Chapter 22 #2
After resting, he took a cool shower and threw on a pair of dark jeans and a blue polo. Without question, most folks would be dressed far more casually, but he couldn’t imagine making small talk with dozens of people while wearing cargo shorts.
The sun was lower in the sky by the time he stepped outside, and the crushing heat of the afternoon was slowly dissipating. His dad puttered around the grill while Jerry and Abe hovered over a small Bluetooth speaker and argued about the playlist, eventually settling on classic country hits.
As guests arrived, they greeted Walter and detoured to grab a beer before heading straight for Zach, curiosity all over their faces. He put on his biggest fake smile and mentally prepared himself.
Showtime.
The thing about living in a town of a couple thousand was that everybody knew each other’s business, and if by some miracle they didn’t, they weren’t shy about asking.
They certainly weren’t shy tonight. In a way, Zach didn’t blame them.
Not everyone his age chose to attend college, and those who did rarely left the state.
Living in a large, liberal city made Zach practically the eighth wonder of the world.
He chatted politely with everyone who crossed his path, and the conversations started to blur together after a while—the same curious questions, the same careful answers.
“You got what, one year left?” Mr. Greene asked, not bothering to wait for an answer. “Reckon you’re looking forward to getting back.”
Zach hummed noncommittally.
“I hope you’re being careful,” Mrs. Greene added, nodding along with her husband. “There’s all sorts living in those big cities, always marching and protesting something or other. You don’t want to fall in with the wrong crowd.”
Zach had a strong feeling that she’d definitely classify him as one of those sorts if she’d known the truth. He took a deep breath and smiled sweetly, waiting for her to finish talking. The sooner she was done, the sooner he could escape this never-ending lecture.
“You really should have stayed closer to home,” she tutted, shaking her head as if his decision still baffled her. “You could have found a nice local girl by now, someone with values. I’m sure your folks would love some grandbabies.”
“I’m focusing on my studies right now,” Zach repeated the same refrain he’d used the last fifty times this topic came up.
Mr. Greene’s smile was equal parts judgmental and condescending. “Nothing wrong with schoolwork, but a man needs balance. A good woman to keep him honest.” He smirked and tilted his head at something behind Zach. “Some folks figure it out faster than others.”
Zach turned around to check what he was talking about and immediately noticed Miles.
Tall and broad, he was impossible to miss.
Magnetic. Tantalizing. Effortlessly sexy.
All those yummy muscles stuffed into a gray tee that stretched tight across his chest and threatened to burst at the seams. His freshly shaved face gleamed, highlighting the sharp angles of his jaw.
Utter perfection.
It took Zach a moment to stop admiring Miles and realize what Mr. Greene was referring to.
Miles wasn’t alone. Katie Schulz swayed to the beat of the music next to him, giggling and petting his arm as if she had no concept of personal space.
In theory, their old classmate was a lovely girl, kind and clever, but Zach never managed to get over the fact that she’d been Miles’s first kiss back in high school.
Even now, jealousy clawed at his insides.
He wasn’t worried about them rekindling that short-lived affair, not when Miles had worn his feelings for Zach on his sleeve.
No, his jealousy wasn’t about romance. He envied Katie’s freedom to flirt with Miles in public, to touch him without scrutiny, to laugh with him without getting curious looks.
She was the kind of person Miles was expected to end up with, the kind of person who made sense in the eyes of everyone watching.
Forcing himself to look away, Zach turned back to Mr. Greene’s smug grin. He wanted to storm off. To rage at them. To shout that he didn’t want a wife. To revel in their horrified expressions when he told them all the things the town’s golden boy had done to him.
But he couldn’t.
He couldn’t, he couldn’t, he couldn’t.
Could he?
He’d never endanger Miles with an admission like that, but the rest of it suddenly seemed perfectly reasonable. He could easily slip in something like A good woman? No, thanks, but I’ll take a good-looking man or Well, I’m hella gay, so that’s a hard pass on those nice local girls.
Chasing away the tempting thoughts, he let out a hollow chuckle. “Ah, yes. Balance. Guess I haven’t met the right person yet.”
The lie was bitter on his tongue.
He needed to get out of there before the Greenes decided to offer more uncomfortable life advice.
