We’re almost done, thank God, because if I have to hear Liam hoot and holler for himself one more goddamn time… I might stab him in the eye with one of these golf tees. But then we’d be out our first-string quarterback, so I need to refrain myself.
“Are we almost finished? It’s fucking hot. Everything’s melting. I’m sweating through this polo.” Ford swipes his gloved hand over his forehead.
Liam walks up to the tee and sets his ball down before taking a practice swing.
“I’m about to take the win for the day, sit back and relax.” A cocky grin takes over Liam’s face.
He swings his club and the ball goes flying down the green. We all watch on as it lands feet away from the hole, causing me to let out a groan.
“Mother fucker,” I say under my breath with a low chuckle.
“Woo! That’s about to be a birdie, boys,” Liam shouts with a wink as he walks back to the golf cart, hopping in next to Chase.
I get in the other cart next to Ford and we take off to the last hole. Being out on the golf course with the guys today, I’ve tried my best to maintain who they know me to be. It’s pretty easy in this setting. Golf is competitive, but it’s fun and the most important fact, it’s not my job. So I don’t feel the same heavy pressure to perform. Although, part of me thinks they already can tell something’s off, considering we spend so much time together. I know my best friend Mia already has her suspicions.
“Is that an alligator?” I hear Ford’s voice as I look up near the lake that’s nestled within this course, and sure enough, there’s an alligator sitting right on the edge of the green next to the water. That’s a pretty big one, but I’ve seen them on golf courses plenty of times before. They couldn’t give a shit about us as long as we leave them alone.
“Damn, he’s huge,” Liam says as he eyes the gator.
After Chase, Ford and myself all fail miserably on this hole and end up back at the carts, Liam walks over to his ball that's sitting on the green. The rest of us stay seated, watching Liam tip toe like a fucking mouse over to line up for his swing. He keeps looking over his shoulder as if he thinks the alligator is going to sprout wings and fly directly into him.
“Stay,” he says with a straight face, motioning his hand in a stop position towards it and the rest of us fucking lose it. I try to cover my mouth, but the laugh just bellows out of me as I hold my side.
“Don’t be so fucking loud, you’re going to make it angry!”
“It’s not a damn dog, Evans. Putt your ball and let’s fucking go.” I laugh again and shake my head as I watch Liam nervously swing the club and see his ball roll right past the hole.
“No. Redo. Mulligan. I call a Mulligan. The fucking dinosaur over here is distracting me,” Liam pouts.
“Get the fuck out of here. This is not the first time you’ve been on a course with an alligator. You aren’t calling a Mulligan for that,” Chase scoffs, and Liam grips his club in his hand, flipping off the alligator with the other.
“Well, they’re never the size of a goddamn school bus,” Liam argues.
After another swing, he gets the ball in the hole.
“Stupid fucking dinosaur,” Liam mutters to himself before getting back in the golf cart.
Chase sits down across from me at a table once we’re in the clubhouse, and we both take off our baseball hats, placing them on the table. I run my hand through my hair and instantly regret it considering it’s soaked in sweat. I wipe the palm of my hand on my shorts.
“Kristen has to be due soon right? It feels like she’s been pregnant forever,” I say to Chase.
When he mentioned that he was having a baby with Kristen Floyd, I already knew he’d be in for a nightmare. She’s been a cleat chaser for years, and as far as I’m concerned, she was probably just waiting to see which one of us she could get to knock her up. A shame it’s Chase because out of all the guys I’m close with, he’s probably the last I would’ve expected to end up with an accidental pregnancy. He’s responsible, smart, the ‘dad’ one of the group. But just another one of those things that you don’t expect to happen, yet it does. After his initial panic wore off, he’s been nothing but absolutely pumped to have a kid.
“Any day now. I’m nervous, but fuck, I’m so excited.” He takes a long swig of his beer and then swiftly changes the subject, asking Liam about some TV show.
Some of the older gentlemen around the clubhouse come and say a few words to us before we leave. None of us are actually members at this country club, but Ford’s dad is a big shot around here so we get to reap the benefits by playing this course any time. Mia always jokes that being in the NFL allows me to get whatever I want. If that were true though, I’d probably be a lot happier.
If I were a pair of AirPods where would I be?
The way I’ve just swept through my entire apartment searching for these God forsaken headphones, I belong on that old show ‘Supermarket Sweep.’ Although, I’d lose because I can’t actually find what I’m looking for. I’ve been zooming around this place, trying to find them in the small window of time I have before I absolutely must leave to make it to work on time.
I’m still coming up empty as I’m rummaging through my junk drawer in my kitchen and my phone rings. Nate’s face flashes on the screen and I reach over to answer, placing the phone on speaker.
“Hey,” I call out from across the kitchen island.
“Hey, you okay? You sound out of breath.”
“I’m currently acting as a one-woman search party. I can’t find my AirPods.” My voice gets louder the further away from the phone I get.
