Page 13 of Might as Well

I’m not sure he believes me. He catches me up on the past twenty-four hours since we last spoke as we ride to a banquet hall. For some reason, I was thinking of a house party, but this is way more than that.

The dark room glistens with strategically placed lights all around to prevent it from being completely blacked out. The spooky decorations are impressive. All kinds of costumes mill around.

“Let me introduce you to some of my friends,” Zane says as he immediately leads me to the right with a warm hand on my lower back.

“Z!” a man shouts as he spots Zane. He looks like a horrifying clown, and a woman in a matching costume stands next to him. “Who’s this?” he asks once we’re closer.

“Violet. Violet, this is Ian and his wife, Sydney.”

They shake my hand and give me the usualit’s nice to meet yougreeting.

“Savannah misses you,” Ian says.

“I’ll be over soon,” Zane promises. “What did she decide to be this year?”

“A mermaid, and Andrew is a bear,” Sydney answers. She glances at me. “Savannah and Andrew are our kids and our daughter just loves Zane. He’s like a fun uncle or big brother to her.”

Zane seems embarrassed at her words. It’s kinda cute. “They have great kids,” he tells me.

“Uh, Deanna was looking for you,” Ian says, earning a glare from his wife. “Just giving you a heads-up.”

Zane shrugs. If I remember correctly, that’s his ex who is now with his teammate. Before I can wonder what she wants, Sydney peppers me with questions about myself. Zane and Ian step away to get us drinks. At some point, Ian returns, but Zane doesn’t. My gaze travels until I spot him with a woman dressed as a cowgirl.

“Is that her?” I interrupt Sydney.

“Yeah,” she sighs.

She’s pretty. “Does she still have feelings for him?”

Ian scoffs. “No,” he says as if it’s such a ridiculous idea.

“Does he have feelings for her?”

Their beat of silence causes me to look at them. “No,” Sydney answers. “Zane loves with his whole heart, even if he just likes someone. He wants to be someone’s everything and be that for someone else. He wore rose-colored glasses with her and when they came off, he was pretty hurt.”

I can understand that. But if neither has feelings for the other, then what does Deanna want with him and why is he over there with her instead of here with me? And why does jealousy surge through me when I was just questioning whether I’m truly married?

Sydney talks about her kids, but my focus stays on Zane. He looks bored, honestly. He looks over at me and smiles before shifting back to the woman. I’m not sure what they’re talking about, but their body language alone causes me to relax and find the strength to beat down the jealousy. She’s moved on and Zane seems more than ready to do the same.

CHAPTER 4

ZANE

“What were you thinking, Zane?” Deanna asks. “You married a stranger in Vegas? That doesn’t even sound like you.”

Nowshe cares about me and what I do? “You don’t know me that well, Deanna. And what I do shouldn’t really matter to you. Don’t you have a boyfriend you should be with right about now?”

“I was just worried about you,” she says softly. “I do want you to be happy.”

My gaze lifts involuntarily to Violet, who seems to be watching intently. I flash her a smile before turning back to Deanna.

“Then you have nothing to worry about. I’m not your concern, Deanna, and I’d appreciate it if you’d remember that.” It’s one thing to be okay that she’s with Brayden. If she’s happy, so am I. But that doesn’t mean I want to hang out with either of them. I want to be civil and nothing more. I realize now that I should have trusted my gut and the bazillion red flags, as well as Deanna’s word, instead of hoping for something different. I also should have acted differently afterward, but that’s over and done with. Even though she was honest about what she wantedand expected, it still doesn’t mean I want to hang out with her or have casual conversation.

“Deanna,” Brayden’s gruff voice interrupts us. She turns to face him. “Leave him alone and let him get back to his date.”

Deanna turns toward me with wide eyes. “She’s here?”

“Of course she’s here. Where else would she be?” I pick up the drinks I came to get us. “See you guys around.” With that, I head back to my date.

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