“I should go fix that,” he said, pointing to the pennant banner wrapped around a tree branch. “Thank you for coming tonight.” They looked unhappy with his sudden departure, no doubt disappointed that they couldn’t keep lecturing him about his poor life choices, but he was out of patience.
The tree stood a good forty feet away—exactly why he’d chosen it.
After giving the string of flags a token adjustment, Zach lingered behind to watch the lit-up yard from the safety of the shadows.
Everywhere he looked were people he knew—neighbors, old classmates, family friends—none of whom knew him. Not really.
His father hovered over the grill, waving a spatula as he held court with a small audience.
His mother drifted effortlessly from group to group, checking on everyone with practiced grace.
Miles stood between Katie and her mom, nodding along to something.
Max sat at the edge of the yard with his cast propped up on a spare chair.
Considering the steady throng of visitors, no one minded making the detour.
And a few tables over sat Raymond, nursing a beer and watching Max like a hawk. Alone.
Zach whirled around and rushed toward the fields, fleeing until the chaos of laughter and animated conversations became a faint murmur behind him. He needed a few moments away from the fray.
A noise up ahead had him slowing his gait. Drawing nearer, he squinted to find two figures sitting on the gravel path, a beam of flashlight cutting through the darkness and pointing at the ground. One of them clambered up at his approach.
“Zach!” Abe waved him over to where Jerry was hunched over something, surrounded by empty packages. “We got fireworks!”
“I can see that.” Zach suppressed a smile. Fireworks were legal in their area, but it seemed wildly irresponsible to sell them to someone as excitable as Abe and Jerry. Who apparently planned to set them off near the wheat fields. During harvest season. “Isn’t this a huge fire hazard?”
“Nah,” Jerry said without looking up. “It’s an open space, and we’re more than three hundred feet away from anything flammable. The recommended distance is fifty feet, so we’re good. Besides, Abe brought a fire extinguisher.”
Zach wasn’t sure how effective the tiny thing would be against a potential inferno, but Jerry spoke with enough conviction to soothe his worries. Still, he settled down beside his brothers, mainly to make sure they didn’t blow themselves up.
Abe held the flashlight while Jerry arranged the tubes in a makeshift rig of cardboard boxes. Zach watched, impressed by his confidence. As far as Zach knew, Jerry had never played with explosives.
“How do you even know how to do this?”
Jerry shrugged, testing each firework with careful, deliberate taps before setting them aside and dragging over another cardboard setup. “YouTube.”
That was not reassuring. But Jerry’s movements were steady and determined, so Zach pressed his lips together and decided not to interfere.
“How’s the party? Are you having fun?” Abe asked, fidgeting with the light.
Jerry snorted. “Yeah, totally, that’s why he’s hiding out here. Because he’s having soooo much fun.” His voice dripped with sarcasm, hitting Zach with a brief, unexpected rush of brotherly connection. Sometimes he actually liked these guys.
“Ohhh, yeah,” Abe said in understanding. “Have you had the pleasure of having the exact same conversation with every single person yet?”
“Just about.” Zach tipped his head back and rolled it side to side until he heard it crack. “If you assholes weren’t hiding out here, maybe I wouldn’t be in charge of all the small talk.”
Abe made a sympathetic noise. “Nah, dude, they’d still swarm you even if we were there. You’re the fun one.”
“The fun one?” Zach wrinkled his nose. That was not the reason everyone talked to him.
“Pretty sure you mean the disappointment who ran off to the big city instead of staying home and marrying a nice local girl.” He put air quotes around the last bit, and both of his brothers barked out a laugh in unison.
“Not all the local girls are nice,” Abe said. “The other reason we’re here is because of Faith. Jerry damn near sprinted away as soon as she showed up.”
Zach raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? It’s been like…six months? And you only dated for a few weeks.”
Jerry grimaced. “Yeah. She still thinks we’re getting back together.”
“Ooh!” Abe’s face lit up. “Zach should date her! It’s a win-win—he’ll get his local girl, and she’ll stop stalking you.”
Zach’s stomach dropped to his feet at the suggestion, and he was glad they couldn’t see his face. The steady stream of dating advice from the party guests had been bad enough. The last thing he needed was more of the same from his brothers.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Jerry scolded Abe with a smirk without breaking his concentration. “Zach’s got way better options in Portland.”