Page 37 of Fabulous Filthy Friend

“I’m not sure exactly.” She bumps me with her hip playfully as we make our way to the next hole.

Not sure, my ass.

It’s a stall tactic. One Rachel uses regularly.

Still, I can’t fight a grin. “Well, let me see the scorecard.”

She rolls her eyes, pulls it out of her back pocket, and hands it to me with a scowl.

I scan the card and fight to suppress a chuckle. “You have a dozen strokes on me…in just the last four holes.” I burst out laughing.

She smacks me on the shoulder. “Rude much?”

The parents of the family currently playing hole nine turn and glare at us. Apparently, our witty banter isn’t appreciated, yet they are letting their six kids run around like little demons, completely unchecked.

I lean in to her, so the judgey parents won’t hear me. “I can’t believe you wanted to come miniature golfing when you knew there would be screaming kids and you’ve already been around them all day, and all week.”

She watches them with a smile. “Yeah, they can be a bit much, but honestly, I don’t mind. They’re happy and having a good time. Let them do it.”

My heart aches at how damn sweet she is. How good. How goddamn wholesome. It takes a really special person to deal with other people’s children all day, to teach them when all they want to do at that age is run around like wild animals.

“You want a brood like that eventually?” I nod toward the kids, and her lips droop into a frown.

She considers my question for a moment. Just long enough that an uneasy feeling crawls over my skin.

“I definitely want kids”—Rachel releases a sigh and nods toward the group on hole nine—“but I don’t know about six. That’s two-thirds of a baseball team. It can’t happen without a guy, anyway, and we both know I haven’t had a lot of luck in that department.”

It’s true; she hasn’t. It’s not that any of the guys she’s dated have really been assholes or openly treated her like dirt. If they had, I would have fucking killed them. It’s more that she chooses guys who have no passion for her, for them as a couple. The men she’s been with never treated her like the most important thing in their lives and their relationships fizzle out quickly for one or both of them, leaving her heartbroken and single more often than not.

Rachel is far too amazing a woman to be single. She’s total wife material, but she needs a guy who will see her for the queen she is and not take her for granted. One who is as passionate about her as she is about him. She needs a good guy, one who understands her kind heart and romantic nature. They just don’t seem to be the ones she finds.

But maybe I can remedy that. Even though it fucking kills me to even make the suggestion.

* * *

RACHEL

We were having such a good time—laughing, joking around, and ribbing each other like we always do. Then he had to go and bring up the whole do you want a bunch of kids thing.

Of course, I do. And he knows that.

I wouldn’t be a kindergarten teacher if I didn’t love kids and want some. Eventually. But now I’m back to thinking about how pathetic my love life is instead of enjoying myself. Hearing the tick, tick, tick of my biological clock moving closer and closer to that time when it will be too late…

Shut up.

The non-existent sound ringing in my ears makes me shudder slightly, but I shake it off and avoid looking at Flynn, so he doesn’t see how much his statement affected me.

We move silently onto the next tee and wait for the rambunctious family to vacate the other end where the windmill swings in front of the hole.

Flynn clears his throat. “So, I know you hate being set up…”

I turn and look at him, the annoyance already tensing my shoulders. “Oh, here we go…”

All my friends are constantly trying to set up dates with people they think I’ll “mesh” with, and absolutely zero percent of them have panned out to anything more than an awkward dinner. Giant wastes of time. And not something I want to do again.

I can’t even believe he’s attempting this.

Flynn should know by now that I want nothing to do with set-ups. I’ve never crossed that line and tried to set him up—though Alicia’s suggestion did get me thinking the other day. After his strange behavior, I wouldn’t risk bringing it up now.

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