Page 117 of Good Girl's Guide to Love
Simon and Linc share a head nod as we all clink our glasses together. I use the time to wipe away the runaway tear that trickled out. If Simon’s going to be like this tonight, what’s he going to be like when we get engaged?
Oh my gosh, are we going to get engaged? Is this it? I mean, I want to. Someday. Not tonight. But yeah, I want to marry Linc Kincaid.
And for the first time in my adult life, I’m truly believe I’m with a man who wants to marry me too.
“This is so exciting!” Stella claps. “Ainsley’s having a drink. She and Linc are for real. We’re all in love. I love this so much!”
I almost spit out the vodka and cranberry I agreed to have while Linc chokes on his beer. “What did you say?”
Stella’s eyes go wide as she realizes what slipped out of her mouth. “Oh. Yeah. Um…”
She looks to Quinn for help, who I’m guessing has been waiting for this moment for weeks. “Settle the bet. How long have you two been fake before you became real? There may or may not be a hundred-and-sixty bucks riding on this.”
I look around to the table of my siblings and all of their partners. “Y’all bet on this?”
“Hell, yeah,” Porter says. “This was the first Banks family bet I could be a part of. I wasn’t turning down that action. It’ll even be better if you tell me that the winning date was three days ago.”
Linc starts laughing, and all I can do is shake my head. “Did any of you believe this for any amount of time?”
“We knew from the second we crashed your breakfast date,” Maeve says. “But, it seemed like it was really important to you both to go with this, so we let it go. We knew you’d tell us when you were ready. Or someone wouldn’t be able to keep their mouth shut. And here we are.”
Everyone shoots a look to Stella, who holds her hands up in innocence. “It slipped! I swear. But you two just looked so happy, and I’m tired of texting behind your back.”
“What!” I gasp. “There’s a side text? That I’m not a part of? I'm always included!”
“Now you know what it feels like,” Quinn says. “But none of that matters now. You’re here together. And for real, because you two can’t keep your hands off each other. The Fury is undefeated so far this season. And you’re about to tell me that you dropped the fake act a week after we saw y’all at breakfast so I can win. All is right in the world!”
I feel Linc laugh next to me as I just shake my head. “Sorry, sister. Linc? Would you like to tell them who the big winner is?”
“I’d be honored,” he says as he sits up a little straighter. “A drumroll please, Ainsley Mae?”
He gives me a wink as I pat my hands on the table. “Whoever had the Thursday before the Vegas Aces game, you’re the winner.”
My sisters all open their phones, doing mental math of the schedule in comparison to the date Linc just told them. But as I watch them scramble, and Simon silently throw a tantrum because he knows he lost, I watch as my brother-in-law Logan smiles from ear-to-ear, putting his hands behind his head as he leans back in his chair.
“Really?” Porter yells, getting everyone’s attention. “The billionaire won?”
“What can I say, I looked at the data. Figured out the odds. Ran a few tests.”
Maeve clearly doesn’t buy that. “Just say you guessed. No one likes a know-it-all.”
“Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t,” he says as he kisses her cheek. “But what I will say is, ‘pay up, wife.’”
Everyone except Logan, Linc, and I groan as they fish twenty-dollar bills from their pockets or purses. Simon and Charlie say their goodbyes since my niece is sick tonight, but they didn’t want to miss out. But during that, I notice Logan leans over to Porter and passes him the pile of cash.
Apparently, Linc notices too.
“Do I need to pick up the family tab at some point? Is this a thing the men do? I mean, I can. I will. But I don’t want your family to think I’m a scrub.”
I shake my head. “No. Logan’s a billionaire video game developer. Created SpaceCraft. He doesn’t always pay, but does this a lot. You’re safe.”
Linc’s eyebrows shoot up. “You’re…he’s—” Before I know it, I realize I’ve lost my boyfriend to the lore of my brother-in-law. “I fucking love the new game you just came out with! The guys and I play all the time!”
Logan laughs and stands up from the table. “Thanks, mate. How about we talk about it over a game of pool? Guys? Doubles?”
“Ah man!” Simon pouts as his wife starts dragging him out of the bar.
We all laugh as each of the guys start standing up.
