“Why no blind date?” I asked.
A huge smile grew across her face. “I have a boyfriend. Chuck’s in the army. We’ve known each other since high school. We were friends first, and one time he came home on leave and we all went out. Something between us changed, and we started dating.”
“Wow! That’s kind of cool.”
She nodded.
“Is it hard for y’all with him being gone?”
“It is, yeah. But he’s going to be stationed in Killeen so I’ll get to see him a lot more.”
I returned her smile. “I’m glad; you seem like a nice girl, Nettie. I’m happy you’re with someone who makes you smile like that.”
Her cheeks blushed then she bumped my arm with her shoulder. “What about you? No girl has caught your eye yet?”
Ari’s face flashed through my mind.
“Nope. Not yet.”
With a frown, Nettie tilted her head and stared at me.
“What?” I asked with a half-hearted laugh.
“I find that hard to believe. I mean, you’re a really good-looking guy, so I’m sure you’re not lacking in the women area. But something tells me there is a girl and you’re not ready to admit it.”
I laughed. “Tell me you’re studying to be a shrink or something because you’ve got the talent for it.”
She chuckled and shook her head. “Accounting.”
Snarling my lip, I repeated her word. “Accounting? Good God, woman . . . that’s as boring as you could have gotten.”
Her hands went to her hips. “Hey! I like math and numbers. I think it’s fun.”
I stared at her in disbelief. “It’s a good thing you have a boyfriend because this”—I stated, pointing between us—“would have never worked out.”
“Nettie! Are y’all ever going to come play, or are you just going to stand there being a chatty Kathy?” Casey asked.
With a roll of my eyes, I whispered, “I really don’t like that girl.”
Lacing her arm in mine, Nettie said, “Come on, let’s just go have some fun and make her stop talking.”
With a smile, I replied, “One could only wish for such a miracle.”
I felt a strange feeling and glanced over my shoulder only to see Ari standing there with a group of friends. Our eyes locked, and I had to remind myself to breathe.
She looked beautiful.
The way she was looking at me was off. Almost as if she was upset. After I scanned her friends and didn’t see Ellie, I focused back on Ari, but now Nettie was pulling me since I’d slowed down.
“Come on, Johnson. She isn’t going to bite.”
After I pulled my eyes away from Ari, I sat down, and Nettie sat next to me. I could feel Ari staring at me, so I looked her way again. Her and her friends were just three aisles down. When our gaze met again, I decided to just try and be civil with her. So I smiled at her. It must have not been what she wanted because her left eye narrowed some before her gaze darted over to Nettie, then back to me. She frowned, turned, and sat down with her back to me.
Christ, that girl was moody as fuck.
“Do you know her?” Nettie asked, pulling me out of my trance.
“Yeah, she’s my sister’s best friend.”
“She looked a little mad when she saw you. Do y’all not get along?”
My heart ached in my chest. I hated that all Ari and I ever did was fight, but I was the main cause of that. I had started this little feud a few years back as a means to keep my distance from her.
“We get along fine. She’s just a moody little thing.”
Nettie giggled. “I’d say she was more jealous than moody, Jeff.”
Jerking my head back, I turned to look at her. “What?”
She lifted her brows. “Seriously? Men are so stupid. Clearly she didn’t like seeing you sitting here with me. Especially when you shot her that smile that sort of rubbed it in that you were with me.”
“What?” I lost it laughing. “I did no such thing.”
With a half-hearted shrug, Nettie gave me a wink. “Deep down you want her to think we’re together, don’t you?”
I couldn’t argue with her on that one. “Just get your cute little ass up and bowl.”
The next hour was spent trying to keep Casey’s annoying-as-hell voice out of my head and forcing myself not to look Ari’s way every five minutes.
When I saw Casey walking back from the bathroom, I tensed. She had seen Ari and was making a direct path right to her. My instinct was to get up and protect Ari, but like I did four years ago, I just sat there.
