“Only because you guys dragged me there,” Braxton hollers from the seating area. Half-empty bottles and snack trays litter the table before him as he grabs his drink and takes a pull.
“You werebeggingto come,” Liam interjects.
“And then,” Luke continues, “we finally get a bunch of women closer to your age, and you still approach all the forty-somethings.”
Braxton rolls his shoulders back. “You guys are just jealous because I’m competition.”
Liam and Luke bark out a laugh. “You wish,” Luke says.
“Seriously,” Liam adds before glaring at the ball that flies from the chute. “Hey, that’smyball.”
“Yep,” I say, snatching it up once more. “It’s lucky.” I approach the glossy lane with my aim set on the remaining pins, swing back, and let it go. The fast-moving ball smacks both pins, sending them flying into oblivion. “It’s even luckier now,” I say, spinning around to face Liam.
He rolls his eyes. “Now I have to find a new ball.”
“It’s coming right back,” I tell him.
“I don’t want it anymore.” When he storms over to the selection of balls, I eye Luke and Braxton in turn.
“Sorry,” I say. “I thought he outgrew that.”
Luke’s eyes widen as he shakes his head. “He’s gotten even more superstitious since the divorce.”
I groan, tell the boys I’ll be back, and head over to grab an extra bottle of beer.
“Sorry, man,” I say as I offer it to Liam. “I promise not to use your next one.”
Liam eyes the beer before taking it from me. “I know you’re happy right now and everything, but we can’tallmove on as fast as you did.” He takes a swig.
So is that what’s really bothering him—the fact that I found someone so quickly after the divorce?
“Luke says you don’t like her the way you think you do. And that it won’t last.”
Whoa,where didthatcome from? The disruptive energy I was trying to keep at bay comes on full force. It’s hot and prickly and filling me with fear.
I grit my teeth. “Luke doesn’t know what he’s talking about.” I glare at the guy as he gets a strike and breaks into a strut like the peacock he is. “Besides,” I say louder now as we near the group. “Luke’s just jealous.”
“Jealous of your fake, rebound relationship?” Luke says. He’s the instigator in the group, always was, so I shouldn’t be surprised that he’s doing this.
I try my best to look unfazed. To pretend that I’m not feeling what I’m feeling inside.
“It’s so obvious that you guys are just trying to stick it to your exes,” Luke says. “You’re trying to make them jealous.”
My eyes double in size, and I can’t help but let out a humorless laugh. “You arewayoff base. I’m not even touching that one it’s so far out there.” And since that much is true, I almost start to feel better. Luke’s totally wrong about that. At least, on my end, he is.
“Oh yeah?” Luke says. “Liam has a different theory.”
I glare back at Liam, whose bottom lip gets suctioned into the bottle as his eyes bulge.
He tugs it away and throws a look at Luke. “Thanks a lot.”
“You’rethe one who started it,” Luke reminds him.
I hate how it feels to have someone challenging my relationship with Kirsten, especially since I already fear the idea of losing her. As far as I’m concerned, she’s a Godsend. “What’s your stupid theory, Liam? Let’s get it all out there so we can move on.”
“Well, it’s Liam’s turn to bowl,” Braxton says.
“Too bad,” I growl. “Spit it out.”
