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I rolled my eyes. “You’re impossible.”

“Rory, you can do her makeup, and I’ll take the hair. Oh, before we leave, one of us should drop Ozzy off at Mom’s.”

When Ozzy raised his head at the sound of his name, I asked, “Why are you taking him?”

“You head needs to be free to focus solely on Gavin and not have to worry about Ozzy’s dinner or taking him out to pee.”

“Whatever,” I grumbled.

“We’ll meet back here at 8:30,” Annie announced.

“Wait, this isn’t necessary,” I said.

But my remarks fell on deaf ears as they were already down the hall.

In the end, I guess it wouldn’t hurt.

CHAPTER EIGHT: GAVIN

By the time we got back from tubing, it wasn’t just Owen who was wiped out and needed a nap. I don’t know how long we were out. It was getting dusky when JJ and Jack came bounding into our room.

“Wakey, wakey!” JJ pronounced.

“Daddy says to get up and grill,” Jack instructed.

I chuckled as I rubbed my gritty eyes. Among the players in the house, my grilling skills had quickly become legendary. “Okay, okay. I’ll go grill.”

After exiting the bedroom, I padded down the hallway and out onto the deck. Cal was there with our other teammates, Anthony, Tim, and Vasili. With beers in hand, they stood around a table full of ground beef, pork ribs, and steak.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I demanded, “Did you at least fire up the grill?”

Vasili nodded. “Just waiting for you,” he replied in his Russian accent.

“Fine. But I won’t have time to do the cleanup.”

Anthony’s blond brows rose questioningly. “Why not?”

Tim nodded. “Seems like I remember you losing our last bet.”

I sucked in a breath. I knew once I mentioned Mina’s name, I wouldn’t get any more peace this weekend. The guys would rag the ever-loving hell out of me. Sure, I could lie and say I was going into town to shop or some other bullshit. But with my luck, one of the guys would want to tag along. Or worse, one of the WAGS.

Grabbing the tongs in my hand, I flipped open the lid on the massive grill. “If you must know, I have…” I swallowed hard. “A date.”

The deck erupted in shouts and clapping while my back was pounded by their hands. It was so loud that some of the women came running outside to check what was going on. Then, when they were told, the air became filled with high-pitched shrieking and giggling.

I tried tuning them out by focusing on the meat, but it wasn’t easy. After letting them get it out of their system, I whirled around and jabbed the tongs at them. “After what I’m about to say, I don’t want to hear anymore about it. This is my first date in eight years. Got it?”

Grumbling agreement came back to me. “Her name is Mina. She owns a German restaurant in town. Today Owen and I had lunch with her after she helped find him when he ran away from me to see her dog. Even though I just met her, I like her. A lot.”

After finishing, silence echoed around the deck. With an awkward nod, I replied, “Thank you.”

When I turned back to the grill, silence still permeated the air. It hung heavy around me, making me feel like the biggest idiot in the world. With a sigh, I turned back to the others. “Okay, fine. You can talk about her.”

So I flipped meat and fielded questions. Then the women gave me advice on what to wear, which the husbands vetoed. That led to an argument that lasted until after I took the meat up.

As we moved to the large table to eat, they started bickering about what I should bring Mina–flowers, wine, or nothing at all because, and I quote, ‘I already looked like a pussy for asking her out again so soon’. The comment came from the only other single player, so I wasn’t sure if I should listen to him.

By the time I'd tossed back a couple of beers, a steak, and a double cheeseburger, they’d finally resorted to talking about our plans for tomorrow. When I glanced at my watch, I knew it was time to go get ready.