My phone rang, and I stalked over to the counter and jerked it up. It was the wrong Hardy.
“Hey,” I said, trying not to be irritated that it was Marcus and not Amanda.
“Hey, what’re you up to tonight?”
Waiting by the phone for your sister to call me wasn’t exactly something I could tell him. “Nothing. Just at home.”
“Low is studying for an test, and she needs me to get out of her hair. Feel like meeting me at Live Bay? Rock will be there. Jackdown’s playing, and you know Trisha won’t miss it.”
No. I wanted to stay here and wait on Amanda. But then if she didn’t call, I might go a little crazy. I needed a distraction.
“Okay, yeah. I’ll meet you there.”
“Sounds good,” he replied, and we hung up.
I slipped on my boots and grabbed my keys. I’d go hang out with my friends until Amanda called.
The place was already crawling when I walked in. I stopped by the bar and grabbed a beer before making my way over to our table. Marcus was already here. Rock and Trisha were taking up only one stool since she was in his lap. Dewayne wasn’t around.
“There he is,” Marcus said as I pulled out the stool beside him and sat down.
“But for how long? Soon as a girl comes over here sniffing, we’ll lose him for the night,” Rock drawled.
Marcus laughed.
I tried not to tense up. They’d notice if I acted different. Then they’d all start asking questions. And there was no way in hell I was answering those questions. Marcus was like my brother, but if he tried to keep me from Amanda, there was gonna be a problem. No one was stopping this.
“I’m taking a night off,” I replied.
“Someone wear you out last night?” Rock asked.
Wasn’t going there with them either. This was hard. I’d always been able to talk about girls with them. But then, I’d never talk about Amanda the way I talked about those other girls.
“I’m just not in the mood,” I explained, and took a long swig.
A phone rang, and Marcus pulled his out. “Is she okay? . . . Yeah, I checked on her today. . . . Sorry, I’m at Live Bay. Can you hear me now? . . . If she’s sleeping fine, then you should be good if you want to leave. . . . Uh, no. Preston, Rock, and Trisha are here. You wanna come see me? . . . Ha! Sure you do. I’ll see you in a sec.”
He hung up the phone. “My mom is going to wear Amanda out. As much as I’d have missed her, I don’t like the idea of her staying here to take care of Mom. She needs a life.”
That had been Amanda. My phone vibrated in my pocket.
I pulled it out and looked down.
Amanda: Is it okay with you if I come to Live Bay? If not I’ll just go to bed and see you later.
Hell, no. I needed to see her tonight.
Me: Your brother thinks you’re coming here. Come ease his mind. Then we’ll figure out a way to leave.
“Is Preston texting?” Rock asked. “When the hell did he start texting?”
Amanda: Okay. See ya in a few.
I slipped my phone back into my pocket and looked up to see the entire table staring at me with incredulous expressions on their faces. So I didn’t text that often. What was the big deal?
“What?” I asked, reaching for my beer.
“You were texting someone,” Marcus replied.