“Four times.”
“Lies.”
“The secret is blocking all those triple-word scores she likes to get.”
“Nah, no way. She’s letting you win. It’s all part of her plan. She’s been lulling you into a false sense of security so she could sneak attack with the matchmaking.”
I laughed. I never wanted these silly moments between us to end or for his smile to fade. I wanted to talk about Scrabble and listen to him tell stories about Ruth forever. And it was shallow, and vain, and so very silly… But I wanted him to tell me again how pretty I looked. No, not just pretty.Stunning,he’d said.
“Hello…” A tap on a microphone blasted through the speakers, followed by acoustic feedback that screeched loud enough to shatter me to my core. “Hello? Everyone? It’s time to get started. Welcome to Games Night!”
My ears still rang. I darted a look at Aiden. No bright smile warmed his face anymore. His head hung low, and white fingertips dug into his knees like he was hanging on for dear life off the edge of a cliff.
“Aiden.” I was careful to keep my voice quiet so no one else would hear. “Are you okay?”
“Y-yeah.” The answer came out through gritted teeth. “I wasn’t expecting the noise, that’s all.”
“I’m here.” I soothed my hand in a circle on his back. “Tell me if you want to take a breather. We can go outside and get some fresh air.”
His eyes lifted, wild, like the day at the clinic. My shoulders tensed, waiting for the hit. I expected him to shrug me off, bark that everything was fine, and to mind my own business. But he didn’t. His face didn’t shutter. No harsh words ever came.
Aiden nodded. “I don’t want to ruin tonight for Ruth—or you. Will you count with me? Like you did the other time?”
I started the count, our eyes locked on each other, every beat from one to ten. At six, his hand relaxed, pink returning to his fingertips. At eight, his hand left his knee, fumbling under thetable for new comfort. His fingers wove around mine as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Almost there,” I whispered, starting again at one.
Not just for the count.
For us.
In my heart, we were almost back to where we’d started, too.
25
She Saw Love Blooming
Lola
“And the first category…is…books!”
The grin on Aiden’s face was even bigger than mine. Finally, it was our time to shine.
After Ruth’s blistering win at paper planes and Harry’s narrow victory at the marshmallow toss—he’d stuffed more into his mouth than he’d landed in the cup—trivia was the time for us to make Ruth’s dream come true. Her eyes never strayed far from the enormous hampers. The fact that the first questions were focused on books? Even better.
No one else in the crowd agreed. A heavy groan rippled around the room. The loudest protest came from Ruth.
“Books?”She stuck her nose in the air with an indignant huff. “Whoreads?”
My eyebrows popped up. “Surely the undisputed Queen of Scrabble loves reading?”
Aiden grunted a laugh but was smart enough to dodge Ruth’s frosty glare. He smiled at her, all innocence, and reached across the table for a pencil, ready to scribble down our team’s answers.
Ruth waved away my question. “As if I’m going to waste my time reading some dusty book from ye olde times when a whole world of reality TV is at my fingertips.”
“Yes!” Brooke bounced up and down, clapping her hands with excitement. “I knew I liked you! What’s your addiction?”
“Soccer Mum Socialites,” Ruth fired back. “Absolutely no question.”
