Everly gets up and yanks my blanket off. “Get up. Get showered. And let’s go.”
I look at her and wish I had something to throw. “You should have been a drill sergeant.”
“Camo is not my color. Now move your ass.”
“Should you be drinking, trouble? Rumor has it you’re pregnant with twins.”
I take my tequila and club soda from Maddox with a glare. “You’re a dick.”
“He can’t help himself. It just comes naturally.” Everly sips her white cranberry cosmo and leans back against the bar, her eyes trained on Gracie, who’s flirting with a guy we’ve never seen here before. “Who is that?”
“No clue, but he sure is pretty.”
“Dudes don’t like to be called pretty, trouble.” Maddox holds up the remote and changes the channel. The Revolution comes on the screen, and they zoom in on Jace and Easton talking down by E’s net. “They making nice yet?”
“Not as of yesterday. But I think Jace and I came to a tiny understanding.” I pinch my fingers together a smidge, and Maddox ignores me. “I guess we’ll see.”
I shoot off a text to E, telling him to kick some ass tonight, then scroll through my messages. “Shit.” I slept through Sam’s text.
“Something wrong?” Maddox prods, like the nosey little shit he is.
“I messaged your dad earlier and missed his text when he got back to me.”
“Looks like you missed him till Monday then. He’s taking Mom away for the weekend.” He looks around the bar, then back over at me. “Where’s Kenzie? She feeling okay?”
“Huh?” I ask, then realize what he said and focus on him. “Kenzie had a study session tonight with some friends from school. Were you here last night? She looked like shit when she got in this morning.”
“Yeah. She was hammering shots. She got pretty wasted.”
Gracie moves across the room with her mysterious stranger in tow. “Can I get another lemon drop, madman?”
“Sure. Anything for you, buddy?”
The stranger shakes his head, and I cringe. If Maddox calls you buddy, you’re a douche, and that’s his way of telling us to stay away.
That’s about right. Gracie would find the douche tonight.
They’re always attracted to the quiet ones.
By the time the first period of the game is over, I’m ready to scream. Every time these asshole commentators get a chance, they’re bringing up Easton and me.
How they think he feels playing for a team his wife owns.
How there were rumors of a rift between Jace and him.
How well the captain and his goalie seem to be working together tonight.
“Jesus Christ. Shut the fuck up and talk about the game,” I yell at the TV, and the small group of people here cheer.
West End is a local spot. Sam has always kept it that way, and now Maddox does the same. So when a flash goes off from the other side of the room, Maddox flies across the bar. “You got any clue who you’re fucking with, buddy?”
The dumb fuck blinks at Maddox, clearly not having any idea who he’s fucking with, then yells when madman smashes his camera and throws him through the door. “Bill me, asshole.”
When Maddox turns around, he throws his arms out. “Anybody else in here have any ideas about taking pictures of my family, you might wanna get the fuck out too.”
Everyone cheers, and the Revolution scores the first goal of the night. So I figure what the hell and yell, “Drinks on me for each goal they score tonight, guys.”
Maddox shakes his head as he gets back behind the bar. “Always causing fucking trouble.”
I smile sweetly. “But you love me.”
“Whatever. Give me your credit card.”
I slap it down onto the old cherrywood bar and look back up at the TV to watch my husband. Oh yeah. I can’t wait for him to get home tonight.
Once we’re home after the game, I change out of my jeans and throw on a pair of sweats, then toss a couple of things in a bag and head back down the stairs. Kenzie’s in the kitchen, eating leftovers. Her glasses are pushed up on top of her head and notebooks are spread out in front of her. “Hey, we missed you tonight.”
She looks up, an egg roll halfway to her mouth. “Sorry. I was at the library late. Where are you going now?”
Big girl panties, Lindy.
Put ’em on and pull ’em up.
“I thought I’d wait for Easton downstairs. Madman mentioned earlier that a ton of E’s boxes and furniture were delivered yesterday and today. I thought I’d help him unpack.”
“Oh.” Her eyes pop wide. “I was going to do that. Does that mean you and Easton are . . .”
I drop my eyes, feeling nervous, but I can no longer hide my smile from one of my best friends. “We’re good, Kenz. We’re really good.”
“Like no more annulment good?” She drops her egg roll and stares at me, waiting.
“No more annulment. He asked me to marry him again. He wants to do something big this time,” I whisper. I hadn’t told anyone that. Well, no one besides Jace.
“Do you want that?” she asks with hope dancing in her eyes.
“Do I want to be married to him? Oh yeah,” I say softly, scared to get too excited yet. “But I don’t know about the whole big wedding thing. I’m not even talking to my mom.”
“You’ll fix it, Linds. She’s your mom. You have to fix it. Take it from someone who’ll never get the chance to talk to her mom again. Fix it. Fight it out, but fix it. Get things straightened out between you and Easton, then work on the stuff with the family, starting with your mom.”
I lean my head against hers. “How’d you get so smart, girl genius?”
“Born that way, I guess. We all have our gifts.”
“Well, just so you know, things are straight with Easton and me.” I grab a vitamin water from the fridge and drop it in my bag, then steal of bite of Kenzie’s egg roll. “Yum. That’s good.”
“Oh my God. Did you remember?” She claps her hand like a giddy cheerleader, and I just smile until she pulls out her phone, and then a text pops up on mine.
“What did you do, Kenz?”
“Watch that with E when you get a chance, okay?”
“What is it?” I ask with a funny feeling.
“Just trust me and watch it with my brother. Now go. I’ve got another chapter to get through before I can go to bed, and I really need to go to bed.”
“Okay. See you tomorrow.” I slip Myrtle’s leash on her collar and take her with me down to Easton’s condo.
It’s smaller than ours. A traditional two-bedroom with an open layout and a big balcony overlooking one of the small rivers that feed into Kroydon Lake. Movers may have brought his things in, but they sure didn’t unpack. There’s a ton of boxes in his family room and a new leather couch with the tags still attached up against the white wall.