They exchanged words, and Ari folded her arms across her chest. Casey took a few steps back, her face shocked by whatever Ari had said. The girls who were with Ari all smiled and nodded their heads as if approving of what was just said.
Casey rolled her eyes and walked away, defeat written all over her face. Ari watched her walk away and then looked at me. She shook her head and snarled her lip as she pulled out her phone and typed something.
When my own phone buzzed, I jumped. Pulling it out of my pocket, I held my breath when I saw her name.
Ari: Some things never change. Casey is still a bully bitch, and you still sit there like a jerk and let her spit out her hateful words. It’s a damn good thing I know how to take care of myself. I guess you couldn’t be bothered to leave your cute little date. dickhead.
Ari wanted me to defend her? My stomach turned thinking Ari thought I didn’t care about what happened to her. Hell, I knew better than anyone the girl could take care of herself. She had a mouth like a sailor and wasn’t afraid of giving her two cents. But she had actually wanted me to keep Casey away from her, and I did nothing.
Again.
“That girl is the biggest bitch on the planet,” Casey shot off as she came and sat back down.
“Who?” one of Casey’s friends asked.
“Some little whore I know from high school. I have no clue what she’s doing down here; she’s still in high school. I hear she likes to give head in exchange for test answers.”
“Shut the fuck up, Casey. You and I both know that’s not true,” I said.
Casey turned to look at me, a snarky smile on her face. “That’s right . . . her best friend is your little sister. How is Ellie these days, Jeff?”
Gunner’s attention was now fully on the conversation.
“She’s doing amazing, Casey. But I seriously doubt you care since you made her life a miserable hell during her freshman year.”
“What?” Gunner asked, now turning to face Casey.
“Oh, don’t listen to him, Gunner. So I made the little girls cry their first day of high school. It toughened them up.” She winked at me, and I balled up my fists.
“I’m ready to leave now! Who else is ready to leave?” Nettie blurted out.
“You were a bully in high school, Casey?” Gunner asked.
She rolled her eyes. “For Christ’s sake, it was years ago. Who cares? Let’s bowl and forget the little maggot is even here.”
Gunner looked around. “Is Ellie here?”
The hopefulness in his voice didn’t go unnoticed, but I had to shelve that conversation for later.
“No, Ari is,” I stated and stood. “And you can find your own damn ride home, bitch.”
Casey’s mouth dropped open. “Gunner! Are you going to let him talk to me that way?”
Ignoring her, Gunner looked at Nettie. “Do you need a ride back?”
She shook her head. “We’ll get a ride; don’t worry.”
Glancing back down to Casey, Gunner shot her a fake smile. “Lose my number, Casey.”
“Gunner! Wait! Are you seriously kidding me right now? You’re leaving because of something that happened in high school?”
“No, I’m leaving because I’ve had all I can take of you, and you only just proved to me what I’ve been thinking all night: I really don’t like you.”
I smiled and hit him on the back as he slipped off his bowling shoes and replaced
them with his boots.
When we started for the door, I couldn’t help but look Ari’s way. She was sitting down watching us leave, a questioning look on her face. I wanted to smile, to wave, to do something, but I looked away from her and focused on the exit.
When we got into Gunner’s truck, we both sighed.
“Why didn’t you tell me about Casey?”
“I don’t know,” I said with a shrug. “It was high school, and you’re a big boy who can take care of himself. Plus, I honestly wanted to see how long you were going to be able to stand that laugh of hers.”
Tossing his head back and laughing, Gunner dropped his head on the headrest and cursed.
“Shit. She is annoying as hell. Why didn’t I see that before?”
“’Cause you probably wanted into her pants.”
He shook his head. “Yeah, well, that was the last thing on my mind tonight. I just wanted to get the whole night over with.”
“Let’s call Josh and Brad, see if they want to join us for a beer.”
Gunner nodded and started up his truck. “Sounds good to me. I’ll be glad for spring break; I’m ready to get the hell away from Austin.”
