Page 49 of After the Vows

“She was talking to him on the phone,” Sophia whisper-shouts.

I stand. “I thought we were playing mini golf.”

Maya claps. “I love this. Lucas and Chloe are cute together. They make the perfect couple.”

“We’re not a couple,” I remind herandmyself. “Our marriage isn’t real.”

“It seemed awful real when you were glued to him while dancing at your wedding reception,” Sophia says.

There’s no explaining to my friends who have love on the brain. I herd them out of my office and down the hallway to the rear exit.

“Where’s Paisley?”

Nova points to Paisley standing in front of Sophia’s car with her putter in her hand. Damn. Mermaid Mini Golf is halfway across the island nearMermaid Mystical Gardens. I’mnever going to make it home in time to say goodnight to Natalia if I don’t have my own transportation.

But my car is in my garage back home. There’s no way my friends are going to let me go pick it up. I might as well make the best of the situation.

I force a smile on my face. “You can use your own putter as much as you want, I’m still going to kick your ass.”

“I’ve been studying YouTube videos.” Of course, she has. Paisley hates to lose at anything.

We pile into the car and drive to the mini golf course. It’s deserted at this hour. Which is good since our group tends to be a bit loud. Usually, I’m the loud one but I want this game over as quick as possible.

“I’ll get the whiskey.” Sophia pours shots of whiskey into plastic cups.

Paisley holds up a cooler. “And I’ve got the beer.”

Because you can’t play Mermaid Mini Golf without beer and whiskey. We drink a shot of whiskey before we begin. While we’re playing, the person with the highest score per hole has to drink from her beer. If you have two high scores in a row, you have to drink a shot of whiskey.

Except I don’t want to get drunk. I have no desire to have a hangover while dealing with the morning chaos of Natalia. Plus, I have a slight tendency to run my mouth when I’m drunk. I don’t need to be a genius to figure out my friends want all the details on Lucas.

They can keep wanting. I’m not telling. Good thing I can be sneaky.

I raise my cup of whiskey. “Here’s to the bootleggers. Masters of sneaky sips and secret stashes. Thanks for keeping the party alive.”

I sip my whiskey but don’t drink it all. Especially since Sophia poured me an extra-large amount. If she’s trying to be subtle, she’s failing.

I wave my putter in the air. “I’m first.”

I’m always first since we go in alphabetical order. Which might have been my idea to begin with.

I set my ball down and line up my shot. I draw my putter back and—

“Holy mermaids! Did you see that?” Maya yells.

I ignore her and putt my ball. Excellent. I’m mere inches from the hole. I line up my shot and— Nova stumbles into me.

“Oops. Sorry. Too much whiskey.” She pretends to hiccup.

I wait until she dances away and line my shot up again. This time no one stops me.

“Two. Not bad.” I dig my ball out of the hole and wait for my friends to take their turns.

None of my friends beat me. Not even Paisley, who looks in pain when she scrunches up her face as she stares at the hole before putting.

“I always lose,” Maya complains when she has to drink.

Nova smiles. “But you’re having fun!” My friend can always see the bright side. It would be amazing if it weren’t annoying.

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