Page 23 of Biggest Player
My eyes bulge. They’re charging that much money for bricks these days?
I pat at my pockets and come up empty. “I don’t have a LEGO kit on me right now. Sorry.”
Wyatt rolls her eyes. “I know you don’t have a LEGO kit—but you can give me the cash and I’ll buy it. I’ll beg my mom to take me to the mall.”
I narrow my eyes. “Are you shaking me down right now?”
’Cause this feels like extortion.
“Shaking you down?” She narrows hers back at me. “I don’t know what that means.”
Not sure if I believe her; she seems really smart. I begrudgingly remove a crisp one-hundred-dollar bill from my wallet, plus another twenty to sweeten the deal, and make the amount a cool one forty.
“This should cover the LEGO set.”
She plucks the bills out of my hand. Counts them like a banker—then counts them again—and slides them into the pocket of her conservative floral dress.
“Not one fifty?”
“Sorry, kid. It’s all I have—unless you take credit cards.”
“Fine.” She looks around. “So what’s the plan?”
No idea.
“You’rethe mastermind here.”
Wyatt nods in agreement. “That’s true. I am. No offense, Dex, but you don’t seem like the kind of guy who’s quick on his feet.”
My mouth drops open. Never have I ever had anyone say that to my face, and if any of my teammates or friends overheard her—specifically that twat Landon—they would drop dead laughing.
Not quick on my feet?
Wyatt is a little shit, that’s what she is.
But also: she’s not wrong.
She doesn’t give me time to reply, asking, “Do you have kids?”
I shake my head. “No.”
“Did you tell your date that you don’t have kids?”
I shake my head again. “I might have mentioned it?”
Wyatt snaps her fingers. “Oh! I have an idea—why don’t I walk up while you’re at the table and pretend you’re my dad? I’ll really lay it on thick. She’ll think you’re a huge liar and get mad.”
Hmm. Solid plan—but I still have my doubts. “What if it doesn’t work?”
She smiles up at me. “Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back!”
“Good enough for me.” I have total confidence in this short person I bumped into by fate. “So ... now what?”
Wyatt gives me a none-too-gentle shove, pushing me in the direction of the open dining area. “You go back to your date and let me handle this. Pretend to act normal.”
Obediently, I walk back to my table the way Wyatt has instructed me to, Madisson watching me with a curious stare as I approach. When I pull out my chair and reseat myself, I give her a nervous smile.
Remember to lay the napkin back in my lap.
