Rumor Going 'Round (Lyrics and Love #3) - Lind, Samantha Page 0,13

for sure once we get him open. Other than that, he’s got a few abrasions from the glass. He should be good to go in a few hours. I anticipate him needing one, maybe two nights inpatient, depending on how his pain management is post-surgery, as long as we don’t find anything we’re not expecting,” Dr. Murray tells me.

“Thank you, I’ll update his wife,” I tell her as I step away and back to my patient. I quickly update her. “Before he’s taken to surgery, I’ll try to get you over to him. How’s the pain?” I question.

“It’s getting much better,” she tells me, and I can tell that the pain meds have finally kicked in.

“I’m going to go grab you a wheelchair, then we can take you over to see Mr. Smith.”

“Thank you, dear,” she says, and I head for a chair.

5

Tucker

“Let’s get this party started!” Lee calls out as he unloads the back of his truck. I walk over, giving him a hand. I grab two cases of beer along with a bag of ice.

“How much did you buy?” I ask, looking at how much more he’s got back here.

“Didn’t want to run out before the night is over.” He smirks. “It isn’t a party if we run out of beer.”

“Yeah, but everyone coming is supposed to bring their own, remember?” I ask as we walk around to the back deck, where I’ve already got a few coolers ready to be filled with ice and beers.

“What time are people showing up?” he asks, popping the top on a beer before sucking half of it down in one gulp.

“Anytime they want, but I figure most won’t show up until closer to kickoff,” I tell him, looking at my watch and seeing that we still have around an hour until then. “Let’s get everything else unloaded and set up, and then we can kick back,” I suggest and take off for his truck again.

Another trip to Lee’s truck, and we’ve got everything out. I set up a folding table on the deck to hold food and drinks that others bring. We get the condiments pulled out, as well as the buns for the burgers and hot dogs that I’ll throw on the grill once more people show up, and everyone is ready to start eating. My mom dropped by earlier with large bowls of her homemade baked beans and coleslaw. That woman is a saint, and I’ll love her until the day I die.

“I’m surprised Paisley isn’t here tonight,” Lee comments as we kick back on the couch. The pre-game coverage already started. Bulldog games are big here, but make it against a rival like Alabama, and people go crazy.

“I figured tonight wasn’t the best night for her to be around. I didn’t want it to get too rowdy, so she’s having a night with Nona and Papa since she’d normally be here with me. She was a-okay with that plan, so were my parents. They’re probably spoiling the fuck out of her right now,” I tell him, taking a drink of my own beer.

“That girl is going to walk all over all of you when she’s a teenager,” he muses. He might be joking and trying to bust my balls about it, but I’m scared shitless that he’s not kidding.

Our attention is pulled to the sound of car doors closing and voices hollering outside as people start to arrive. I open the screen door, seeing that some of the guys from the station have arrived, along with their significant others, if they have them.

I welcome everyone in, showing them where best to stash drinks and food. Everyone knows each other, so I don’t have to worry about introductions as more and more people arrive as we near kickoff. I keep my eye out, hoping like crazy that Lindsay will show up sooner rather than later. I’ve had this deep desire to see her again. My hands itch to have her in my arms, so if she shows up tonight, I’m going to have to make that happen. Hopefully, she’ll stick around for after the game when we light the bonfire and start the music. I could go for dancing with her in the dark, holding her body close to mine as we sway together.

“Yo, earth to Tucker,” Lee says, smacking the back of my head as he flashes his other hand in front of my face.

“Fuck off,” I clap back at him, laughing at the sting of pain from