“Can I get your autograph and a picture? My friends are never going to believe you were here.” Even before he answered, the teen slapped a piece of paper and a pen in front of him.
Nodding, he pasted on a smile. The sooner he gave the fan what she wanted, the sooner they could be on their way. “Sure.”
Four pictures and an autograph later, Kirsten remembered she was there to work, not fawn over customers. “Do you want tickets for the bronze, silver, or gold course?”
“What do you think, Liv?” he asked as several more people got in line behind them.
“The gold course is my favorite.”
“Gold it is, then.” He handed over his credit card.
Kirsten gave Matt a scorecard as she ran the credit card. “The balls and clubs are behind you. Return them here when you’re done.” Smiling, the teen handed him back his credit card and then grabbed her buzzing cell phone.
At the equipment rack, Matt reached for the red ball, and his fingertips landed on it just as Liv’s did.
“If you want this one, I’ll take another color,” she said, moving away.
He didn’t much care what color he used. They all did the same job. “Doesn’t matter to me. I just thought you’d go for the pink or yellow one.”
Liv selected a purple one instead before removing a red ball and handing it to him. “Purple and red are my favorite colors. They always have been. Certain shades of blue and green, I like. Yellow, I hate, and pink ranks down near the bottom, unless we’re talking about nail polish.”
Matt made a mental note of the details. A guy never knew when it might be useful to know his girlfriend’s favorite colors.
* * *
Somehow, they managed to make it through the whole course without losing a ball in the water. After, they both attempted the final extra shot of the course. The shot was beyond difficult, and if a customer made it, they received a gift card for five free visits. He’d watched the group ahead of them try the shot, and they’d all missed. He’d assumed the same would be the case for him and Liv.
It wasn’t.
While his ball missed the hole as he’d expected, Liv’s didn’t.
Instead, she hit the ball, sending it up the ramp and through the narrow opening. Then it landed in the hole instead of the gap surrounding it, which was where most players’ balls ended up—his included.
“I’m shocked that you made that last hole,” he commented as they waited in line for ice cream. “Are you a mini-golf pro or something?”
Not only had Liv made the impossible shot at the end, but she had made all but three holes under par. Kirsten, the employee at the customer service booth, told them Liv’s score was the second-best ever for the course and added their scorecard to the Wall of Stars.
“Is that even a thing?”
In his peripheral vision, he saw the trio of young women walking toward them and somehow knew they weren’t coming over to get in line for ice cream.
“I have no idea.” Matt momentarily considered getting out of line and heading in the opposite direction, but he dismissed the idea almost immediately. The group had seen him, and if they were determined to talk to him, they wouldn’t care if he got out of line. Instead, they would follow them, possibly creating an even bigger scene than if he stayed where he was and talked to them.
“I knew it was you,” the tallest of the group said when they reached him. “Nadine said I was crazy and that you’d never be here, but I knew she was wrong.” The twentysomething nodded toward the dark-haired woman standing next to her.
“Sara didn’t believe you either,” Nadine replied.
“We’re, like, your biggest fans, Mr. Sherbrooke,” the first woman said.
As he’d expected, thanks to the trio, other people were turning their attention toward him and Liv.
“Lyndsey is right. We even flew to Oregon once to see you because your concerts in Boston and Portland were sold out,” Sara said. “Can we get your autograph and some pictures with you?”
What he wanted was to get some ice cream and then enjoy it while taking a walk with Liv along the path they’d passed on their way over here. Any other day, he would’ve agreed without blinking an eye. He wasn’t alone, though.
“I can get our orders while you do that,” Liv said before he could ask if she minded.
“Are you sure?”
