked at the diner. It wouldn’t be that much of a surprise.
It was good to just be surrounded by these people, but as much as I tried, I couldn’t feel completely at ease. I wanted to just relax and enjoy sitting around the fire together like I usually did. Instead, I was distracted and a little jumpy. It was almost a relief when the hour got late, and it was time for Deacon and me to head home.
21
DEACON
Something was bugging me, and I was trying not to let it. Still, it itched at the back of my mind, and all evening as we sat around a more subdued fire and chatted, it only grew louder and louder in my mind. Rebecca was thinking about something, and it was upsetting her. Whatever it was on her mind, it was enough to make her not as lively, not as enthusiastic as she usually was. And it was enough to make me worry.
Was it something between us? Was it the age gap? Or was it something else, something about her life that didn’t have to do with me? I didn’t know, and it was starting to bug me enough that I thought I started getting my own looks from Everett.
Finally, I decided to see if she would talk about it and sat down beside her on one of the bench seats at a picnic table just a little way away from the fire. The cooler sat on the table, filled with ice and beer and soda. Rebecca had a lemon-lime soda in front of her and took a sip as I sat down. She looked over at me and smiled, but there wasn’t the normal sparkle in it.
“Hey,” I said. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, why?” she asked.
“Nothing, you just don’t seem your normal self. Wanted to make sure everything was okay.”
“I’m fine, just tired,” she said. “Maybe a bit nervous, you know? First full shift apprenticing tomorrow. No administrative work. Just working in the back.”
“Ahh,” I said, not fully believing her. “Well, do you want to go? I can bring you to get your car and follow you home.”
“Are you going to stay at my place tonight?”
“If you want me to.”
“Of course, I do,” she said, smiling.
“Well, then, yes, I will.”
“Good. Maybe in about a half hour or so. I don’t want to be rude and leave too early.”
I nodded, and she stood with me to join the others again for a bit. She seemed to return to her normal self a bit as we hung out, and about half an hour later, I looked at my watch and then to her. She shook her head, and I didn’t mention it again. Another fifteen minutes later, she bowed out, and we left.
In the truck on the way back to her place, she leaned on my arm, and we rode in silence. It was nice, even if I worried something was going on. I tried to just be in the moment and enjoy the comfort of her head rested on my shoulder until we pulled into the diner. I opened her door and let her out, bringing her to her car door and holding it open for her when she opened it.
With a kiss on my cheek, she climbed into her jeep, and I went back to my truck to follow her. I cranked music on the way back to her place and tapped the steering wheel along with the music. The time alone in the truck with familiar music playing allowed me to think.
I was falling for her. It was something that often popped into my mind, and I tried to brush it away. But it was an ever-present thought, winding its way through every time I had more than a few minutes to think. Avoiding it wasn’t working terribly well either because when I got worried or upset at the thought that she was worried about something and not telling me, I had to chide myself that I had no right or reason to do that. We hadn’t discussed our relationship, so I couldn’t even really consider her a girlfriend yet.