Lass Ride: Changing Gears

Chapter 5

Seth's main goal for the week in Florida had been to spend as much time with Becky as possible, at least without stopping her friends from hanging out with her too. He hadn't expected to have lengthy conversations with the Usos or Naomi, or even the others, but it had been an added bonus. Since he was essentially travelling non-stop with The Shield and the Four Horsewomen, he didn't think they could have much left that they were willing to share with him, but the cozy vacation atmosphere made them all open up a bit. Even just seeing Roman interact with his cousins made a lot of his behaviour make more sense.

Now that they were back to the grind, Seth expected everything to go back to normal. The others had moved past blaming him for Becky's departure, but he still sometimes felt like the living embodiment of 'last hired, first fired'; if things soured for the group, he had no doubts he would be the first one cut loose, even though he was doing so well in the Shield that even some indie regulars couldn't remember that he hadn't always been a member. The others tried to include him in almost everything, but there was always a little nagging voice in his head, warning him to get ready for a lecture. When Roman and Dean called him out to the back porch of their current rental, Seth squared his shoulders and almost paused at the fridge, thinking a beer would help the berating go down easier, but he forced himself to go outside. Becky was going to try calling later that night, so if he was going to be in a bad mood, he wanted to get it out of his system before he talked to her. "What's up?" he asked, leaning against the door frame.

There were four weathered wicker chairs around a small table, and Dean had his feet up on one of them, elevating the knee he had tweaked in last night's match. Now that he was officially married, he seemed strangely mellow. He and Renee still hadn't settled on rings, so he wore his half of the novelty Together Forever necklace under his shirt except when he was wrestling. "Your spot's there," Dean said, pointing at the empty fourth chair. Roman was facing the yard, leaning back with his feet propped up on the patio railing. "Beer?" Dean reached down and hauled up a bucket filled with ice, beer bottles jutting out like a bouquet.

"Sure." Seth opened his bottle before sitting down. "So . . . what's up?" It wasn't quite as bad as being asked to stay after class or being called to the principal's office, but it didn't escape him that the women were all out of the house: Charlotte and Sasha were shoe shopping, and Renee and Bayley had gone to a local animal shelter hoping to do some volunteer dog walking.

Dean did a dramatic head turn and looked at Roman, who rolled his eyes. "You've been working your ass off, and without complaint too. I'll be the first to admit I had my doubts about you—a lot of doubts," Roman emphasized, "but I'm always happy to be proven wrong, and . . . you haven't done that one-hundred percent yet, but you're definitely close. I never thought The Shield would work as a trio, but in a lot of ways, it's better than ever. So thank you."

"It's also nice that it means the women don't horribly outnumber us as badly," Dean added, tapping his bottle against Seth's in a toast. "Otherwise we'd be voted off the island or out of the house or however those reality shows work." It was Roman's turn to shoot a pointed look, one that made Dean sigh. "All right, all right. You're good. You're good in the ring and you're pretty cool on the road too. Sometimes it's one or the other, which sucks."

"Thanks. I think." The compliments still had a hint of hesitation and thinly veiled slights, but Seth would take them."I know this isn't the ideal arrangement, but I'm trying to show you all that I'm taking it seriously."

Roman gave a slow nod. "You are. We know you are." He took a deep breath before continuing on, as if he needed fuel for what he was about to say. "And we know you make Becky happy too. I don't think I saw her without a smile on her face once while we were at the villa. She deserves that—not just because she went back, but because she's been through a lot in general, and it's time life started giving her something in return, you know?"