Page 68 of The Games We Play
Penny: Do you even know who I am?
Theo: I’m gonna skip out. Rhodes and I are hooked on this show and have to watch to see how it ends
Ellie: I’m in! I’ll come by after closing the stand!
Ibolted straight home after work, practically peeling off my modest dress and diving into my closet. Ellie and Aspen were already waiting at the bar for our long-overdue girls’ night out, even though we were missing Theo.
Cowboy boots on? Check.
Low-cut top? Hell yes.
Mini skirt? Obviously.
Clutching my cow-print purse like a statement, I strutted down Main Street from my apartment, one foot in front of theother, toward The Tequila Cowboy. The night air kissed my skin, and the hum of small-town Friday night wrapped around me like a promise.
A low, nagging guilt tugged at the edges of my excitement. None of them knew about Mac. Not the sweet beginnings, not the explosive fallout. Not the long silences or the way he was now, trying to claw his way out of the doghouse. And with everything that happened the last week, I didn’t know how well I’d be able to hold it together.
It wasn’t like me to not tell my friends what was going on in the world of Penny. I was always the oversharer—the first to admit my intrusive thoughts, the one who never hesitated to say the quiet parts out loud. But this? What happened with Mac? It was still too raw. The pain too real. The words too tangled to unravel just yet.
Maybe once the dust settled, I’d open up. Maybe when orifthings got repaired, I’d explain it all to them. But not tonight.
Tonight, I’d dance until my feet ached and my head spun. I’d laugh too loud, toss my hair just right, and pretend like nothing in the world was weighing on me.
Music would be my armor.
I smiled, lips curling at the edges as the stars shimmered above me.
I’d give Mac a run for his money. Let him watch from the bar while I flirted just enough to keep him guessing. Just enough to remind him what he stood to lose.
And no one would question a thing—because the best way to keep a secret… is to put on a show.
Deep down, I knew it wasn’t a complete show. There was a genuine need for this man that still simmered underneath. The more he came around, the more I’d been easing up.
The bass could be heard from the sidewalk outside. I gripped the cool metal handle, and I flung the bar door open. Instantly, Iwas swallowed by a wave of chatter, the low hum of conversation mixing with moody neon lights that painted everything in hues of red and violet.
I scanned the room quickly, my eyes landing on two familiar heads of blond hair, backs turned to me. A smile tugged at my lips.
Skipping over, I landed behind them, slinging an arm around each of their shoulders and leaning in between.
“Can I buy you two pretty ladies a drink?” I purred in my best imitation of a guy trying way too hard.
Their heads snapped toward me, recognition lighting their faces just before the laughter came. Ellie grinned and pulled her purse off the stool she’d been saving.
“I’d never say no to that,” she said with a wink.
“Thank God!” Aspen added. “We’ve been dying for a drink. We waited for you, but now I’m thirsty.”
“I know, I know,” I said, throwing my hands up dramatically. “I’m here now! What’s it gonna be?”
“Tequila!” they chorused like it was rehearsed.
I raised a hand in the air, lifting slightly on my stool as I tried to catch Jolie’s attention behind the bar.
She was working withhimtonight.
Mac was on the other side, towel slung casually from the back pocket of his jeans, leaning on his forearms as he talked to a couple of locals. His body language screamed effortless ease.
My gaze trailed over him, soaking in the way his arms flexed with just the slightest movement, how the soft mess of his hair curled at the nape of his neck.
