I strip out of my gear quickly, shower even quicker, and meet the guys outside. The cool night washes over me. So does the buzz of the crowd calling out my name. I meet up with Jaxon and Tanner jogs up beside us. Up ahead, Nicklas already has his arm slung around one of the girls lingering by the bus. I guess he found his…kitten.
I snort. “Didn’t Jaylynn set him up with her friend?” I shake my head. “She must really hate her friend.”
Jaxon laughs. “Nah, I think the friend started seeing someone else. Whole thing fell through. Too bad, really.”
“Too bad?” I shoot him a look as we head toward the bus. “You got something against Jaylynn’s friend?”
He chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck. “No, I just…” He hesitates, then shrugs, a little sheepish. “Marriage is… nice. Wouldn’t mind seeing Nicklas meet someone who actually sticks.”
I glance at him, surprised by the softness in his tone. “Really?”
He exhales, eyes drifting ahead. “I think, deep down, Nicklas is a decent guy.”
I bark out a laugh. “There’s not a shovel in the world that digs that deep, Jax.”
But even as I say it, Maria flashes in my brain. The way she looks at Nicklas. Past the bullshit and jokes and innuendo. Maybe it’s because she has boys of her own, but the two of them…they’ve got this weird, easy thing. A quiet connection I don’t quite get.
I shift, jaw tightening. But it’s not jealousy. Not even close. She wouldn’t go for a guy like him anyway—too young, too reckless. Still… there’s something there. She sees something in him. Something I’d like to understand. Something as captain, I should understand.
“Speaking of marriage being nice,” Tanner cuts in, clapping a hand on my shoulder. “What’s going on with you and Maria?”
My steps falter just slightly. “Nothing,” I shoot back, too fast, too damn defensive. “I just couldn’t see Marbles going back to the shelter, and who knows what would’ve happened to him.”
Tanner gives a nod. “Good to know.”
I frown. “Why?”
His mouth curves like he’s been waiting for this. “Because Maeve and I are going on a double date with Maria and Declan. Not this weekend, but next. It’s all set up. I just wanted to make sure we weren’t stepping on anyone’s toes.”
The words hit like a body check I didn’t see coming. Maria. Date. Declan.
Fucking Declan—Douchebag—Hayes.
I clamp my jaw, every muscle in my body going tight.
Dude, you have no claim on her.
Yeah. I know that. Doesn’t stop the sharp, ugly twist in my gut, though. Doesn’t stop the immediate, irrational urge to find Declan and remind him exactly how hard I can hit.
I force my face into something neutral. “Oh yeah?”
“Yeah,” Tanner says easily. “Rowyn set it up. Should be fun.”
Fun.
Right.
I shrug like it doesn’t matter. Like I don’t care. Like I’m not currently imagining all the ways that night could go, and hating every single one of them.
“Cool.”
The word tastes like bullshit.
I haul myself onto the bus, needing space—needing a second to get my head on straight—but of course Tanner follows, dropping into the seat across from me.
“Good thing there’s nothing going on with you and Maria,” he says, snorting as he pulls out his phone. “That could’ve been awkward.”
I let out a short laugh. “Yeah. All good.”
