“Thanks,” he muttered.
Asher drove around a bend in the driveway. My jaw dropped. This place was enormous. As in, as large as Miles’ house. The stacked log walls and large alpine windows made it look like the biggest ski lodge I’d ever seen. Every light was on in the house. Music was blaring and the place was packed.
“When you said packed, you meant packed,” I said quietly.
“We can still leave if you want?” Miles reminded me. I took a breath and let it out slowly as we reached the parking for the golf carts. Four others were already parked there.
We climbed out, Miles handing me Hades’ leash before he got out. We followed Asher into the foyer, the oiled timber walls and random artwork added to the ski lodge feel. That was all I could see. Every room Asher led us through was full of people. At least the crowd parted for Hades; I was the only person in the room not crowded. I bit back a grin as Asher brought us into a game room. Video games were being played on several large TVs, a game of poker was happening in one corner, there was beer pong, air hockey, quarters - every party game you could imagine was being played.
Asher led us through it all to the bar at the back of the room. Zeke came into view first. He was, after all, giant and easy to spot. When the crowd parted for Hades, I found Isaac at the bar playing quarters with a dark-blond guy. He wasn’t bad looking. I remembered seeing him around school sometimes. Asher moved to stand with Ethan and Zeke. I followed.
“Hey,” I said as I watched Isaac pound down a shot. “How many has he had?”
“Three shots, two beers,” Ethan listed, his voice boiling. Without looking, I reached out and took his hand. He squeezed my fingers gently.
“Okay, keep your phones on, guys,” I told them.
“Are you sure you want to handle this?” Zeke grumbled. I sent him a smirk over my shoulder as I headed for Isaac.
I walked up behind Isaac with Hades clearing the way.
The blond boy noticed me first. “You must be Lexie.” He tapped the quarter in his hand on the bar. “Isaac has told me a lot about you.”
Really? I raised an eyebrow at Isaac. He grinned.
“That’s me.” I turned back to blond boy. “And you are?”
He gave me a smile that rivaled Asher’s. “Aaron Cooper, nice to meet you.”
“You too. Your house is nice.” I turned to Isaac.
“You should see my bedroom,” Aaron said with a leer. Isaac’s head snapped up. Oh, not good.
“No thanks, I’ve got an allergy to bad pick-up lines,” I said with a straight face. Aaron chuckled. I turned back to Isaac. “Hey, Cookie Monster, walk with me?”
Isaac glared at Aaron. “Sure.” He took my hand, got to his feet, and led me through the house.
When we stepped outside I took a deep breath of the pine air. Isaac walked beside me. The backyard was huge. The swimming pool was full of people, and so was the hot tub. Further back in a corner a fire was going. Isaac led me through the crowd to a dirt path through the trees.
“How long have you been here?” he asked as we walked deeper into the trees.
“Just got here.” I stepped over a downed branch.
His hand squeezed mine. “And they asked you to babysit,” he grumbled.
I shot him a look. “I’m not babysitting. I’m not getting paid. I’m hanging out with one of my favorite people in the world.” I let go of his hand and wrapped my arm around his hard waist.
He half smiled and wrapped a tense arm around my shoulders. “Sorry, Red.” He gave me a squeeze. “The guys have just been on my ass about everything.”
“That’s what she said,” I said instantly. He chuckled. I squeezed him back. “They’re just worried about you.”
“I know,” he grumbled. “They shouldn’t be.”
“Why not?” I asked quietly. “We love you, so we worry about you.”
“You shouldn’t,” he repeated. “I’m fine.”
“Really?” I asked, my voice quiet. He nodded. I grinned up at him. “Okay, I’ll take your word for it.” I leaned closer until I was nose to nose with him. “But I’m still hanging out with you.”
He gave me a smile that reached his eyes; his body relaxed.
“Want to head back?” I asked.
“This path is a loop,” he explained. “We’ll come out on the other side of—”
Hades pulled on his leash, jerking me away from Isaac. I caught my footing and held him back. “What’s wrong, baby?”
The large bush beside a tree moved. Isaac stepped closer and a little in front of me as he took my hand. Dylan came out of the bushes fastening his jeans. His sapphire eyes lifted and met mine. His mouth dropped open.
“Uh…” He swallowed hard. Even the stunned look on his face couldn’t detract from his good looks.
“Dylan, wait for a sec. I can’t find my panties,” a girl’s voice called from behind the bushes. I raised an eyebrow, eyed him, and fought back a laugh. Wow. In the bushes? Really?
“Lexie…” Dylan’s eyes were pained, his face burning red.
“Enjoying yourself?” I asked, trying not to smile.
“I…” Dylan couldn’t seem to say anything.
Isaac squeezed my hand. “Come on, Red.” He tugged me along to start us walking.
“You’re with Isaac now?” Dylan asked, his voice sharp.
I shot him a look over my shoulder. “I wouldn’t be talking, bush boy.”
“Hope you kept an eye out for poison oak!” Isaac shot over his shoulder. I snorted as we walked around the bend in the trail.
When we were out of earshot, Isaac whispered, “Are you good?”
I chuckled. “Yeah, I’m just glad he hasn’t started calling since the restraining order expired.”
He squeezed my hand. I squeezed back.
“Are you nervous about your match?” I asked in the quiet.
“Kinda,” he admitted. “I haven’t fought for months. Sparring, yeah. But it’s different when you’ve got someone doing everything they can to take you down.”
“I think you’re going to do okay,” I told him. “Just don’t let him knee you in the face…”
We both started laughing. Getting a concussion from a knee to the face was enough that Isaac’s mom had yanked him from fighting months ago.
“Yeah, I know,” he muttered. “I’ve been looking at video of all the fighters who are registered. Trying to find weaknesses, mistakes.”
“Did you find any?” I asked, looking up at the trees.
“Some, but I don’t know if it will be useful. I still don’t know who I’m fighting.” He took my hand again.
“Keep to your technique, keep moving, and be patient,” I said, repeating what Dave, my trainer, always told me. “And don’t lose your temper.”
He grinned down at me. “I know.”
I smiled. “Sorry, I’m just worried something bad will happen.”
He squeezed my hand. “I know.”
We both grew quiet and enjoyed our walk.
Zeke
I growled under my breath as I moved through the damn crowd. Why the hell was I here? Some asshole ran into me. I glared at him. His face grew pale as he moved away. I kept moving through the crowd, hating every moment. How did anyone deal with this? My shoulders grew even more tense as I finally found my way out the front. Grumbling under my breath, I turned to walk around the house. This was fucking ridiculous.
I was almost around the corner when—
“Zeke!” Tara’s voice shouted. I gritted my teeth and kept walking. What the fuck did I have to do to get her to leave me alone? I quickened my pace. “Zeke! Hold on!”
I didn’t bother stopping in the side yard. I was sick of being nice.
She hurried down the deserted yard to walk beside me. “I thought we could get a drink and talk.”
“No,” I bit out before picking up the pace.
She hurried to stay with me. “Look, Zeke, I want to get to know you better—”
“Stop,” I bit out as I stopped and turned to her. “Just back the fuck off.”
“Zeke-”
“I. Don’t. Like. You,” I stated clearly.
“You don’t even know me. That’s why I want to hang out—”
“I fucking know enough,” I growled. “I don’t need to know more.” I turned and started walking again.