Page 46 of Belle Amour

“American football.” Peter supplied with a grin. “From what I understand, one of the groomsmen is part of the Jack Roth Stadium Club and managed to reserve twenty seats for the group.”

“Wait, we're not in a sky box?” Victor asked in surprise.

“Nope.” Peter chuckled. “Apparently, they couldn’t afford it, but we do have access to the premium lounge.”

Robert, Bastian and Victor exchanged a look. “Funny how that worked out,” Victor muttered as Eddie walked in and spotted them. He came over, looking dejected at seeing his family sitting with Bastian, joking and talking with each other.

“The bus is here to take us to the stadium.”He announced as he came to a stop awkwardly by the table.

“Bus?” Victor couldn’t seem to hold back his annoyance, but Bastian wasn’t sure if it was because he was unaware of the bus and was expected to join them on it or if he was just annoyed with his son in general.

“Yeah, we rented a party bus to take us to the stadium and bring us back. Cut down on the chances of drunk driving.” He attempted a grin, but Bastian could see how forced it was, and it slipped off his face quickly as he looked away from them and around the restaurant.

“Right.” Victor huffed. “Well, let's go.” Victor caught the waitress's attention and said to charge their meals to his room. Bastian started to protest, but Victor waved him down and said it was fine.Eddie frowned but didn’t say anything; just gestured for them to follow him out to the bus. They were among the first to get on and managed to get a seat in the back corner where they could talk without anyone paying attention to them.

When the bus started to move, one of the groomsmen with a black eye handed out their tickets and bracelets so they could move around the stadium and club freely. He paused when he got to Bastian and held out his hand. “Don't think we've met. I'm Charlie.”

“Bastian, I'm a friend of the family.” Bastian smiled and shook Charlie's hand.He had been pretty sure Eddie would have told his friends who he was, but now he realized that Eddie kept it to himself, not drawing attention to Bastian so theconversation wouldn’t turn to him cheating on Mirabelle and keeping Bastian from telling their side of the story, which he had to admit was smart on Eddie’s part.

“Let me guess; you were a running back.” Charlie grinned at him as he passed him his bracelet and ticket.

“Oh, no. Never played.” Bastian shook his head. “Football wasn’t my thing at university; I was on the varsity wrestling team.”

“Really? Huh.” Charlie eyed him, looking disappointed. “Well, enjoy.” He said hello to the others, gave them their bracelets and tickets, and then moved on to the next group.

“Seems you let him down.” Peter chuckled when Charlie was out of earshot.

“I guess so.” Bastian was amused. “But to be fair, I do get asked that a lot. Did you guys play?”

“I played football or soccer, as you guys call it.” Benji stretched his long legs out in front of him. “But only on my hometown's team, not professionally or in university. Just something I did for fun and to keep in shape.”

“I was only interested in sports that would help me become a firefighter.” Peter was looking around curiously. Most of the men on the bus had started drinking, and cans of beer were being passed around. “I did track and field.”

Robert shook his head. “Nope, I was in art clubs, not sports.” They all looked at Victor, and he smiled.

“I was a boxer, much to my parent’s dismay.” Before they could ask anything else about that, Eddie came down, holding a six-pack of beer and smiling that forced polite smile.

“I know my father and Robert won't partake; it's less than twelve years old, but do you guys want one?”

“Normally, I'd be all over one, but I've been put on standby in case the girls need a ride.” Peter smiled politely. “Thank you, though.”

Benji took one, but Bastian declined. He had never been a beer drinker, preferring scotch or the occasional brandy. “Afraid I'm with your father.” Bastian smiled, keeping his voice civil and respectful. “Twelve years minimum.”

Eddie shrugged and took one himself. “Suit yourself.” He opened the beer and took a swig of it. “Wait. Why would the girls need to be picked up? Aren't they doing the scavenger hunt?”

Robert nodded and chuckled. “Because none of them know anything about Ann Arbor, so for every clue they can't figure out, they're going to a bar for a drink.” He explained.

Eddie's already pale face somehow managed to go even paler. “They're all gonna drink?”

“That's their plan.” Victor glanced at the others in confusion. “Is there a problem with that?”

“Just, you know, the bride, the maid of honour and one of the bridesmaids can't drink. So, it's a little disrespectful, don't you think?”Eddie ran his hand through his hair, and Bastian wondered why he seemed so nervous about it, and a spark of concern flickered in his gut.

Victor rolled his eyes, clearly not sharing Bastian’s apprehension. “None of them are going to be falling down drunk. Why can't they make it enjoyable for themselves?”

Eddie took a deep breath and appeared to be counting to ten to keep his temper in check, and then seemed to decide to just lay everything out for them. “I don't want any more issues with Casey. Pregnancy has made her a nightmare to deal with.” He glanced at Bastian. “And Mirabelle has no problem calling people out on their crap sober.”

Bastian smirked. Eddie wasn’t wrong; Mirabelle had no problem telling people to get over their drama issues. “What crap could she possibly call her out on?” His voice was lightly teasing, and when Eddie gave him an exasperated look, he chuckled. “Don't worry; Mira wants to have fun with her friends; she's not looking to start drama.”

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