Page 5 of Betting on Lizzie

He hung up and glanced at the calendar—two weeks until Thanksgiving. Maya had a few basketball games before then. Other than that, his schedule was pretty wide open. Work and Maya were really the only things on his plate.

Ian Knox poked his head in Ben’s office door. “Bro, the guys say you turned them down again to go out. I’m going. Come with?”

Ian was one of the fire investigators in Ben’s crew. If Ben had anything resembling a friend, it would be Ian. Even that was probably a stretch, but he liked him and wouldn’t mind hanging out with him. He tried to remember the last time he went out to “have fun.” It had been a while. Maybe it was time he started planning for life after Maya.

“Actually, Maya just told me she’s having a sleepover tomorrow, so sure. I’m in.”

“What?” Ian said, clutching his chest and feigning surprise. “I didn’t think it’d be that easy. But, hey, that’s great. Meet you there around nine?”

“Nine? My bedtime is ten.”

“I believe that.” Ian chuckled. “One drink. It’ll do you good to get out of the house.” Ian waved on his way out.

Ben worked till five, packed up his stuff, and drove home. Maya had already come and gone. The varsity team was required to cheer on the JV players, so she had to be at the school hours before her game.

He changed into jeans and a hoodie, walked Jasper, their ten-year-old beagle, and ate alone. The eerie quiet made him antsy, and he finally got up and turned on the TV.

Maya’s game was the home opener, so the drive only took ten minutes. He paid the minimal entrance fee and climbed to his regular seat at the top of the bleachers.

Pride overwhelmed him when they introduced the starting lineup, and Maya and her teammates ran onto the court one by one. His baby. All grown up. One thing he liked about the games was that they allowed him to study her without getting “that” look. She had his height but her mother’s beauty—long chestnut hair and pretty brown eyes. He knew she’d dated a little here and there but never really had a boyfriend. And thank goodness. He wasn’t ready for that.

Of course, he’d probably scared the crap out of her with his own high school love debacle. Jenna had been his girlfriend since freshman year. He assumed they’d grow up and get married. But when she got pregnant at the end of their senior year, her true colors showed.

He’d proposed, and she’d accepted, only to break his heart before any nuptials took place. Not even a year after Maya’s birth, she sat Ben down and told him she wasn’t meant for motherhood. That she wanted to travel the world and couldn’t be bothered with a child. Stunned to find himself an eighteen-year-old single dad, his whole life changed. After that, he had only one priority—and her name was Maya.

Maya scored an easy layup, and Ben cheered along with the crowd. At the bell signaling the end of the first quarter, Maya looked up and waved, a broad smile on her face. In moments like this, he had no regrets. She was the joy of his life.

Halfway through the second quarter, a girl he’d never seen before scored. A group sitting several rows down from him, clearly the girl’s family, cheered wildly. He could only see the backs of their heads, but one woman captured his attention. Out of the sea of blonds, she was the lone one with dark hair, nearly black. When she turned to talk to the person beside her, he caught the glint of bright blue eyes, a dramatic contrast to her hair.

Throughout the rest of the game, a strange tug kept forcing him to glance in her direction. She was pretty, no sense denying that. Not that he cared. From his view on the top row, he spied several other men eyeing her, including many seated next to wives.

The group seemed to be paired off. An older couple—the parents, Ben surmised. And four younger duos, three of whom juggled infants, all around the same age. The dark-haired woman was the only exception. He watched as she chatted away with the people around her, took turns holding a baby, and cheered for the new girl on Maya’s team, Bella.

After the game, Ben flashed a goodbye wave to Maya and headed home. After weekday practices, she’d come straight home and start her homework. But it was Friday, and their first game of the season, so she would shower and go out with her friends. Probably to get ice cream or coffee.

He returned to an empty condo, walked Jasper again, and settled on the couch with the latest Jack Reacher novel. A blue-eyed brunette butted into his thoughts more than once, but he tamped down any glimmer of attraction. Women weren’t a priority right now. Maybe, once Maya left for college, he’d consider dating. But until then, she remained his main focus and responsibility.

CHAPTER THREE

On Saturdays, Lizzie usually went to the bar late so she could stay until closing. But this afternoon, she’d just returned from a long walk with Charlie when she received a desperate message from Brett, begging for help. Justin had gone home sick, and the place was packed.

She showered, dressed quickly, and twisted her wet hair into a bun.

“Hey, buddy,” she said to Charlie. “You ready to go to work?”

She loaded him into the car and drove the short distance downtown. Since his adoption, Charlie had become a constant fixture at The Drop. It might be some kind of health code violation, but she’d purposely never looked into it. That way, she could claim plausible deniability if anyone ever complained. Sometimes, when business was slow, he’d mosey around and greet patrons, but mostly, he just slept in Lizzie’s office, especially at night. The morning’s long walk must have tuckered him out because he went straight to his bed once they arrived. Lizzie jumped in to take over bartending.

She’d been there about an hour when a group of men paraded in, obviously celebrating something. And obviously, having started the party beforehand. She recognized one of them as Dax, a firefighter she’d dated for a couple of weeks. From the look of his crew, he was with friends from work.

One guy stood out. He appeared to be a little older and a lot impatient with their obnoxious, rowdy antics. Maybe he was their boss. As the man approached the bar, Lizzie sensed wariness in his soulful, coffee-brown eyes.

“Your best añejo, neat. Please,” he said.

Lizzie’s eyebrows inched upward. Sophisticated drink for a sophisticated man?

“You seem incongruous with that crowd,” she said, reaching for the top-shelf tequila.

“Yeah, I probably am,” he said. There was some gray at his temples and a few creases in his forehead, but that didn’t detract from his commanding presence and handsome face. He glanced at his phone, sighed, and rolled his eyes. “Ugh. I’m gonna kill that guy.” He’d muttered it, but she overheard him.

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