Page 123 of Zane

When they were back in their seats, all the attention was on handing out the food and drinks they’d picked up for everyone. Surprisingly, everything was correct.

Kelsey hadn’t been hungry for a hotdog, so she’d settled for a bag of chips and a drink. Meanwhile, Zane tucked into his hot dog, looking like it was his favourite food ever, though she wasn’t sure she’d ever actually seen him eat one before.

“Was that guy bugging you?” he asked.

“Bugging me?” Kelsey said. “Not really. He just gave me a hand down from the bleachers.”

Zane glanced from her to Lee and back to Kelsey again. “As long as he wasn’t bugging you.”

“Lee knows him,” Kelsey told him. “And he introduced me, letting him know that I was his sister-in-law.”

Zane’s gaze drifted down to where Eric still stood with a handful of people. Kelsey wished she could read his mind in that moment to see if he was upset with her because of what had happened.

He hadn’t been pleased when she decided not to wear her rings. She knew that. So maybe he’d blame her for Eric’s approach.

The thought left a pit in Kelsey’s stomach because she’d once had a boyfriend who had blamed her any time a guy showed the slightest bit of interest in her, even if it was just as friends. That relationship hadn’t lasted long because Kelsey didn’t like being held responsible for something over which she had no control.

She had never acted flirtatiously with other men. It just wasn’t who she was. And even if she was inclined to be that way, she certainly wouldn’t flirt with a guy while she was in a relationship with someone else.

Kelsey could only hope that Zane would see that it had been a truly innocent interaction. She wasn’t completely certain how her Zane would’ve acted, because they’d never really run into that situation.

“As long as you didn’t feel harassed.”

“Not harassed, really,” she said as she peered into her chip bag. “Just kind of an awkward situation.”

“Want me to have a word with him?”

Kelsey quickly shook her head. “It really was nothing. He just offered his help off the bleachers, and Lee stepped in to introduce me as his sister-in-law. It’s all fine.”

She really wanted to get past the interaction. It was a nothing encounter, and she just wanted to put it out of her mind. They’d been enjoying the evening, and she didn’t want this to negatively impact it.

The second half started with the blow of a whistle, and for the remainder of the game, Kelsey tried her best not to dwell on what had happened with Eric.

When the final buzzer sounded, people stood and clapped for the home team's win. Jay gathered his players around him, high fiving each of them.

Charli and Blake left pretty quickly after saying goodbye, no doubt eager to pry the girls from their friends and get home to their other kids. Will and Janessa weren’t far behind.

As she filed out of the row, Zane stayed close behind her as they made their way down. Thankfully, Eric was gone already when they reached the floor, and Kelsey was able to leave to step off the bleachers without any issue, even without a helping hand.

“Who was that guy making the moves on my wife, Lee?” Zane asked as the four of them left the gym.

“He wasn’t necessarily making moves on Kelsey, bro,” Lee replied. “He was offering her a hand.”

“Who is he? I didn’t recognize him.”

“His name is Eric, and I know him because he’s brought his dog into the clinic a couple of times. He’s a nice guy.”

“He needs to direct his niceness in another direction,” Zane said.

Kelsey hadn’t seen a jealous side of Zane before. And she wasn’t entirely sure she was seeing it then, either. But it was odd that he felt the need to warn a guy off of being nice to her.

If only Zane understood that right then, the only man she wanted that type of attention from was him. She wantedhimto offer her a hand. She wantedhimto tell her she was beautiful.

But that wasn’t what had happened that evening. A stranger had stepped in and done those things, and apparently, it had unsettled both her and Zane. What that meant, she had no idea.

“Are you sure that guy wasn’t bugging you?” Zane asked once it was just the two of them in her car. “Even if Lee likes the guy, you can be honest.”

“I was honest,” she said. “He wasn’t bugging me. He offered me a hand down off the last step, then asked Lee who the… beautiful lady was.”

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