“I should have known just by how unsteady his fingers were,” Avery burst in. “Instead of the quote I was expecting, it said, Will you marry me, in bold black letters.”
Bennett bit his lip and looked down at his feet. Like he’d heard the story told a zillion different times but was still uncomfortable sharing it.
“Holy crap, asshead,” Rachel said. “Did you fall over or what?”
“To say that I was shocked would be an understatement,” Avery said, kissing Bennett on the cheek.
“Whoa, dude. Nice one,” Shane said, giving Bennett a fist bump.
“So then he dropped to one knee,” Avery said, grabbing for her guy’s hand. “And the rest is . . . private.”
“Yeah, so private, they didn’t want anyone disturbing them for the next hour,” Jessie said.
Everyone laughed.
Rachel propped her feet up on the ottoman, looking more relieved than she had all day. “So, when’s the big date?”
“We haven’t decided any of that yet,” Bennett said.
“We’re just hanging out, going day by day.” Avery sat on the other side of Rachel on the wraparound sofa. She pushed down on the cushion and looked around at the space. “Nice place, by the way.”
“Thanks,” Dakota said, handing out plastic cups. Shane went around the room pouring everyone a glass of Sangria. We did a toast to Avery and Bennett and then to new friends.
We spent the rest of the hour talking and getting to know one another. Bennett asked where I had my piercings done and whether I had any tattoos. I told him about the tattoo shop in town I frequented and the body-modification expert I trusted to put holes in my skin. He asked whether I’d ever considered getting ear gauges and I told him it wasn’t my thing.
“I hear you,” he said.
Dakota looked at the kitchen clock and said, “Are we ready to head out?”
Nate had rented a huge utility vehicle with a third row of seats. Shane, Rachel, Dakota, and I followed behind them in my truck. The Artisan Music Center was packed and we had to park far away in an auxiliary lot.
We removed the blankets and the cooler filled with snacks and sodas from the trunk. You couldn’t bring your own alcohol into the park, but you could buy beer and wine inside for a hefty price.
As we moved through the long line at the entrance to the stage, Rachel looped her arm through mine. It was the first time she’d touched me all day, and I grinned at her appreciatively.
“Your friends are cool,” I whispered. Anxiety crossed her features and she nodded. “Don’t worry, Turtle. It’ll all work out.”
Chapter Twenty-six
Rachel
We found a spot near the back of the lot, which was tough, because the lawn was already jam-packed. We spread out three blankets and the girls sank down on them while the guys went to stand in line for beer and wine. Jessie waved to someone she recognized a few blankets over and then strode away to chat with them.
“So awesome to see you, Rachel,” Ella said, patting me on the leg. “And to meet your best friend.”
Dakota smiled. “Yeah, took you long enough to introduce us.”
I shrugged, but my stomach was buzzing with anxiety. “It’s not like we all live in the same city or go to the same school.”
“Rachel only invited me to visit that one time, and the weekend I came up, she said you guys were busy.”
Well, shit, here we go. Did this topic have to come up so soon? We’d just sat down for fuck’s sake.
“Yeah?” Avery said, looking at me with a skeptical gleam in her eye. “When was that?”
I gave her the slightest nod of my head, hoping she’d get the hint that there was something I wanted to keep private. But I wasn’t sure if she noticed or not.
“Over last winter break,” Dakota said, and I dipped my head, pretending to straighten my corner of the blanket.
“Maybe we’d already headed home to our families,” Ella said, thinking it through.
The first band began their set, and I was glad for the distraction as people stood and began swaying to the noisy riffs of the music. Then some drunk dude tripped over the blanket in front of us, also providing a temporary respite.
“Anyway,” I said, hoping for a change of subject. “Still trying to wrap my brain around the fact that you got engaged, Avery.”
“I know,” she said, spreading her fingers to admire her ring. It was a round stone and looked dainty and vintage. “Can you believe that shit?”
“It’s so romantic,” Ella said dreamily, removing the cheese and crackers from our cooler. “You guys are so in love, it’s sick.”