Ari’s face popped into my head when I pulled up my phone and saw her text still on the screen.
Hitting reply, I typed out my response.
Me: Looks like you handled yourself perfectly fine, Squirt.
It was less than twenty seconds later, and I was smiling at her response.
Ari: Stop calling me that, you fucking dickhead, son of a bitch, asshole jerkface!
I knew if I could see her right now as she typed that out, she’d have a huge smile on her face. Ari loved yanking my chain as much I loved doing it to her.
Backing out of the texts, I pulled up Josh’s number, and we planned on meeting back at our place. None of us felt like hitting up a bar, so Josh offered to stop and pick up a few pizzas and some beer.
It would have been the perfect ending to this shit day except for the fact that I laid in bed that night haunted by Ari’s green eyes. My dick was so fucking hard that I ended up having to jerk off to the image of Arianna Peterson’s beautiful face.
That girl was going to be the death of me.
Chapter Nine – Gunner
“I really hate spring training,” Josh said as he leaned over and tried to catch his breath from the three-mile run we just did.
“You and me both,” I replied. My body was aching, and I was wishing I had worked out a bit more after football season ended.
Glancing over to Jeff, I saw he was hopping up and down like a damn fool. He clapped his hands together and screamed out how amazing he felt at least four times.
“Damn! That was a good run!” he said walking up to us.
“Fucker,” Josh whispered as I let out a laugh.
Jeff hit Josh on the back. “What’s the matter, Hayes? All that sex not keeping you in shape?”
“Go to hell, Johnson.”
Jeff roared with laughter before focusing on me. “Dude, I told ya you needed to start hitting the gym more.”
I lifted my hand and gave him the finger.
He slapped his chest and pointed to me. “I love you too, bro.”
When practice was finally over, we walked out to my truck.
“That felt damn good to be back at it. I fucking love football,” Jeff practically shouted.
Josh grumbled, and I shot Jeff a dirty look.
“I need a hot bath,” Josh stated as he climbed into the back seat of my truck.
“I need a beer. Let’s go to Fado’s.”
Shaking my head, I answered, “No. I just want to go and soak in a hot tub.”
Jeff stared at me. “You pussy.” Turning to look at Jeff, he kept going. “Both of you are pussies. Jesus, look at the two of you. It was football practice, not a damn marathon.”
“Felt like it,” Josh stated with a slight chuckle.
“No, we’re not going home, and we’re not going to Fado’s.”
“Are we going to get something to eat, ’cause I’m starving?” Josh asked.
“No, asshole, no food. We’re going to the gym.”
Laughing, I shook my head. “The hell we are. I just spent a few hours sweating my ass off; I’m not going to the gym. I’m with Josh; food sounds good.”
“Fine, let’s grab something to eat, but then we’re hitting the gym later.”
Josh scoffed. “Yeah, you have fun with that. I have a date tonight. Sorry, dude.”
Jeff turned to face Josh. “A date with who?”
“Some girl I met at the gym.”
Jeff and I both laughed. “Oh holy hell. That explains why you’re so damn out of shape. You’re using the gym as a pickup spot. Do you even work out when you’re there?”
“Screw you, asshole. Yes, I work out. I’ve hooked up with the girl before. She teaches yoga, and let me tell you, the girl can bend. In all kinds of ways.”
“She have any yoga friends?” Jeff asked.
“I’m sure she does. You want me to find out?”
“Fuck yeah, I need to get laid. It’s been too long.”
I yawned and pulled out of the parking lot.
“Do you need a nap, Gunner?” Jeff asked.
“I haven’t been sleeping good. Keep having the same damn dream over and over again, and I wake up trying to figure out what in the hell it means.”
“Scary dream?” Josh asked.
My eyes lifted to the rearview mirror. “I’m not twelve, Josh.”
He shrugged. “Well, you’re the one who said you can’t sleep because of it.”
