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Mike is either too drunk or too over-confident to notice. He starts to lean closer to me, arm reaching out.
Nolan blocks his hand, slowly but deliberately pushing Mike’s arm away and not letting go. “I wouldn’t do that,” he says.
Mike meets his eyes for several seconds, then finally blinks and laughs. “Know what? You’re not even worth my time.” He takes us all in with a disgusted look and stands, wobbling and nearly knocking his barstool over. “The chicks are hotter at that other place. Let’s go, dude.”
Mike’s friend looks like he’s regretting his choice of friends, but he sighs and follows after him.
Nolan takes the seat where Mike was as if nothing is out of the ordinary. “You guys good?”
“Thanks to you,” Paisley says.
“Yeah, thank you,” I agree.
Nolan shrugs. “Guys like that always show up in the bars after a loss. Just too much beer. I’m glad I was able to help.”
There’s a kind of odd formality to his words, though. It’s like he feels uncomfortable stepping in and playing white knight, given our strange arrangement.
There’s a beat of awkwardness, then he looks down at me, smirking. “Nice jersey, by the way,” he says, giving my shirt a playful tug and smiling.
“What about mine?” Paisley asks, turning so he can see the number.
“Yours too,” he adds.
“Good,” Paisley says. She starts digging in her wallet for something. “But I gotta get back to my hotel. The toilet is calling me,” she adds. She pauses, then winces a little. “Pee, by the way. I just really have to pee.”
We both grin. Nolan digs out a hundred dollar bill and sets it on the bar in front of her. “My treat.”
“You sure?” she asks.
He shrugs. “If I knew you two were coming, I would’ve offered to pay for your flight and hotel, too.”
“It’s okay,” I say. “Our boss actually pays us pretty well. I don’t want to tell him, but I’m pretty sure he’s paying us way above average.”
“Hmm,” Nolan looks thoughtful as the shadow of a smile touches his lips. “He must like you guys.”
“At least one of us,” Paisley says, leaning in and hugging me quickly. “You two have fun.”
“You don’t have to leave,” I try.
She grins. “I’d rather not watch whatever it is you guys are about to do.”
There’s a touch of awkward tension in the air as she leaves.
“Does everybody know?” Nolan asks.
“Would it surprise you? We’re not exactly the most subtle people on the planet.”
He nods.
Another long, uncomfortable silence follows. It’s always like this with us. We can be companionable when other people are around. But as soon as it’s just us, the weight of all the things we’re not saying feels like it’s suffocating. Usually, we end up rushing past it to kissing and sleeping together. And then when we finish, Nolan can’t seem to get dressed and leave fast enough.
“I appreciate you coming to the game,” he says after a while.
I raise an eyebrow, looking up at him. “You do?”
“Yeah,” he says. “Felt good seeing you wear my jersey. Was that your idea, or Paisley’s?”
“Mine,” I admit. “I made Paisley wear it, too, so nobody would get too suspicious.”
