Page 16 of Forever Offsides

“Crew, get your ass over here and help me with the grill. I have to make the queso and more guac since Miss I’m Eating for Two is eating all of it.”

Skylar flips Roman off. “Not my fault. It’s delicious. Besides, I can’t eat the steak or the chicken. Animal products have not been agreeing with me. I’ll stick to this. Oh, and that queso you’re making. I’m all for that, but not too spicy.”

Roman rolls his eyes. “I love it when people tell me how to cook.”

“Don’t celebrity chef me.”

“Only because you’re pregnant can you get away with this.”

“Works for me.” Skylar hitches up a shoulder in a devil-may-care way, winks at him, and sips her lemonade in her cute pink bikini that shows off her adorable bump.

“Um, can we focus here?” Braelyn interjects. “Quinn is getting off the hook.”

Shit. I was hoping they’d forgotten by now.

Aston throws a hand up. “I’ll come help with the cooking.” He climbs off the chaise, kisses his wife, then goes over to the grill.

“I’ll do… something that means I don’t have to hear about you having sex.”

I snicker at Hayes, but he goes over to the grill, and now it’s just us.

Brae pokes me. “This is going to be good. I can tell.”

“He’s just a guy I met a little over a month ago. I was on a bad dating app date, and after walking out on my date, this guy made sure I met him.”

“Wait!” Braelyn sips the end of her margarita before getting up to refill it from the pitcher. “Explain that.”

“I was headed to the bathroom, and he intercepted me.” I hold out my glass to her, and she refills it with lime-green goodness.

“What does ‘intercepted’ mean?” Forest asks from his chair. His eyes are closed, and his hands are interlocked behind his head, his tattooed arms and muscular chest on full display. We sort of forgot he was there. He’s been so quiet. The last few years have changed Forest a bit. Some of it for the better, like his sobriety. Some of it for the darker.

“You want to hear this?”

He shrugs without opening his eyes. “Sure. Why not?”

Okay then.

“He stopped me at the bathroom. He made it so we got there at the same time, and after going back and forth on who won and should go first, he admitted he saw me walk out on my date and wanted to meet me.”

“At the bathroom? Did he fuck you in the stall?”

“Quiet, Forest,” Sky gripes. “You’re ruining the story with your male interjections.”

“Apologies. I’ll be quiet and listen.”

Braelyn licks the salt on her glass. “I love that he did that to meet you. Then what?”

“Then he asked me to have dinner and a drink with him, and I did.”

“Who is he?” Hayes questions. “I mean, you’re obviously still talking with him, so why are we having to dig this out of you?”

“I thought you weren’t listening!”

He grunts. “Obviously I’m listening. It’s like you don’t even know me. Answer the question.”

I lean back on the chaise and close my eyes for a moment. I have been keeping a secret. Almost afraid he won’t be real if I talk about him. “He’s… I don’t know. He’s older and not local. He’s moving here or so he claims. We’re not telling each other anything real. Not our ages or actual jobs or even our last names.”

“You slept with him.” That’s Forest.