Page 62 of The Future Play

When I step into the beautifully set up entertaining area of the backyard with trellises, vines, and natural wildflowers, everyone turns to look at me.

And there go my cheeks.

Off to a great start.

Amanda pushes out of her chair, eyes big, and when those stunning whiskey eyes meet mine, I see overwhelming joy.

That alone is worth how uncomfortable I feel right now.

“Jamie, hi.”

“Ah, is this yourfriend?” a woman I’m assuming is her mother asks.

“Yep,” she squeaks. “Mom, this is Jamie.”

“Jamie Henderson,” I say, walking over and offering my hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Hamilton. Thank you for having me.”

“It’s nice to meet you too. And call me Libby, please.” She looks at Amanda. “Is he yourboyfriend?”

“Yes,” I say at the same time Amanda says, “No.”

A girl with dark blonde hair, who I’m assuming is Jace, snickers at that.

“You better not be stalking my sister or trying to convince her to join a cult,” a guy with auburn hair and the same sarcastic tone as Amanda says.

“Eh, as long as it’s not one of the ones with murder-suicide pacts…” A different guy, this one with light brown hair, says.

“Let me guess, you’re Josh,” I say flatly. He arches a brow and looks like he might say something snarky, but I turn back to the other guy. “And you’re Pete.”

“That’s me.”

“Oh, right,” Amanda says, stepping over to me. “Uh, that’s Jace.” She points to the girl. “That’s my dad, Bryce.” She points him both out, and then nods to the other two adults. “And those are Jace’s parents. Jace’s friend Sienna, her brother Miguel, and their dad will be here later too.”

“Cool. It’s nice to meet you all.”

There’s a chorus of agreement, but one voice cuts through it all.

“So, I’m confused. Are you dating or not?” Jace asks dramatically.

Amanda shoots her a death glare.

“Well, it’s not official. I’m still working on getting her to say yes to a date. I kind of screwed that up originally, but I have every intention of making her my girlfriend.”

“Cool. Break her heart, I break your pitching hand.” Pete smacks me on the shoulder as he walks toward the table where food is set up.

My eyes fly wide, and he grins at me over his shoulder. “Yeah. I figured out who you are,baseball boy.”

“You’re dead to me,” Amanda calls.

“Wow, and here I was expecting a sweet little family get together.”

Amanda snorts. “You picked the wrong house.”

“Not a chance.” Finally, I wrap my arms around her, and Ilove the way she melts into the hug and buries her face in my chest. “Hi.”

“Hi,” she whispers, looking up at me. “I’m glad you’re here.”

I press a quick kiss to her forehead. “So am I.”

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