I purposely miss my own throw, evening us up at two misses each. “See? Now it’s fair.”
“Stop fucking doing that,” Tanner snaps. “Stop pretending you’re better than me.”
“I’m not pretending anything. I am better than you. At this, at riding, at everything that matters.” I step closer, lowering my voice so only he can hear. “And I’m especially better for June.”
Something dark flashes across his face, and for a second, I think he might take a swing at me. Instead, he just grabs another glass, throws it back, and misses the dartboard entirely.
The dart sails past the target, past the wall, and embeds itself in some poor bastard’s forearm.
The man screams.
Tanner takes one step forward, his eyes rolling back in his head, and pitches face-first onto the floor. He’s snoring before he hits the ground.
Chaos erupts. The stabbed man is clutching his arm and shouting profanities. Tanner’s friends are scrambling to revive their fallen champion. The restaurant staff is rushing over with first aid supplies and apologetic expressions.
Kai is on his feet, grabbing my hand and thrusting it into the air like I just won a championship bout. “We have a victor! The loser is unconscious! Carter remains undefeated!”
“Slowly,” I manage, my stomach lurching. “Do that slowly.”
“You did fucking amazing.” Kai’s grin is manic, triumphant. “Absolutely crushed him. Did you see his face when he went down? I wish I’d gotten video.”
I’m pretty sure someone did get video, but I’m too busy concentrating on not vomiting to comment on it.
Tanner’s friends have managed to roll him onto his back, where he continues snoring peacefully, completely oblivious to the havoc he’s caused. The dart victim is being attended to by staff, still furious, gesturing wildly at the unconscious deputy while his companions try to calm him down.
“Our cue to exit,” Kai decides, wrapping an arm around my shoulders to steady me. “We came, we conquered, we created chaos. Mission accomplished.”
We slip out the back door as voices behind us rise in argument and accusation. The cool night air hits my face, and I take deep gulping breaths, trying to settle my spinning head.
“That was incredible.” Kai is practically bouncing as we walk, high on victory and secondhand adrenaline. “The look on his face. The way he just collapsed. I’m going to remember this for the rest of my life.”
“Glad you enjoyed the show.” I lean against him more heavily, the ground feeling slightly unreliable beneath my feet. “Take me home. I need to go snuggle June.”
“The book club should be wrapping up soon. She’ll be back.”
“Good. She always makes things better.” The words come out mushier than intended, affection bleeding through the alcohol haze. “Everything’s better when she’s around. Her smell. Her laugh. The way she looks at us.”
“Yeah.” Kai’s voice softens. “Yeah, she does.”
We walk in companionable silence down the sidewalk to Kai’s car, the sounds of the BBQ joint fading behind us. Stars are scattered across the Montana sky, impossibly bright, and the air smells clean and fresh.
Kai squeezes my shoulder. “You’re a good man, Carter. Underneath all the pretty-boy bullshit.”
“Thanks. I think.”
“You’re welcome.” He pauses. “Also, you should probably vomit before you get into my car. Better out than in.”
He’s not wrong. I detour behind a convenient dumpster and lose everything I’ve consumed over the past several hours. It’s not dignified, but it’s effective. When I emerge, wiping my mouth on the back of my hand, I feel marginally more human.
“Better?” Kai asks.
“Getting there.” I take one careful breath through my nose and immediately regret it. The alley smells like stale beer, garbage juice, and bad decisions. My decisions. I wipe my mouth again, even though it doesn’t help, and try to stand with some dignity.
Kai checks his phone as the screen lights up his face for a second, and then his mouth twitches.
“What?” I squint at him. My eyes feel gritty. Everything feels gross.
He scans it, then makes a strangled sound that turns into a hollering laugh.
