Page 7 of Here's to Yesterday

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I’m so annoyedover my encounter with Tucker that I forgo going to Jane’s and head home to pig out on ice cream and watch sappymovies.

“I HATE MEN!” I yell as I stomp through my aunt’shouse.

“What in the world did you do to your hair?” Kassi questions from her relaxed position on the couch, her mouth hanging wideopen.

I cringe. “Bad?”

She sits up and stares at me, shaking her head. “No. So,sogood. I am in love with it!” Then she’s off her feet and touching it. “It’s gorgeous! Soft, feminine, edgy,you.”

Okay, she’s the second person to say how this haircut is “me” today. Have I been hiding behind who I truly am for that long? And have I been that transparent aboutit?

“Thanks. Ithink.”

She shrugs and walks back over to where she was on the couch. “What’s up with the man-bashing? What did Tanner donow?”

“Actually, it wasn’t Tanner this time. I mean, it kind of was, but itwasn’t.”

“That makes total sense,” she says, feigningunderstanding.

I shoot her a glance and flop down on the other end of the dark blue sofa. “First off, rude. Second off, it was TannerandTucker thistime.”

“Tucker? You mean Tanner’s super-hot,singleyoungerbrother?”

Not wanting to admit out loud that she’s right, because Tuckerisn’tbad-looking, I shrug. “Whatever. Anyway, you know that annual dinner my parentshave?”

Kassi visibly shudders. “Blech. I hate that thing. It’ssuffocating.”

“And that’s exactly why I wasn’t going to go this year. But then Tanner happened. My parents love him, so I kind of had to go. Tanner encouraged it. And then he bailed. Duty orwhatever.”

“Okay, so where exactly does Tucker comein?”

“I found out about Tanner bailing last week, and Tucker happened to come into Clyde’s as I was wiping myeyes.”

“And you hate himbecause?”

“Tucker offered to take me. I turned him down. He’s been coming into my work almost every day since. I’ve been ignoring him,” I tellher.

She frowns. “Maura, honey, you’re going to have to spell this out for me. I don’t understand how any of what Tucker has done iswrong.”

“He’s trying to take me on a pity date! A freakin’ pity date to my own parents’ dinner! It’s…insulting!” Ifume.

Kassi screws her face up and gives me this look that says she thinks I’m crazy. “I don’t perceive it that way at all. I see it like he’s doing a favor for you. Or maybe trying to correct his brother’s messup.”

I huff and cross my arms over my chest like a damn toddler because I hate that her appraisal of the situation may be valid. I know I was a bitch earlier to Tucker, and if I’m honest, this is my way of justifyingit.

Because let’s face it: I hadnoreason at all to be mean to Tucker. I was projecting, and I shouldn’t have done that. It’s not his fault that his brother is an ass who bailed on a huge event with myparents.

Fine, I shouldn’t be mad at Tanner either, but between his schedule mix up, all the phone tag we’ve been playing, and me constantly second-guessing my feelings for him lately, I’ve let it surface and all fall on him.Bitch move,Maura.

But that’s not the only thing she’s right about. I just realized that maybe Tucker can read me like a book because what I’m missingisfriendship. And he’s definitely offeringone.

“Go on. Tell me how right I am,” Kassigloats.

“Yeah, yeah. The part that bugged me the most was how he acted about it. All smug and shit, telling me how he canreadme. How he wants to be myfriendbecause the ones I have are apparentlyshitty.”

Kassi clears her throat. “He may not bewrong.”

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