“What’s it about?” Jeff asked.
I didn’t even want to touch Jeff’s question with a ten-foot pole. I sighed and said, “It doesn’t matter. Where are we eating?”
“Let’s go to Magnolia Cafe,” Josh said. “I’m in the mood for their migas.”
“Damn, that sounds good. I’m down for Magnolia’s,” Jeff said.
“Then Magnolia’s it is,” I said as I headed through downtown.
By the time we got there and parked, my stomach was protesting the fact that I had skipped breakfast.
“I’m so damn hungry I could eat a horse,” I said following the hostess.
“You boys just get done working out?” the waitress asked as she set three glasses of water on the table.
“Football practice,” Josh said, looking at the menu.
Jeff, on the other hand, was staring at the girl’s breasts. I couldn’t blame him; she was leaving nothing to the imagination.
“Like what you see?” she asked, leaning over more to set my water down.
Flashing her a smile, Jeff replied, “As a matter of fact, I do.”
That’s when Josh lifted his gaze and finally noticed our waitress. She was pretty, with blonde hair pulled up and in a ponytail. Her low-cut shirt was tucked into a pair of jean shorts.
She gave all three of us a sexy smile. “Do y’all want to start with some chips and salsa or some Mag mud?”
“How about a side of you?” Josh said with a wink.
Her teeth sunk into her lip. “As fun as that sounds, I’m working,” she pouted.
“There’s always later tonight.”
Jeff and I both looked at Josh. Did he forget he already had a date tonight?
Placing her hands on the table, she leaned and whispered while sweeping her gaze across all three of us. “A triple-decker?”
“Hell no,” Jeff said, laughing.
I cleared my throat. “We’ll take some chips with some Mag mad, please. I’ll have a sweat tea as well.”
“Fuck, I need a beer after that mental image,” Josh stated.
The waitress looked at Jeff. He pointed to his water. “I’ll stick with water.”
She turned and headed away from our table.
Josh pulled his eyes off her ass and looked at us. “As hot as she is and as much as I want to face-plant between her tits, there is no way I would ever do that with y’al
l.”
“You afraid my dick is bigger than yours?” Jeff asked as I laughed and took a drink of water.
“You wish, asshole. My dick would put your dick to shame. He’d be too afraid to come out and play.”
“Ha! I say we let our cute little waitress decide who has the bigger dick.”
My eyes widened as I stared at the two of them.
“Are you serious right now? Are y’all really comparing your dicks and thinking of asking the waitress to decide who is better hung?”
They both looked at me and answered at the same time. “Yes.”
I rolled my eyes and went back to the menu.
“Hell, she just asked about fucking all three of us at once. You honestly think she’d have a problem comparing my dick to Josh’s?”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care. Can we just drop this conversation, please? It’s sort of creeping me out.”
The waitress was back with my sweet tea and Josh’s beer.
“You boys know what you want?”
Jeff and Josh both stared up at her and said, “Yes.” Then they looked at each other and frowned.
“I’ll take the Newport chicken club,” I announced.
She smiled and asked, “You want fries, chips, or salsa?”
“Fries.”
She nodded and then focused on the two idiots who were still staring at her.
“I’ll take the Sonora quesadillas,” Jeff said with a smile and wink.
“And what may I get for you?”
“Your number,” Josh stated.
Flipping her notebook, she wrote her number down and handed it to Josh, then turned to Jeff and did the same thing. When she looked at me, I shook my head.
“No, thanks.”
She jerked her shoulder up and turned back to Josh. “What can I get you foodwise, honey?”
“I’ll take the migas, please.”
“Would you like bacon, ham, or sausage for an additional charge?”
He shook his head. “I’ll take toast, though, please.”
“I’ll get this right out. My name’s Sunshine if y’all need anything else.”
Spinning on her heels, she walked off.
“Sunshine. I bet she could brighten my day anytime of the day,” Jeff said.