Page 18 of Playboy

Playboy rubbed the back of his neck, feeling stupid about having to admit that what he did was dumb.

“I told her I would look at her car.”

Joker’s eyes bugged out of his head. “No, you did not! With Gabby standing right there?”

“Yes. I know I fucked up.”

“What did Gabby do?” Duke asked, giving Playboy a disappointed look.

“She called anUber.”

“Oh, man. You’ve got to tell them what Gabby said to you when you asked her if she was sure,” Aussie laughingly commented.

Playboy glared at Aussie. He already felt like an ass for doing what he did. He didn’t need to add insult to injury.

“Oh, I can only imagine. Tristan and those guys say that she can be pretty witty,” Bear said, giving Playboy a look and saying to spill it.

“Fuck me!” Playboy murmured. He paused for a moment, wondering if he should tell them. But then he knew they wouldn’t leave him alone about it, or Aussie and Snow would tell them, and they would probably add their own version to it. He took a deep breath before running his hand down his face in frustration. “She said, ‘Don’t worry about me. I’ll leave you to your damsel in distress routine because nothing says I’m not interested like dropping everything to play mechanic for the girl who’s clearly got more engine issues than her car.’”

There was complete silence for a few seconds before they all burst out laughing.

“Wow! She’s a little feisty thing,” Nails said, grinning mischievously. “Hot and feisty. My kind of a woman.”

Playboy groaned and glared at Nails, who Playboy knew was just trying to rile him up.

“Have you spoken to her since then?” Joker asked.

“The first time was two nights ago. She came into Bayside and was sitting with her team until her friend Luna showed up. I did buy her a drink and spoke with her briefly.”

“And how did that go?”

“I think it went alright. She didn’t ignore me or throw the drink in my face. She was friendly and even asked if I was coming here today.”

He wasn’t going to mention how he caught her looking at him while she was having dinner with her friend.

“I don’t know why you just don’t ask her out. Obviously, there’s something there,” Duke said.

“Because when I’m around her, I get so fucking nervous.”

The guys chuckled. Then Jay Bird, the quietest of the group, slapped his shoulder.

“You just need to relax. She seems like an understanding woman. When you get another opportunity to talk to her, I would first apologize for what happened at the gala. Be honest with her. Then after you grovel for being a dick, you can ask her out.”

They all nodded in agreement.

He grinned, knowing his friends were right. He just needed to man up. God, he hoped it was that easy. Maybe he’d get a chance to talk to her after the competition.

Just then, Gabby’s teammates walked over.

“Hey, what’s up?” Bear greeted the six Coasties.

“Just watching Gabby kick some ass out there,” Tristan said, shaking Bear’s hand.

“She’s pretty impressive,” Bear agreed, glancing at Playboy, who grinned.

“Guys! The next challenge is getting ready to start,” Snow called out, and everyone gathered around, turning their attention to the jumbotrons.

The final round was held a few miles out in the water due to the live rounds they were firing. The competition was equipped with drone cameras and another helicopter with a film crew following the action and streaming it live on the jumbotrons.

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