I swallowed hard. If anything would give me away, it would be my inability to blend in with them. Did American girls all know how to play video games? Surely, there were some who didn’t.
“All right.” I was an intelligent woman. I could handle this.
“Racing or spies?” Alex asked, pointing a remote at the television. It bloomed to life, filling with colorful cartoon images.
“Uh, your choice,” I said with a bob of my head.
“Racing,” Ava called. “I’m about to put all of you to shame.”
Kyle settled into a seat next to her. “Ava’s really good at this game.”
I offered him a smile while the game loaded and, after a brief tutorial from Alex, we were off. Or rather, they were. I was stuck at the start with my cartoon car sideways.
“I’m afraid I’m not terribly good at this,” I admitted, cursing myself for saying “terribly.” Americans didn’t say “terribly” terribly often. They said “very” a lot, I reminded myself. I should say “very” more.
“Oh, you’re pressing the wrong button,” Kyle said, his car skidding to a stop as he let go of his controller.
“Yes, I see.” I tried to correct my attempt, but my car spun around backward before it rammed into the side and bounced off of it. A few cartoon characters jeered at me from the stands, and a curse escape my lips.
“Here, let me help.” Kyle climbed from his seat, wrapping his arms around me. His warm hands pressed against mine, guiding my thumbs to the appropriate buttons.
We managed to turn my car around, and then we were off. With Kyle’s help I made it through the first half of the race unscathed.
“Okay, I’m going to let go. You got this.”
He gently lifted his hands. I already missed the warmth of them around mine. I continued along, glancing off of a wall once and tearing up my fender, but for the most part, I made it through without incident.
I crossed the finish line and twisted to grin at him. He lifted his hand in the air, palm facing me. My smile broadened as I slapped my hand against his in my first high five.
“And you came in third,” Alex said.
“Kyle fell on his sword for you,” Ava added with a wink at him as he retook his seat and guided his car through the remainder of the race.
“Yes, he did,” I said, my eyes fixed on him. Would he be willing to continue to take risks for me?
Alex cleared his throat as he patted Ava’s leg. “Hey, Sparky, what do you say to a snack? We can let Nattie practice a little more with Kyle while we get it together.”
“Sounds good, Ace,” she answered. “Any special requests?”
I shook my head, glad to have the opportunity to practice my gaming skills so the next race wasn’t quite as much of a disaster. To be honest, it was rather fun.
“Not cheeseballs, please?” Kyle asked. “Popcorn. Chips. Anything.”
Ava offered him a warm smile as she set the little dog in his lap. “Finally ready to admit you don’t like them, huh?”
I shifted my gaze back and forth between them. They seemed so easy with one another. I wondered for a moment if they’d been closer than just friends.
“You know my stance on that,” Kyle said, returning his eyes to the screen as he navigated to remove Alex and Ava’s cars from the game for our private race.
Ava’s green eyes sparkled as she shot him a teasing grin before she shifted her gaze to me. “Popcorn okay?”
“Yes,” I answered.
The couple disappeared from the room, and I twisted to find Kyle’s eyes on me. “You ready for another round?”
I pretended to look serious. “Ready.”
“Ooh, game face—I like it. But this time…” He shook his head. “No mercy. I’m going for the finish line whether you’re stuck or not.”
