Page 37 of The Pickleball Girl Finds Her Match

“Is that who you save your wishes for?” asked Endy tenderly.

“Yes, he was the one. I’ll spare you all the details, otherwise we’ll be here until the golfers come out for their first rounds,” he said. “But we met working at Macy’s. We were both buyers … I was buying sweaters, he was blouses. And we were on a two-week trip to Hong Kong.”

Paul shifted on his blanket, pulling one side up to cover him. “Gharrett was recently separated from his wife and struggling with his sexuality. And well, two weeks in the same hotel in a foreign country with plenty of American whiskey and complete anonymity—”

“—traveling alone with a handsome blond who’s endlessly charming and interesting,” interrupted Endy.

“Right … and all that.” Paul chuckled. “Well, we fell madly in love.”

A shooting star stretched across the velvety night sky, a fleeting whisper as it danced across the heavens. Endy sighed and snuggled closer to Sebastian.

“But the last night we were in Hong Kong, we decided to do some stargazing from the rooftop bar of the Ritz-Carlton, our hotel. We were drinking champagne and holding hands under the table. It was so romantic, just us together, under the stars. But then a waiter came to our table and asked Gharrett his name and room number. Apparently a phone call had come to the hotel for him and the caller was holding on a guest phone at the end of the bar. When Gharrett heard this, he kind of spooked and yanked his hand from mine and ran to the phone. It was his wife calling, and she was distraught. They had young kids, and she wasn’t coping well, and she begged him to come home. I knew before he hung up the phone that it was going to be the last time I’d ever be with him.” Paul paused and wiped the back of his hand across his eyes. “It was almost like I could hear him from all the way across the bar when he looked at me and said, ‘I’m sorry.’ So I drained my glass of champagne and then finished his as he walked out of my life.” The coyotes’ plaintive howls echoed across the golf course.

“He loved you,” murmured Endy, “… but he just left you?”

“Yes, he just left me,” replied Paul, a sadness creeping into his words. “He had someone else that he loved before me. Someone he’d been with for years. Someone he had history with. How could I compete with that?”

Endy reached out and grasped Paul’s hand, holding it tight. She blinked quickly as a dazzling comet lit up the sky, reflecting off the tears welled up in her eyes.

“How could anyone compete with that?” Endy softly asked.

23

Endy walked into the Stout House to find it was packed and uncomfortably warm. The odor of a burned hamburger bun drifted in the air, stirred by the multiple ceiling fans. As she walked past the hostess station, she tucked her phone away after replying to a text from Sebastian. He’d asked her to go to lunch at the last minute, and she’d responded that she had a work meeting so wouldn’t be able to join him.

“Hey, Joel,” Endy said, placing her phone on the table. He smiled, obviously happy to see her. She pulled out the only other chair and slid onto it. “Who else is coming?”

“Nobody,” replied Joel. “Just us.” Endy slipped him a curious glance but smiled as a waitress set two pint glasses in front of them before walking away.

“I went ahead and got you an IPA too,” said Joel, and he pushed one glass toward Endy.

“Thanks, I guess. I usually prefer wine—”

“This is a new local brew. You’ll love it.”

Endy took a sip, studying Joel. He looked great, with his hair all casually mussed up and his polo shirt tight across his muscular chest. Endy had not failed to notice the waitress checking him out when she’d delivered their beers.

Joel slid a menu across the table, so Endy picked it up and scanned the lunch specials listed. A song by The Weeknd played loudly over the speakers while a busboy cleared a nearby table, the plates clattering as he scooped them into a plastic tub.

Joel cleared his throat. “Did you send back that extra order of tennis bags?” he asked, leaning back into his chair.

“The Wilson ones?” asked Endy, looking up from the menu. “Yeah, those went back yesterday.”

“Good.” Joel nodded. “Good. And what did you tell Maria about her time off request?”

“Well, I told her it was okay. I mean, it’s not every day that her niece has a quinceañera.”

Joel’s eyebrow raised. “She has, like, a thousand nieces.”

Endy chuckled. “Right. But she’s super close to this particular one. She only needs one day off, so I’ll cover her Saturday shift. It’ll be fine.”

“Good.” Joel nodded. He sipped his beer and looked around the crowded room. “Seems like we are finally going to get a break in the weather. It’s been so warm …”

“Joel, what’s going on? Why are you being so weird?” Endy asked, her eyes squinting.

Joel took a deep breath and leaned forward, his forearms on the table.

“Listen, Endy, I’ve been thinking …” He looked deep into her eyes. “Maybe we should never have broken up. We were a good couple once and, um, I think we should try again.”

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