Page 105 of The Book Club Boyfriend
I give him a mock salute. “Noted.”
And as I slide into the driver’s seat, I realize—my cheeks hurt.
From smiling.
Damn it.
Chapter Thirty-One
Could’ve Fooled Me
Chase
It’s already loud when we walk into the restaurant—one of those places with exposed brick walls, moody lighting, and way too many flat screens playing highlight reels none of us are actually watching. We’ve got a big corner table, and most of the team is already there, shouting over each other and giving our poor waitress the runaround.
Scarlett pauses just inside the door, scanning the chaos like she’s evaluating whether or not this was a colossal mistake. I nudge her with my elbow.
“You can still run,” I murmur. “Fake an emergency. Say you left your straightener on.”
She tilts her head at me. “You’d just chase me down.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
She rolls her eyes, but I catch the way her lips twitch, like she’s trying not to smile.
As we walk toward the table, Rip’s name is the first thing I hear—Tyler is midway through a dramatic reenactment of the time Rip stole a hot dog straight out of his hand during a team barbecue.
“He didn’t even hesitate,” Tyler says, eyes wide. “Just walked up like he owned my ass andtook it. I’m still not over it.”
Scarlett laughs, and suddenly I’m not the only one watching her. Heads turn. Smirks form.
Bennett lifts a brow as we approach. “Well, well. If it isn’t theactualqueen of heartbreak.”
I groan. “We said we weren’t calling her that anymore.”
“She literally writes books telling women to leave us,” Tyler says. “And somehow you’re the one she shows up with?”
Scarlett shrugs as she takes the open seat next to me. “Chase is good for research.”
The whole table howls. Even I have to give her that one.
“Scarlett, this is everyone,” I say, motioning around the table. “Everyone, this is—”
“We know,” Will cuts in. “We’ve seen the clips.”
“And read the social media comments,” adds Nolan.
“And watched the fan cam on YouTube,” Bennett says with a completely straight face.
Scarlett sips her water like she’s unfazed. “Glad to know I’m making an impression.”
“You’ve got the team’s stamp of approval,” Bennett says, tossing me a look. “She’s good for you, man.”
Scarlett blinks. I feel her shift slightly beside me.
It wasn’t said loudly. Wasn’t some grand pronouncement.
Just a simple comment, tossed into the noise of team banter and bottomless fries.
