“Me too. Man, this makes me miss Vegas more than anything else.”
“Even more than Liam?” Seth asked, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and pulling me tightly to him.
“No offense, man, but yeah.” Chad laughed and when his phone vibrated across the table, he flipped it over and turned it off.
“I don’t know how you guys do it,” Vince said, sliding into the bench seat across the table from Chad. “I couldn’t live on my phone the way you both do.” He motioned between Chad and me with his bottle.
“I don’t live on my phone,” I said when Chad just shrugged. “If I’m working, I’m on it. But that’s about it.” In fact, I’d barely looked at it the entire time we’d been in Vegas.
“You’re always on it,” Vince said, goading me. Was he really trying to start an argument? Over this? I chose not to play along with him. His teasing was borderline insulting sometimes; it was hard to know if he was trying to aggravate you or just make conversation.
“You’ve been on yours,” Seth said. In the past, Will would have stood up for me to Vince. Not that I needed him to; I could hold my own. But I found it easier to not create unnecessary conflict, where Will had found setting boundaries to be more important. Vince had been chill when Will was around. I guess I hadn’t realized how much work it must have been for him to be the go-between.
But since Seth had spoken up, it seemed to unlock something in Vince. He turned, facing him, and I think the rest of us held our breath for a moment as several looks passed over his face. Was he angry that Seth had interfered? Was he insulted?
Vince opened his mouth like he was going to say something but chose to take a long pull from his bottle instead.
I felt the tension building in Seth beside me. He had always been the most like Will. He was the best at diffusing an argument instead of fanning its flames. But I think Vince’s behavior over the last several days had set something off in Seth, because I could read just how agitated he was in the tap of his feet and the way he kept setting his jaw.
I hoped we could just enjoy the day out on the water, but I knew it was only a waiting game before Seth exploded.
Nicole prepared sandwiches for everyone at lunch right on the little dining table and passed them out. Since the small second story of the boat wasn’t in use, I led Tori up the ladder so we could lounge on the pads that laid out like a bed. It was a little more private up there and I wanted the break from Seth and Vince’s silent discontent.
“This is so nice,” she said, running her hand along the steel handles before settling down on the pad. “Oh, and look! Cupholders!” She placed her plastic cup into one of the built in cupholders and sat beside me with her sandwich.
“Cupholders are pretty exciting, huh?”
She laughed. “When I was in middle school, my dad took me shopping for a truck. I convinced him to buy the one he now owns because the backseat had cupholders. So, it’s a joke in our family now. ‘Look, cupholders!’ is what everyone says when we go somewhere that has them built in.”
“Well, it must have been a good decision to buy it if he’s kept it as long as he has.”
“Can I try that?” she asked, pointing to my longneck.
Handing it over, I tried not to pay too much attention to how golden her skin looked when kissed by the sun.
“Mm,” she said, licking her lips. “That’s good.” She looked great all the time, but when she was relaxed and makeup-free like this, she was especially radiant. I’d seen so many sides to her—the bride-to-be glittery tiara wearing Tori, the golden cocktail dress-wearing Tori as she had walked down the aisle to me, and this Tori, her hair messy and free and her smile and eyes bright with happiness. It was almost easy to forget that Will’s visitation was tomorrow when I looked at her—happy and filled with light.
“I have more in the cooler,” I offered as she took a second sip.
“Sorry for being a glutton.” She grinned easily and handed the beer back to me. “Maybe I’ll get one later, but I want to stay sober in case I catch a fish.”