"You're never gonna let me live that down, are you?"
"Hell no."
Jerry Lee shrugs and looks at me. "Cindy Hooper was the head cheerleader, and Boone here thought he had her in the bag. Turns out, he counted on that one too quick."
"Asshole."
"Ha, like you care. You've obviously upgraded, and Cindy's married to a garbage man in Chattahoochee. I think things turned out for the best. Besides, that's not why I came down here. When I heard you were in town and visiting our fine little rodeo, I knew I had to ask you to do the honors."
"What honors?" I ask.
"Sing the national anthem, of course." He looks at Boone expectantly. "What do you say, man? Give the town a show?"
"I'm not here to attract attention, Jer. I wanted Rip to meet my folks and have a fun weekend."
"You're about as good at laying low as I am at gettin' dates. Look around, everyone's already talking 'bout y'all. Might as well give 'em a show."
Boone looks to me. "You mind?"
"Me? No, of course not." I'm shocked he'd even ask, and then I remember he was used to being with Amber Fleet. One guess says she was a diva who didn't like having him take the spotlight off her. "Go do your thing. Give them all something to talk about in church tomorrow. Besides, you can show that asshole Lou that you don't need Auto-Tune." I shoot him a wink.
A smile stretches over Boone's face. "You're so goddamn perfect, it's almost scary."
"So that's a yes?" Jerry Lee asks.
"That's a yes."
"Hot damn! This'll get the rodeo on the front page for sure now. We've been trying to beat out the garden club's annual election, and this seals it. Come on down with me, and I'll get you set up."
Boone stands up and looks around. His parents, brother, sister-in-law, and nephew are all still gone. I can read the hesitation on his face.
"Go. It's fine. I'm a big girl."
"They'll be back in a few."
"I'll hold down the fort. Go give 'em a show, superstar."
Boone leans down and wraps a hand around my neck before pressing a hard kiss to my lips. "I'll be back soon."
He follows Jerry Lee down the bleachers, and I'm left alone with the blankets.
"Well, I'll be damned. I never thought I'd see the day when Boone Thrasher finally found himself a keeper."
I turn around to see an older woman, probably about Boone's mom's age, with her arms crossed and an aluminum Budweiser bottle hanging from between her fingertips.
"Excuse me?"
"Trudy Miles. Boone's unofficial godmother. But damned if that boy was gonna notice me tonight when he doesn't have eyes for anyone but you. And you don't seem to have nearly as big a stick up your ass like the last one."
"Trudy, you keep your tongue in your head." Boone's mom stops beside me, her arms full of three bags of popcorn. "Where the heck did that boy get off to, leaving you all alone?"
"He went to sing the national anthem, ma'am."
"She even calls you ma'am, Susie. How precious. You better tell that boy to keep this one. She doesn't seem like a bitch."
I'm officially in the twilight zone, caught between two ladies who clearly have a lot of history, and I'm fresh out of words.
"As long as Boone likes her, we're happy for him." It's not exactly a ringing endorsement from Mrs. Thrasher.
She takes a seat, and Boone's dad comes up the steps with four Bud Lights.
"Where the hell did Boone go?"
"National anthem," his mom says, repeating the answer I gave her.
"Really? I'm surprised. He didn't want to last time."
"Well, we all know why that was."
It has to be because of Amber. I want to ask, but it's not my place.
Mr. Thrasher hands me a Bud Light. "Knew that girl was a diva from the minute they pulled up, and she screamed and practically climbed Boone to get away from Buford."
"Oh, shush. She's in the past and we can all be happy about it, but we don't need to bring her up every five minutes. We don't want to make Ripley uncomfortable."
"It's fine," I say. "I know this whole thing must seem a little fast-"
Of course, Boone's brother chooses that moment to return to his seat with his wife and son in tow.
"You think? He's barely been single for five minutes before he shows up with you. He's always rushed into shit. Remember when he used his fake ID at the Army recruiter's office?"
Boone's dad speaks up. "I rushed your ma. Proposed on the second date. Took me until the fifth to get her to say yes. Ain't nothing wrong with going after what you want."