Taylor the night before. However, I persistently made sure she knew I was there if she needed someone to vent to.
With Trista out of commission on her first day back in town, I had to attempt to fill my day with menial things just so I didn’t reach out to my phone and send Brody a rant of a text.
After last night, I was overwhelmed by my reaction and the emotions that came with it. Sitting outside the house as I calmed myself down was … Well, it was aggravating. It took about an hour before I had finally had my fill of staring idly at the cement on our walkway then decided to go inside and head towards the bedroom. Given the silent state the house was in last night, I wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad sign.
They were still in the kitchen when I came back, so when I woke up with no Taylor and no sign of Taylor’s car anywhere, I knew he was royally pissed. I mean, he was the type of a guy that was possessive and all, but he didn’t need to be dramatic and leave Trista sulking.
I had tried to entice her to get out of the room, talk to me even, but she wasn’t budging. Instead, I decided to let her be; as a result, when Cooper called for some barbeque party they were having, I sort of felt I needed to go there just to show Brody that I was fine with everything. Because I was, wasn’t I?
After witnessing him flirting with Joanna outside his house, there wasn’t much to be said, really.
It didn’t take me long to get ready. Barbeque parties, to me, didn’t need cakey full-on makeup or any of that full volume hair. For shindigs like these, I liked to be simple. I thought the main thing was to have healthy looking skin during the summer months, so scrubbing and buffering with a good, dry oil applied on a lovely tan afterward was more quintessential than looking glammed up.
I was about to stroll out of the door when Trista’s sleepy voice stopped me.
“Where are you going?”
Swiftly, I spun around, smiling at the fact that she had taken the effort to pull herself out of her miserable bed. “Cooper’s having a barbeque. Wanna come with?” I wasn’t sure if she was up to being around people, yet it couldn’t hurt to ask. Maybe being out with old, familiar faces might cheer her up.
She blinked once, twice then finally made a small nod. “Mm’kay. Give me ten minutes to get ready.”
Twenty minutes later, we were out of the door and on our way to the barbeque.
The short walk was fraught with silence. I could feel her deep thoughts and probably her guilt more so. Knowing how awful she felt, I reached for her hand and gave it a light squeeze before letting it go. I didn’t have to relay in words that I would always be there for her, no matter what.
Arriving at the guys’ place with Trista was somehow bittersweet. I had so many memories with Brody here, and now I must pretend that none of that mattered any longer. It was my decision, and I intended to stick to it.
I missed him with every beat of my heart, though. He was imbedded so deeply into my DNA it was hard to live, breathe, and think without him in mind. However, I had made up my mind about him, us, and I had to persevere, or I wouldn’t know what life was without him.
Once we got to the boys’ pad, Brody and Cooper were there to greet us. Surprisingly enough, there weren’t many people there. The get together only consisted of seven people, which was an unusual head count for their parties.
Everyone hung out on the patio where the grill was full of burgers, hotdogs, and steaks. Unlike most folks, I liked my steak well done with little charred marks on both sides. Once ready, everyone gathered around the table as we munched on salad, corn on the cob, and corn bread as sides to the meats.
Of course, I sat opposite of where Brody was sitting, silently sipping on his corona. Though we didn’t speak to one another, apart from the small nod we had earlier on my arrival, I could feel his eyes on me most of the time. It was like he was trying to catch my attention, but I hadn’t given in and