Page 37 of Fore-Ever Yours

Even her quirks. The way she bites her lip when she’s nervous and how she squeals whenever she sees a dog.

Alison and Beth are in the living room, laughing about something. Beth looks over to me and gives a knowing look. I smile, then take a sip of my sweet tea.

“She’s wonderful, Matthew,” my mom says over my shoulder, startling me. “But I have to say, I’m surprised.”

“Surprised?” I turn toward her now.

“Yes.” She nods, her eyes softening. “You’ve never brought a girl home.”

“Well, she works for me, and we’re here for a tournament…” I trail off, trying to find the right words.

“And she’s your girlfriend whom you brought home to meet us. It must be serious.”

I try to object, but she raises her hand.

“You don’t have to say anything, honey. Your eyes already told me everything.”

I furrow my brows and shake my head. “My eyes…told you what exactly?”

She pats my hand, a gentle mother’s touch. “That you care about her, Matthew. More than you’re willing to admit to me.”

I stiffen at her words, swallowing hard. “You’re reading too much into it, Mom.”

She shrugs nonchalantly. “Women have a sixth sense about this kind of thing.” She pats me on the shoulder. “I’m going to finish getting dinner ready.”

Looks like I need to order some drapes for my eyes; they’re telling a story that no one needs to know. Especially not Beth. She doesn’t need to know about the stolen glances, the butterflies I get every time we touch, the sleepless nights thinking about the day we’ve had together. The very thought of her finding out about my feelings terrifies me. I almost gave in to them the night of the gala. I almost kissed her. But we can’t. If I kiss her…there’s no turning back.

In less than two months, she’ll move on with her life. She’ll move back home and run her company…she’ll leave me.

A sharp stabbing pain flows through my chest. The loss, the grief, the despair—all the pain I felt when my dad passed away is something I don’t want to experience again. And Beth, she isn’t even mine to lose, but the thought of her leaving…

I shake my head, scrubbing the fear away with the back of my hand. I can’t think like that. I have to get a grip on these feelings.

After all, it’s just a contract. We’re like two puppets just playing the part.

The living room fills with more laughter, pulling my attention back to the present. Beth and Alison are sprawled on the floor, surrounded by old photo albums, their faces glowing with amusement as they flip through pages.

“Oh no, not middle school! At least do high school, like prom—I look good in a tux.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Beth mumbles under her breath.

Alison gasps playfully. “Aaand that’s my cue! I’ll go help Mom with dinner.”

We both laugh as Alison quickly gets up and bounces out of the room.

“Alison isn’t spilling all my secrets, is she?”

“Oh, not at all,” she says sarcastically. “Just something about driving a golf cart into a sand bunker and your crush on Jenny in middle school?”

I lean my face into my hands. “Be right back. I need to inflict some brotherly…love.”

“Isn’t that what little sisters are for—to embarrass their big brother? I do it to mine all the time.” She shrugs.

“I suppose you’re right,” I admit, sinking into the couch and draping my arm across the back cushion. “But I don’t remember signing up for a roast session today.”

Beth giggles as she continues to flip through the album. “Well, you should’ve thought about that before leaving me alone with your sister. You should have known I’d get all the childhood stories.”

“True.”

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