Jesse just nodded and kept walking.
The seventeenth had a giant windmill in the middle that looked like it had been built sometime in the nineties and never updated since.Red blades turned overhead while strings of lights blinked around the base.A little girl on the next course over was crying because her ball had bounced into the water feature and disappeared, and her dad was trying to convince her that losing at mini golf built character.
“Ever!”
I turned so fast my ponytail smacked my cheek.
The train ride, or whatever Little Scooters officially called the slow-moving ride that looped around the whole park, was passing behind the mini golf course.The little open-air cars linked together and were full of kids, teens, and bored-looking adults who’d clearly been talked into it.
Eden was twisted around in her seat in one of the cars, one hand lifted over her head and waving like she was trying to flag down an airplane.Two girls sat with her, plus some guy I vaguely recognized from town but couldn’t place.
“Hey!”I called back, waving.
“Did my mom t-t-talk to you?”Eden yelled.
I shook my head.“No!”
The ride kept creeping forward.
“My g-g-graduation party is Saturday!”she shouted.
“Fun!”I called.
“You t-t-two need to be t-t-there!”she yelled, pointing right at us.“It’s at the c-c-clubhouse and it s-s-starts at three!”
That was one way to get invited to a graduation party, but then again, Eden was Alice’s daughter.Subtle had never exactly been a family trait over there.
“Um, we’ll be there!”I shouted back before I had time to think too hard about what I was committing to.
Eden pumped her fist in the air.“Yay!Have fun!You g-g-g-uys look cute together!”And then the ride carried her away, her voice fading as she kept waving.
I stood there for a second holding my putter and staring after her.Then I looked at Jesse.“I should’ve asked you if you wanted to come with me,” I said.
He shrugged and set his ball down at the next hole.“If you want to go, we can go.”
That easy.
No pressure.
No weirdness.
He took his shot and then glanced up at me.“Is it at a country club or something?”
I blinked.
Then laughed.
“Um, actually, no.Eden’s dad is the President of the Fallen Lords Motorcycle Club.The clubhouse is where they, well…” I made a vague motion with one hand.“Pretty much do everything.”
He nodded slowly, like he was filing that away.“Like Sons of Anarchy?”
That made me laugh harder.“Yeah,” I said, “except I don’t think they’re running drugs and killing people.”
Something sparked in his eyes for half a second.
Small.
Quick.
