“I’m so glad you came back. Everyone’s here tonight,” she does a little hop, and upon further inspection, I see the bar is definitely more packed than it was twenty-four hours ago. This must be the place to be in Bonesteel on a Friday night. “I was just telling Sara and Katie and Heather that you were back in town, and they were freaking out.”
Karly takes my hand and leads me through a maze of patrons toward a large booth in the corner next to the jukebox.
The girls all but clamber over themselves to get at me, wrapping me in a group hug that takes me way back to the days when the most pressing issue on our minds was whether or not we were all going to homecoming in the same limo that year.
“Come on. Sit. Let’s catch up!” Katie tugs me into the booth and they all scoot in, firing questions at me left and right, most of them fascinated with what life is like outside this one-horse town.
When Heather yammers on about how annoying her husband is and how whiny her three kids are, I take the opportunity to do a quick scan of the bar in search of Seth.
And sure enough, I find him.
Standing behind the bar, talking to one of the servers.
Our eyes meet, and I fight a twinge of a smile.
His face lights up, dimples and all.
“Who are you eye fucking over there?” Sara squints across the room, adjusting her glasses, and her face drops when she sees Seth making his way in our direction. “No fucking way.”
“What?” I try to play it off, wishing I had a drink to stir or a way to look busy.
“Seth’s coming over here.” Sara nudges Katie, and they exchange looks.
“What?” I ask, harder. Someone better tell me what the hell the big deal is before he gets here because I’m dying.
“I’ve only been in love with him my whole life,” Katie sighs, tossing back the rest of her martini. “And now he’s coming over here to talk to you.”
“Sorry.” I crouch my shoulders in, offering an apologetic wince.
Heather waves her hand in Katie’s face. “Who isn’t in love with him? He’s easy on the eyes. Nice. Loaded. He’s the whole enchilada plus the top shelf margarita and the vacation to Cabo.”
“You’ve never even been to Cabo,” Katie says.
“It’s an expression,” Heather snaps.
“Ladies.” Seth stands before us, addressing the table but looking only at me. My chest is two seconds from exploding and I couldn’t wipe this ridiculous grin from my face if I tried, but he doesn’t seem to mind. “One of my girls is bringing over a round of tequila shots. On the house.”
Katie lets out some kind of squawk and immediately turns bright red. Sara almost chokes on her drink, and Heather plays it cool, like a married woman secure with the fact that she can look but not touch.
“Thank you, Seth,” I say. His name is gentle on my lips, like a South Dakota summer breeze.
Our eyes catch again, and in the tiniest daydream, I imagine him pressing me against a back wall, his mouth on mine, his hands in my hair.
I haven’t felt this way since …
… since I first met Grant.
I’ve never wanted anyone to kiss me this badly.
A girl in a denim mini skirt and orange tube top stops by with a tray of overflowing shot glasses, lime wedges, and salt shakers.
“Enjoy.” Seth’s hand grazes my wrist before he leaves, and my entire body is on fire. If he doesn’t make a move soon, I’m going to lose it.
“All right, girls, let’s do this.” Karly lifts the salt shaker to her wrist before passing it around the table. A minute later, we’re all wearing puckered faces, laughing, and feeling the heat run through our veins.
Tonight, I’m free.
Tonight, I’m alive.
“God, you’re lucky,” Katie says, leaning in.
“What are you talking about?”
“We’ve been coming here for years,” she says, “and I’ve never seen Seth look at anyone the way he looked at you. And he’s never sent over free drinks. He wants you and he wants you bad.”
Exhilaration mixed with the fresh alcohol coursing through me makes me nauseous with excitement. It’s good to feel something again, and for the first time all week, I can’t wait to see what the future brings.
“You should go talk to him,” Karly says. “Strike while the iron’s hot.”
“Yeah,” Sara chimes in. “We’re all dying to know if he’s really as big as they say he is …”
Katie elbows Sara, giggling. “You’re so bad.”
“What?” Katie slurs a little. “That’s the rumor. I’ve heard nine inches and I’ve heard ten. But that’s like, third, fourth hand. I want to hear it from the horse’s mouth.” She points to me. “What do you say, Leighton? Wanna take one for the team?” She laughs, leaning into Heather, who seems annoyed. Then again she’s been in a constant state of irritation since the moment I sat down. “Go. To. Him.”
I glance across the room, watching him make his rounds. Everyone seems to stop what they’re doing when he comes by, happy to give him an ounce of their time, happy for a sliver of his attention.
“He came back from Afghanistan a few years back with a Bronze Star. Saved his whole troop from some suicide bomber. There was this big article about him, and he was even interviewed by Matt Lauer on The Today Show,” Karly says, a proud beam covering her face as if to suggest he’s the best thing that’s ever happened to Bonesteel Creek.
“He’s basically famous around here,” Katie adds. “A real hometown hero.”
I catch Seth glancing my way again, and my cheeks warm from the undeniable attention.
Seth-the-bar-owner suddenly got a whole lot hotter—as if that was even possible.
“We need another round.” Karly slides out of our booth, eyeing the bar.
“You should bring Leighton and maybe they’ll be free again,” Katie yells, her hands cupped around her mouth as the jukebox blares a Def Leopard tune. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s dancing on the table by the time we get back.
Pushing our way to the bar, we squeeze between a couple of middle-aged men and order another round of tequila shots, only this time Seth’s nowhere in sight and the bartender charges us twenty bucks.
Carefully hauling the drinks back to our booth, I scan the room for Seth again and come up empty-handed.
Focusing on my old friends, I toss my shot back, throw a smile on my face, and catch up on the last twelve years of Bonesteel Creek happenings. An hour passes, then another, and another. I’m nursing a water and waiting for my buzz to wear off when the girls start calling it a night and heading home one by one.
“You heading home soon?” Karly asks. “Wait, where are you staying? I didn’t even ask.”
“I’m staying at my old house,” I say. “Believe it or not.”
Her nose wrinkles. “How’d you pull that off?”
“Long story.” I bring my water to my lips and take one last look around. Seth disappeared hours ago.
The attention, the thrill, the anticipation … it was fun while it lasted.
Karly tucks her wavy blonde hair behind her ear and checks her phone. “Hate to leave you here all alone, but I should probably go. Got to be up early tomorrow for this family thing.”
“Go. It’s fine. I’m leaving too.”
“Where’d you park?” she asks.
“In the alley. You?”
“I walked,” she says. “I live two blocks west. You going to be around much longer?”
I shrug. “I don’t think so. A week maybe?”