Page 131 of Lucky Shot
“Okay.” She turns to kiss me proper before moving off my lap. I stand with her empty glass. She settles back in my spot, and I head inside and fill her flute with champagne.
On the way back out, I pause in the doorway and take in the scene.
My closest friends are all here tonight: Trav, Shep, D-Low, and Penn. All of them wanted to say goodbye to Ruby and they’ve given her a hell of a send-off. They went in together and bought her a pair of skates, complete with sparkly laces.
Travis also brought her a jersey—his, of course. D-Low brought his copy ofLove Bitesfor her to sign, Penn showed up with Dom Perignon in a blinged-out, diamond encrusted bottle that made Ruby smile bigger than I’ve ever seen, and Shep pulled her into a bear hug that had them both blushing.
Earlier, Aidan sat outside with us and played guitar for us. He was even taking requests, although my friends were niceenough to ask him to play songs they knew he could do. He’s come a long way this summer. Dad has even stopped wearing his headphones while he practices.
I’m not sure I’ve ever been happier. Or sadder.
Travis stands from the rest of the group and walks over to me. “You good?”
“Yeah,” I say, unconvincing even to my own ears. My body is wound tight with too many warring emotions. I’m so glad for the time we had, and I wouldn’t change a thing, but it sucks that she’s going. Every minute, every conversation is leading toward it, and I can’t stop it.
“She’s really leaving, huh?”
“Of course she is.” As much as I hate it.
“I really thought…”
“What?”
He hesitates a beat, head bobbing to either side. “Look, I know. It’s crazy. You barely know each other, blah, blah, blah. But I really thought you two were endgame.”
“I thoughtyouwere determined to be her endgame.”
“I decided to let you have this one.”
I bark out a laugh and a smirk appears on his face.
“How nice of you,” I say with a shake of my head, but despite the joking nature of our conversation, I’m filled with a sinking sensation of dread throughout my body.
“It is. Very nice. So don’t make me regret it.” He backhands me square in the chest and then leaves me standing by myself. He makes a beeline to Ruby, draping an arm around her shoulders.
I think my friends are as in love with her as I am.
Fuck.I’m in love with her.Of course, I am. How could I not have fallen for her? I drag two fingers over my chest to loosen the tightness that’s worked its way there.
Is there really a chance she might stay if I asked? It feels like too much to ask someone to give up. Especially her. She deserves it all. I can’t leave my family and career so how could I think she’d do that for me?
Laughter fills the air as they all guffaw at something Ruby said. She looks up and scans the deck until she finds me.
I move toward her. She shifts to let me sit behind her and I hand her the champagne flute before taking my seat and gathering her back into my lap.
She stares at me for a beat like she’s analyzing my expression. I can’t guess what she sees.
“Thank you for this,” she says quietly then presses her lips to mine.
“You’re welcome.” I glide one hand around the side of her neck, fingers combing through a section of her hair. My gaze drops to her chest and up.
Her lips lift and twist with amusement. “Your eye twitches every time you look at Travis’s jersey.”
“You just had to put it on, didn’t you?”
“It would have been rude not to,” she insists, but she has a devilish glint in her eyes.
I close the distance between our faces until my lips cover hers. “I think you’re full of shit, Red. I think you like pushing my buttons.”
