Page 29 of Burn With Me

I line up my shot and swing, and the ball goes about halfway where I need it to. But it’s lined up so that I can hit it into the hole at the next shot.

I smile and look over my shoulder. “Your turn, champ.”

He looks at the ball and then at me and says, “I take it this isn’t a thing you do every once in a blue moon, is it?” He scrubs a hand down his face. “I’m totally gonna get my ass handed to me during this game,” he groans.

“Yeah, I played once a week for a while before and after COVID. Ya know, to force myself out of the house and away from work when Pam was working.”

He grumbles something that I can’t make out fully, but it sounded like he was doubting his choice of date night options.

That thought makes me pause. Why do I feel so comfortable? This is my third time seeing him, and we barely know each other.

Hearing him say something, I look at him. “Sorry. What was that?”

“Am I boring you already?” he asks with a chuckle.

“No, I’m so sorry. I was trying to figure out how much of a lead to give you,” I say quickly.

“I forgot I’m with a pro mini golfer,” he jokes.

“Nah, but I’m half decent if I actually try,” I say as I take my second shot and watch it roll into the hole. “So, how are you liking the great town of Griffin’s Den so far?” I ask, as I watch him take a couple shots until he finally makes it in the hole.

“I enjoy it. I didn’t realize how burned out I was on the big-city life until I moved here. Like I knew I wanted to move, but I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go. I’ll admit it’s been a struggle not having the food selections I’m used to, but the big box stores are close enough that it’s not so bad. What about you? You’ve been here for five years, right?” he asks as we head to the next hole.

“Yeah, and it’s been great. I love how welcoming everyone has been, and the fact that I had Pam here with me just made it that much easier to transition to small-town life,” I say. “Do you have any family back in Boston?” I ask and take my shot.

I smirk when it gets about halfway down, knowing it’s going to go in the hole, so I turn around to hear his answer.

“Uhh, you aren’t going to watch where the ball goes? What the hell? You just got a hole-in-one,” he says and laughs while looking at the scorecard. “Well, you’re one hundred percent going to kick my ass at this game.”

“I told you I was going to kick your ass, Grant, so I don’t know why you’re acting so surprised.” I laugh.

He shakes his head with a smirk. “To answer your question, no, I’m an only child, and my parents are retired and living it up in Florida. What about you? Any family?”

“No, I’m also an only child. I don’t know my dad, but my mom died during my last year of high school. Pam and Sam’s parents took me in since I was under eighteen. Then I went to college and had a shitty relationship and then moved out here when it ended,” I say, hoping he doesn’t ask for details about my last relationship.

“I’m really sorry to hear about your mom, but I know how great Sam’s parents are, so I know you were in great hands. It’s funny, he only talked about Pam, but he said several times that he had two sisters. I guess I never really thought more about it since we became friends after you moved here,” he says.

The conversation flows easily as we finish the rest of the course, and once we finish and turn in our clubs, I find myself sad that the night might be ending.

Taking a quick peek at the scorecard, I see I beat him by a solid twenty putts. I turn to him and smile. “I think you should frame this scorecard and label it ‘The last time I underestimated Amelia.’” I laugh as we walk into the parking lot as the sun starts to set. In the distance, a sprinkler system kicks on and a few streetlights flicker to life.

“If we’re framing it, we have to take a picture to go with it,” he says as he grabs his phone from his pocket and stops in the middle of the parking lot. Pulling me close, he flips the camera to face us.

I smile, and he clicks the shutter button before putting his phone back in his pocket.

“Hey, maybe I want to see that to make sure I look okay?” I ask with a pout.

“You look beautiful, sweetness. Trust me, I know these things,” he says, smirking at me.

I roll my lips together and look away from him, feeling the blush creep up my neck. Movement catches my eye near the ground, and I stop walking. The cutest little black and orange kitten comes out from behind the tire of the car next to us, and I immediately crouch down.

“Oh my goodness, aren’t you the cutest little thing. What are you doing out here on your own?”

“I’m glad it came out. The way it was hidden, I don’t think the person next to us would have seen it before backing out,” Luke says.

“You don’t have a collar, and you look so dirty. I’m going to take you home with me,” I say without thinking too much about it and slowly move to grab the kitten, hoping I don’t startle it.

“Uhh, you sure you want to just take it home? What about Penny?” Luke says. “Maybe the kitten has a family out here.” He looks around the mostly empty parking lot.

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