The Homecoming
Page 13

“This or that high school boy sometimes, but mostly she takes care of her yard herself. You should see that house, Seth. All she’s done inside since Rose passed—she turned it into a showplace. It was always a nice house, but Iris really made it modern and beautiful.” Then, with a hand cupping her mouth, she continued as if imparting a secret. “I think selling the flower shop gave her a little nest egg.”
Seth laughed at his mother. It was Thunder Point at its best—everyone knew everything about everyone, right down to who they were dating and how much there might be in their nest egg. Plus, his mother really wanted him to see the inside of that house.
* * *
There were high school football games every Tuesday and Friday night and when they were home games, like tonight, Seth was absolutely certain to be there. Since he was still fairly new on the job, he wore his uniform. There were two deputies on duty plus school security, but being uniformed was all part of the town recognizing him as the law. A few more weeks and he’d be at the high-profile sporting events in civilian clothes, just as Mac had done the past few years. And with a gun on his ankle and a cell phone in his pocket, he’d be as much at the call of his staff in need of a supervisor as any other time.
Seth didn’t wander around in the stands but stayed at the end of the bleachers, on the track. From that position he had a view of the stands, the field, the parking lot, the concession area. Football was one of the town’s priorities and most of the town was there. As people passed him they said, “Hey, Seth.” Some stopped to talk a minute, shaking his hand. He saw some familiar faces—Mac, Gina and Mac’s younger kids gave him a wave; the coach’s wife, Devon, and their kids, Austin and Mercy, were right behind them. Predictably, there were a few guys he’d played ball with in high school, but it wasn’t the first time he’d seen them—the ice had been broken before he took over the substation.
He saw Iris climbing up a bleacher aisle to a higher perch. She was followed by Troy and Grace. She looked over her shoulder and laughed at something and it made him smile. That might be the thing he missed most—her wit, her unrestrained laugh. When she forgot she was mad at him, she laughed like old times, like that night they had pizza on Cooper’s deck.
“Hi,” a voice said.
He turned and, standing right there, a few inches shorter than him, smiling kind of wistfully, was Sassy. Um, Sue Marie. He smiled at her. He forced himself not to think about a gaping hole in her mouth from a missing tooth.
“I have a feeling we got off on the wrong foot,” she said.
“You still come to all these games?” he asked, because surely she wouldn’t know that he’d be here. He didn’t even live around here.
“I didn’t for years, but my daughter is cheering.” She pointed over to the line of varsity cheerleaders in their short skirts. “Rachel, third from the end.”
Whew, Seth thought. Little glass of wine before the game, Sassy? Her breath smelled like a winery.
“She looks just like you,” he said. “Hard to believe you have a daughter that old. You still look sixteen.”
“Aw. You’re just flattering me. That’s what I remember best about you—you’ve always been such a gentleman. Why don’t we try this again, Seth. Let’s get together for a drink or something. Have a few laughs. We can talk about old times.”
He gave her a very patient smile. “Tell you what, Sassy. I think we’d be better leaving the past where it is.”
“Come on,” she said. “We had a few problems. We were kids....”
He shook his head. “We’ve moved on from high school and I won’t hold a grudge if you won’t. But if we talk about old times, we won’t be laughing. I’m sure I’ll see you around town.”
“That’s a no, then?”
“Not that I don’t appreciate the invitation,” he said.
“I guess you’re seeing someone,” she said.
“Well, not exactly, Sassy, but I—”
“Sue Marie!”
“Sorry,” he said with a chuckle. “You were pretty sassy back then. No, I’m not involved with anyone at the moment. We’ve already tried this and it didn’t work then. I doubt it will work out now.”
“Did it ever occur to you that I might want to make amends?”
He looked at her with patience. Or maybe it was tolerance. “I believe we’ve already done that, too.”
“Oh! I take back what I said about you being a gentleman!”
They weren’t going to talk about the elephant standing right between them, he thought. They dated, she cheated, they made up, dated some more, she cheated some more. And she had married one of the guys she’d cheated with—Robbie Delaney. Robbie, who had once been Seth’s close friend and teammate, though they’d been competitive. He hadn’t known, until coming home, that Robbie had won.
And Seth had dodged a bullet.
“I apologize if I was rude in any way, Sue. Thank you for the invitation. I’m afraid I have to decline the offer. I do wish you the best in everything. Really.”
Against all good sense, she reached out and gave his biceps a gentle stroke. “I guess I’ll have to be patient. It will take time for you to realize I’m just not the same girl.”
He stopped himself from saying, I think we’ve done that before, too. Instead he said, “I guess none of us are the same. A lot of stuff happened between then and now.”
She flashed him a brilliant smile and then turned away. Those jeans of hers couldn’t possibly have gotten any tighter. And he wondered if she found boots with platform soles and four-inch spike heels inconvenient on the dirt track or in the bleachers, but so far she was maneuvering very well.
He turned to look up at where he’d last seen Iris and met her eyes instantly. She’d been watching. She didn’t look very happy. And he smiled.
* * *
This was the problem with never getting over what you were determined to get over. Iris saw Sassy approach Seth and her brain went into rewind, remembering every detail of her senior year. Sassy in her short skirt with her pom-poms, her blond hair flouncing, her blue eyes shining at every male within a twenty-mile radius, her big straddle jumps that showed off her itty-bitty panties. Sassy had been a cheerleader since about the sixth grade while Iris couldn’t even dance, much less leap into the air. She’d probably kill herself trying.