That seemingly hasn’t occurred to Amy, whose jaw drops. “But we had a good time!”
“Yeah.” Alex rubs the back of his neck. “I’m not interested. In fact, I’m taken.”
“What? By who?” Beck asks. “Dude, you’ve been holding out on me?” Then Beck turns to me. “You know who it is?”
Why yes, big brother. Your best friend and I have been boinking each other’s brains out in secret. You don’t have a problem with that, right?
Slowly, I shake my head. “Uh, no. It’s news to me. But I can’t know everything, can I?”
Alex is glaring at Beck so hard that he might burst into flame. But I’m pretty sure at least a little of his hatred should be pointed my way.
“Well.” Amy draws herself up tartly. “Yeah, right. I know your reputation, Thorne. Call me when you get bored of her.”
“I won’t.” He gives her a look of distaste. “Lose my number.”
She huffs as she leaves. I’m pretty sure my cheeks can’t get any hotter without it becoming a medical emergency. This is the first time that I’ve had to deal with Alex’s past being rubbed in my face, but from his grim expression, it’s something he expected.
Great.
My dad elbows Alex in the ribs. “You dog. Must be nice to have so many women that you have to lie to get them to leave you alone.”
Alex’s glance at my dad is frosty. “Who says I’m lying?”
“Oh!” My dad laughs and taps his nose. “I’ve got you.”
Alex clears his throat. “Weren’t we leaving?”
“Yes, yes.” Mom bundles me in for a hug. “Be a good girl, Mollie. Listen to your brother.”
“Uh huh.” I repress an eye roll and hug her, then turn to my dad. “Bye Dad.”
“Next time, we’re going to fly up just to see you. You hear?” He hugs me tightly. I take a little longer with this hug. My dad loves me. I’m sure my mom does too, somewhere deep down, but it’s just layered beneath her excitement over her favorite child.
“See ya. Give Rosie lots of hugs for me.”
Beck is the last to give me a quick hug. “If you think I’ll forget about your birthday, think again. Cancel your plans. We’ll go to dinner. You, me, and Rosie.”
I smile. “That sounds good.”
As I walk out of the restaurant, I have the urge to glance back and see if Alex’s former fling is watching. But I don’t. Tonight has, as predicted, been a lot.
But at least I get to go home with my hunky hockey player boyfriend at the end of the night. Score one for me.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Mollie
Iwake up to my twenty-fifth year with a sigh already on my lips. Though it's a Saturday, Alex is still having an early gym session. He works out with a vigor that borders on worshipful; believe me, I've filmed nearly endless HockeyTok content about his devotion to lifting weights. Hot, on the surface.
But I do feel a burst of disappointment bloom in my chest when I see the note he left for me in the kitchen.
On the grind. Be back soon. -Alex
At least there's still a plentiful amount of coffee waiting for me. I pour a cup and try to stamp out any feelings of sadness.
I made it clear that my birthday doesn't mean anything. There's absolutely no reason for disappointment or feeling let down.
This is just another day.
