Robbie had been so good until now. He motioned for Finn to stand up with him and grabbed the neon yellow ball Finn had been using.
Finn seemed to understand Robbie’s intention without him saying a word, because he let Robbie move him around until he was standing. “She took the ball like this.” Robbie gave it to Finn so that he held it in a two-handed grip, arms extended. “She waddled up to the lane.”
Finn gave him a knowing look over his shoulder but obediently walked stiff-legged to the end of the lane.
“And then she widened her legs and bent over and threw the ball two-handed like she was somebody’s grandma.” Robbiepaused for effect. “She got a strike. Smile never left her face the rest of the night.”
Imogen and Sawyer looked expectantly at Finn, who rolled his eyes over a smile. “This is peer pressure.” He glanced at Robbie as if to sayI know you just want to look at my ass.Which was not true. Robbie wanted to do way more than look at it.
“Boo,” Sawyer said. “Granny roll! Granny roll!”
Finally, with much heckling, Finn spread his legs, bent over, and swung the ball. It made an enormousthunkwhen it hit the wood, then slid neatly into the pins and took out all but one.
“Sick,” Sawyer said. “I’m trying it next.”
They all switched to the granny roll after that. They wouldn’t get any cool points, but they were bowling, so that was a given.
The kids inevitably turned their focus to snacks. Robbie, figuring the best way to keep their anonymity was to stay in their corner, handed his card and his order over to Sawyer.
“Get what you want. But there will be hell to pay if there’s no burger with curly fries and a slushie among the booty.”
“Cringe,” Sawyer said, almost absently, at Robbie’s phrasing. “What about you, Finn?”
“Oh, I can—”
“Nope. Papa Bear is paying today. He said so.” Sawyer grinned and Imogen giggled behind him. Finn shot a questioning look Robbie’s way, but Robbie just held up his hands.
“Who am I to argue with the kid? If he says I said today was on me, it must be the truth.”
“Well, in that case—a hot dog, all-dressed chips, and a root beer.”
“Got it.” Sawyer skipped off and Imogen hurried after.
“You do know they’re going to come back with, like, so much dessert, right?” Finn asked.
“Oh yeah, and we’ll either have to take half of it home or they’ll be sick. But today is about Sawyer, and who am I to ruin his fun with nutritional guidelines or fans spotting me in the concession line?”
Finn said nothing. Someone down the way rolled a strike, judging by the noise of the pins and the celebration. Robbie looked over. Finn was studying him, an undecipherable look in his eyes. Robbie couldn’t wait to know Finn well enough to be able to read his expressions.
“What?”
“You’re a good guardian, Papa Bear.”
Heat filled his cheeks. “I try.”
Finn hummed. Under cover of the low lights and the position of the chairs and the machinery, he slid his hand over Robbie’s and tangled their fingers together on the bench between their thighs. “I can see that.”
Monday eventuallycrawled around.
Robbie had spent the past few days ping-ponging between thinking about Finn, strategizing with his lawyer, and distracting his kid, so time should’ve flown. Somehow it hadn’t.
But it was Monday at last, which meant he had Tuesday to look forward to.
“Zeiger,” Chad said coolly as they all filed into the gym for the morning meeting that happened on show days. “You and your girlfriend ready to have your asses handed to you tonight?”
Robbie credited his high school drama classes for the fact that he didn’t break his stride. There was no way Chad knew anything about Robbie’s “girlfriend.” He was just trying to get under Robbie’s skin and had accidentally landed on an interesting attempt at an insult. “Didn’t I see you and Sophia fall in practice Friday?” he said serenely. “I think me and my girlfriend can take you.”
On his other side, he just registered Finn making a choked-off noise. Hopefully Chad hadn’t heard it.
