Fragile Hearts (Poplar Falls #4) - Amber Kelly Page 0,32

and forces me over with her hip before sitting down.

Foster looks at Walker. “Mom, man. Giving me a hard time. I knew moving back in with her was a bad idea. I have got to get my own place,” he says.

“What was she giving you shit about this time?” Walker asks.

“I have no idea. She’s been on my ass since the divorce. Today, she was going on about how I’ve already made one mistake today, and going out tonight would be number two.”

“Did you tell her I was going to be here? I don’t think she’s my biggest fan. I’m working on her though. She’ll fall for my charm eventually. They always do.” Walker grins at him.

“Yep, she knows, and apparently, I have to bunk with you tonight because she doesn’t want me coming in late,” he tells him.

“My couch has your name all over it,” Walker offers.

“You should talk to Mom and Dad about renting Dallas’s old place. It’s just sitting there, vacant, since she and Beau moved into Myer’s cabin,” Payne tells him.

“Really? That’d be awesome. It’s so close to Stoney Ridge,” Foster agrees.

“Yes! That means, you can drive me around more often,” Bellamy adds before reaching over and grabbing one of Walker’s shots.

“Hey, that was mine, woman,” Walker complains.

“Oh, sorry. I meant to grab this one,” she says as she snatches another one and downs it.

“Dammit, we are going to have to deal with sloppy females tonight, fellas,” Walker says as he shakes his head at her, but it’s obvious he doesn’t mind the least bit.

The band finally gets set up, and we order food as they begin their first set. They are good. A Southern rock sound, melding country and old classic rock ’n’ roll, and they are a crowd-pleaser.

Bellamy and I switch seats, so she and the girls can chat over the music, and I overhear her filling them in on her disappointment with the Denver job being taken by that asshat she used to date. They are adequately outraged and keep ordering rounds of drinks to medicate their friend’s pain.

“I didn’t like him. There was just something about him,” Sonia confesses.

“Liar! You told me you liked him a lot,” Bellamy accuses.

“I didn’t want to hurt your feelings and ruin your celebratory weekend. But you were obviously way too good for him. He was a tad skinny, and his ears were freakishly small,” Sonia declares.

“She’s right. You are definitely too hot for him,” Elle agrees.

Bellamy turns to me. “They have to say that because they are my best friends.”

I lean in and whisper-shout into her ear, “I have no doubt that it’s the absolute truth.”

Her eyes hit mine, and she smiles.

The first few chords of “Sweet Home Alabama” drift through the air, and Walker and Payne look at each other.

“Uh-oh, here we go,” Payne says just as an inebriated Sonia throws her hands in the air.

“I love this song! You want to dance?” she asks a startled Foster.

He downs the rest of his beer and sets the bottle on the table. “Um, yes, I’d love to,” he says.

He takes her hand, and she leads him out to the floor.

“What about you, Doc? Feel like cutting a rug with me?” Bellamy asks.

“I’m not much of a dancer,” I tell her as she grabs my arm.

“Then, let me lead,” she suggests.

“I can do that,” I relent and follow her out on the dance floor.

“You’re such a liar. You’re a great dancer,” she exclaims as I spin her around in a country two-step, tearing up the floor.

“I guess I can make do,” I admit as I pull her in close.

“You are full of surprises, Dr. Haralson. If you aren’t careful, I’m going to unlock all your mysteries,” she warns.

“I just might let you,” I whisper into her ear.

She grins at me before Elle grabs my hand and pulls us over toward her and Walker as another song begins. We laugh and dance until we are all covered in sweat, and the band takes a break.

Bellamy and her friends are so carefree, and being with them makes me feel the same.

If only it were that simple.

Sonia and Elle head to the ladies’ room, and the rest of us go back to the table to order another round.

“I don’t know what those first two things you did wrong today were exactly, but I know what that third one is,” Walker goads Foster as we take our seats.

“It was just two friends dancing, man,” Foster defends as his eyes follow Sonia