Page 24 of Taming the CEO

Leo started to laugh and called loudly, "Hey, Nick." Every player on the neighboring courts glared at him at the interruption. "You were right. He knows about it."

Nick just gave us a thumbs-up.

"So you did know about yesterday," I countered.

Leo shook his head. "Just bits and pieces."

I laughed. "Glad to know my personal life is such a source of conversation."

"Hey, better yours than ours. I'm happy with my bachelor status. I just have to find a way for Gran to get the memo."

"All right, who's ready for round two?" I asked.

There was a chorus of yeses, and we took our positions. Spencer was truly exhausted, but the guy was also 100 percent happier since becoming a dad and finding Penny. Not too long ago, I would have sworn that none of us were going to have a family. That the Whitley legacy would die with us. I didn't even know if it was a conscious choice, but we'd all had enough marriage drama with our parents to last for a lifetime.

Despite the fact that Spencer moved in slow motion, we won the second set. That meant a third game was necessary because it was a tie.

"Come on, I want a drink before this next one. Let's head to the juice bar," Gabe said.

I laughed. "Want to break our winning streak?"

"Maybe, but I'm thirsty too."

"We could all do with a drink," Cade said as we headed to the juice bar.

It served alcoholic drinks, too, but it was far too early in the morning for that. We sat at the bar. The place was busy with people sitting at tables, some in the comfy armchairs, others on bar stools like us.

As we ordered a variety of refreshing drinks, Spencer groaned, checking his phone.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Penny just texted that Ben's now afraid of the teddy bear he liked yesterday. Fuck, I wish parenthood came with a handbook. It would make things so much easier."

"Damn right it would." If there were, maybe I’d contemplate having a family. But as it was, the probability of messing things up like Dad had was too big.

"Dude," Leo said seriously, "if you need to go, don't worry about the game, okay? This is supposed to help you wind down, not cause more anxiety."

Spencer shook his head. "No, it's fine. Penny and I have an agreement. We have certain times when we do things on our own."

"That's a very healthy way to take breaks," I said.

He nodded. "Some days I still can't believe I was such a lucky bastard to meet her. That she wanted me and Ben."

I understood where he was coming from. Penny was a great partner. In fact, all of my brothers' women were great. They were lucky.

After we all finished our drinks, we headed back to the court. The place was filling up. Nick had done an excellent job at creating an environment where people wanted to spend hours here. It was far more than a gym.

This had been one of Dad's pet projects that he'd opened on a whim with no clear plan for profitability. It had been in shambles when Nick took it over, but he'd done a spectacular job. I especially liked that they had both outdoor and indoor courts.

"By the way," Gabe said to me before we started playing again. "I saw on the calendar that you’re meeting the architect Monday morning at the location."

"We’ve got some details to iron out."

"I'll join you."

"Are you sure? I can handle it."

"No, I want to be involved in every step," he said.

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