Sebastian laughed. “No one won. We left before the game ended, but I see you’re having a good time.” He raised an eyebrow at the collection of empty glasses at our table.
“The best. I bowled a perfect game.” I held up ten fingers. “Per. Fect. Game. First person to do so in…” I faltered, trying to remember what the manager said.
“Three years,” Sloane supplied. She was perched on the railing separating the food area from the bowling lanes. Xavier stood between her legs, his hands braced on her hips to keep her from falling.
I nodded. “What she said.”
“That’s my girl.” Sebastian kissed my forehead. “I didn’t expect anything less.”
Warmth trickled from my nape down to my toes. He looked good. He sounded good. He smelled good, too. I could snuggle into his chest and stay there all night, but first, I had a very importantquestion to ask. “Have you ever bowled a perfect game?”
His chest rumbled with another laugh. “No, not yet.”
“Want to try? We can split into two teams! You and I will be the captains, obviously, and…” I trailed off again, trying to stitch my scattered thoughts together. Everything was so fuzzy.
God, I wasreallydrunk.
“Let’s get you some water first.” A strong hand settled on the small of my back and guided me to the nearest table. “Then we can play.”
Twenty minutes and two full bottles of water later, my head cleared enough for me to think properly again. I blinked up at Sebastian, who observed me with amusement from across the table.
“Hi,” I said.
“Hi, my angel. Feeling better?”
My heart fluttered.
My angel.Mon ange. He didn’t call me that often, but I melted every time he did. “Much better.” I tucked a hand beneath my thigh, suddenly shy. It was ridiculous, but this was our first outing as a couple with our friends, and I’d embarrassed myself by getting so drunk I had to be put in figurative time out.
The weight of nearly a dozen pairs of eyes bored into my skin. I looked up to see our friends watching us with giddy smiles (the girls) and expressions ranging from curiosity to amusement (the guys). The only one who wasn’t paying attention to us was Killian, who was frowning at his phone.
“You guys are so cute.” Ayana nudged her boyfriend. “Aren’t they cute?”
Vuk frowned. I took that as a yes.
Once we all sobered up enough to pick up a bowling ball again without dropping it, we split into two teams like I’d suggested. I was with Dominic, Vivian, Sloane, Xavier, and Kai; Sebastian got Vuk, Alessandra, Ayana, Isabella, and Dante.
Killian sat the game out. He parked himself at the bar and continued to glare at his phone like it’d personally offended him. His surliness was extremely out of character, but I forgot all about it as the game got underway.
Our teams had an equal number of strong and weak players. They balanced each other out, and we were tied by the start of the tenth frame. Ultimate victory came down to our last players—Vivian for us, Dante for them.
“Let’s go, Viv!” I cheered. “You can do it!”
She wasn’t one of our best bowlers, but she wasn’t the worst either.Plusshe was going up against Dante, whom I suspected might throw his turn so his wife could win. That seemed like something he would do.
Sebastian came up beside me as a nervous-looking Vivian lined up her shot. “Let’s make another deal. Loser has to do whatever the other person says for a week.” His lips brushed the shell of my ear.
Tingles erupted on my skin, but I kept my tone aloof. “Don’t make deals you can’t win.”
His smile could’ve belonged to the devil himself. “Who says I can’t win?”
A second later, groans erupted from my side. Vivian’s ball had gone into the gutter.
Fuck.
“Sorry, Maya,” she said, her cheeks pink. “I tried.”
“It’s okay.” I ignored Sebastian’s grin and gave her a consoling hug. “You did your best. If Dante messes up, we’ll still be tied.”
