Page 29 of You're All I Need

“Eight?” she asks with a look of surprise.

“Yep.” I pull cash from my wallet and place it on the counter.

“Hungry?” Jack asks, unable to hide his grin.

“Yes,” I reply, my teeth grinding.

My food is placed in front of me, and I quickly hand Christian his nachos. “Twenty-six dollars, please.”

I hand over the money and start making a pile of hot dogs in my arms. “I’ll get some,” Jack states, grabbing the last three dogs off the counter.

We start to head back to the bleachers, Christian happily munching on chips and cheese, Jack leans closer. “You better get it under control before we get back there.”

I pause and take a deep breath. “What the fuck is he doing here?”

“Well, he is Joshua’s dad,” he counters.

“Yeah, but…sit somewhere else. Did they arrive together?” I ask through gritted teeth.

“That’s something you’d have to ask your sister,” he mumbles, slipping behind me so someone can pass on the walkway between the bleachers and the court.

I exhale again. “Yeah, I know. It just pisses me off. They’re supposedly getting a divorce—finally!—and now here he is. I’m tired of seeing my sister cry, man.”

Jack grabs my shoulder and gives it a squeeze. “I know. I can’t imagine watching that, but at the end of the day, your sister’s a big girl and has to make her own decisions. If she wants to take back the cheating asshole again, that’s her choice.”

I close my eyes and try to calm my racing heart. When I open my eyes, I nod. “I hate it.”

“Me too, and she’s not even my sister,” Jack replies. “All I’m saying is don’t drive a wedge between you and Scar because of whatever’s happening with Warner. I’d hate for it to affect your relationship with Joshua too.”

I get what he’s saying, and I know he’s right. Doesn’t mean I like it.

We watch as Christian makes it up to our seats, and Gram helps him hold his nachos, which he politely shares with her. “What’s going on with you and Adrienne?”

My gaze returns to my oldest friend. “Nothing.”

He snorts a laugh. “Is it going to be a problem, her working for us? We just decided to hire her, and then the next day, you went home with her.”

“That was a one-time thing,” I counter.

Liar.

You most definitely don’t want it to be a one-time thing.

He narrows his eyes at me. “I’ve always stayed out of your business, Caden. What you do in your personal time is your decision to make, but she works for us now. Don’t let the lines blur.”

I swallow hard, my stomach churning with uneasiness. Why? Because I want to blur the lines. I had an amazing time with an incredible woman early this morning, and frankly, I wouldn’t mind a repeat. Or two. I know that’s all it’ll ever be, and I appreciate that fact. She’s not husband hunting. She’s just looking for sex, which is why this arrangement works so well for us. I have no idea if this was a one-time thing or if it’ll happen again, but as long as the rules don’t change, I don’t see it interfering with her new position at the office.

“I got it,” I tell him, pushing past him and heading up the steps to return to our seats.

Slipping past Gram and Christian, I plop down in my seat and watch as the players return to the court to start their warmups at the end of halftime.

“Hungry?” There’s humor in Adrienne’s question.

I look down, realizing I’m still holding five hot dogs. “Starving,” I reply, turning my attention to Adrienne. There’s a look of mischief mixed with humor dancing in her eyes. “Late night. Lots of exertion.”

Scarlet groans, plugging her ears. “Stop talking,” she groans.

I risk a glance at Adrienne, who’s fighting a smile. My sister doesn’t know she’s sitting next to the woman I happened to be exerting all my energy with, and I’m not going to tell her. What I do in private is just that. Private.

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