Page 6 of Wild Ever After
“Thanks.” I chuckle softly.
“That just leaves one thing.” His lips twist into a smirk. “You’re having girl problems.”
“He’d need a girl first,” Ash quips, stepping up to join us with Jack at his side.
“Fuck you all very much.” I roll my shoulders back to try to ease the tension creeping in. “I’m fine.”
“I don’t believe you.” Jack narrows that captain gaze on me.
Ash’s eyes light up as he asks, “Did you finally ask out that flight attendant from Chicago? The one that you hooked up with on the plane.”
“No, and I did not hook up with her on the plane.” Using two fingers, I rub at my forehead. I don’t know why I bother to correct him. He knows exactly what happened, but the guys all like to twist the details to make it more scandalous.
The problem with not having as much drama in your life as your friends is that they latch on to every little thing. I have far fewer outrageous stories than they do, but they remember each one of mine and whip them out every time an opportunity presents itself.
“I think his problem is that none of them are hitting him back,” Mav says. “You need a good wingman. Let’s see what our options are.”
He starts to scan the bar.
“I’m fine. There’s no problem,” I reassure them. “I got a text from Crissy, but I ignored it.”
Silence falls over the group.
“You’re still hooking up with her?” Jack whistles. “I thought you were smarter than that.”
“She’s messy.” Ash nods his agreement.
“I’m not still hooking up with her. She texted. I didn’t reply. End of story. Are we going to play some darts, or what?”
No one says another word about it, but I still feel on edge. Crissy is a mistake I made two years ago. She was an intern for the team—something I didn’t know until we’d been hooking up for a couple of weeks. I thought it was harmless fun. We’d go out drinking, then back to my place, and the next morning, she’d be gone, and I wouldn’t hear from her again until the next time she was going out. I assumed that meant she wanted casual, no strings attached.
That is until I ran into her one night while I was on a date with someone else. She freaked. The next day she posted an old picture of us in bed together on the team’s social media account with the caption, CHEATER.
It was impossible to tell it was me and she apologized that day. She took it too far and she knew it. But the damage was done. My teammates hate her for it. Especially Jack. Most people assumed it was him. He’s the guy on the team known for hooking up and keeping relationships short and casual. He never once denied it. That’s just one of the reasons he’s such a good captain. He always has our backs. No matter what.
Anyway, that should have been it for me and Crissy, but I felt bad for the girl, and we did have fun together. So, a month later, we hooked up again. And ever since then, that’s how it’s gone. We go weeks, sometimes a month, without talking and then she texts me to meet up. The last couple of times we’ve hooked up, she’s guilted me the next morning about not calling her and only wanting her when it’s convenient for me. It made me feel like the worst kind of jerk. I’ve always been honest with her about what I want, but my actions have told another story and that’s on me.
The very last time I told her that was it. It isn’t healthy for us to keep seeing each other. Not when I have a gnawing suspicion that, deep down, she wants more from me. I refuse to lead the girl on. So even though, yeah, a night of fun together sounds pretty awesome right now, I’m not answering. I can’t keep going down that path. It’s time for both of us to move on.
“Where are the girls headed tonight?” Jack asks Leo, when we retire from darts and sit back at our table.
“Milwaukee.” He glances down at his watch. “They’re leaving as soon as Jade gets off work.”
My ears perk up at the mention of Jade again. “So, she and Sam are good? I saw her the other day. She showed up at your place looking for Scarlett and said something about cold feet.”
“I guess so.” Leo shrugs. “Scarlett is all kinds of stressed about it. She’s been sure they’d break up for months now, but Sam and Jade always seem to work it out.”
He checks his watch again. “Maybe I should call Scarlett to check in.”
Ash makes a sound like he’s cracking a whip. Leo gives him the middle finger.
“Milwaukee, huh?” Jack nods thoughtfully. “Sounds fun.”
“It’s a cool city,” Leo says.
“Milwaukee definitely has a nice vibe.” A slow smile spreads across Maverick’s face. “Road trip?”
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