Page 40 of On the Rocks

Jealousy ripped through me, and I knew it was the wrong move, IknewI shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t stop myself. When she reached for her phone like she was finally going to answer him, I called out her name.

“Ruby Grace.”

She paused, frowning at the phone before she looked up at me.

“Want to get some fresh air with me on the porch while Mikey makes those floats?”

I expected her to hesitate, to say, “Yes, but let me answer this call first.”Or to just flat out deny me. But, she smiled almost instantly, her cheeks high and rosy as she nodded, tucking her phone away in the purse she had hanging on her chair. “Sure.”

Jordan eyed me suspiciously from the kitchen as I rose from my chair, meeting Ruby Grace on the other side of the table. I didn’t meet his gaze for long, though — maybe because I knew what facts he wanted to point out.

I knew them very well.

The night was pleasantly cool, considering how hot the day had been. That was what I loved about June in Tennessee. The days were long and hot, but the nights were cool — perfect for a bonfire or to get close to someone for a little warmth.

“It’s beautiful out,” Ruby Grace commented, leaning her arms on the wooden railing of my porch. It had been old and rotted when I moved in, but it was my first project — fixing up the exterior. Now, the porch was maybe the best part of the entire house, rebuilt and painted white with a couple of rocking chairs Mom had gifted me when the project was done.

I considered asking Ruby Grace to sit, but she looked so comfortable against the railing, her eyes scanning the yard and the houses across the street, that I just slid up next to her, instead.

“It is. It was a nice day at the pool, too.”

She smiled. “Thanks for coming with me today.”

I shrugged. “Hey, there are much worse ways you could have made me pay for being such an asshole to you.”

“Betty adored you.”

“Oh, we’re totally getting married,” I joked.

“Funny. She said the same thing.”

I chuckled, letting the sounds of the crickets settle between us before I spoke again. “You were really in your element there.”

Another smile bloomed on her lips, but this one fell a little too quickly. “Yeah.”

“I liked you like that today.”

She frowned, turning to me, then. “Like what?”

“I don’t know,” I started with a shrug. “Carefree. Young. Unrestrained. You’re always so put together.” I paused. “I like it better when you’re just a girl being a girl.”

I could see the warmth in her eyes under the porch light as I spoke, but when I finished, she stood taller, shoulders back. “I’m awoman, thank you very much.”

“Oh, trust me,” I said, eyes trailing down her legs. “I know that, too.”

When I met her gaze again, she was biting her lip against a smile, and she turned back toward the yard, draping her arms over the railing once more. “I really do love it there,” she said after a while. “It was my favorite thing to do when I was in high school, spend a day volunteering at the home. My best friend, Annie, works there full time now.”

“Did you think you would, too?”

She considered that. “No, I don’t think so. I always pictured Annie and I going to UNC together, and then…” Her voice faded, and she glanced down at her hands hanging over the railing.

At her ring, maybe?

“And then?” I prompted her.

“Oh, it’s silly. Anyway, I suppose nothing turns out how we imagined, right?”

I frowned, turning toward her. I chanced touching the soft skin of the inside of her elbow, getting her to face me, too. “Hey, don’t do that.”