Page 27 of Driven to Love

She had wine. Her brows tugged in. She thought so, but now that she was standing here, taking a mental inventory of her kitchen, she wasn’t sure of it.

A ping signaled a picture coming in. Damn. An image of her favorite wine filled the screen. It was the big bottle too.

She dropped her head and then typed back: On my way.

In the kitchen, she filled Lu’s food and water bowls, then grabbed the car keys she’d just thrown in the basket by the door. If she couldn’t decompress with a book tonight, chilling with her friends and a good glass of wine was the perfect alternative.

Five minutes later, she was ringing Laney’s doorbell. A tiny, high-pitched bark sounded from inside the house. Addison smiled.

“Hey, come on in. Marti and I were just looking at bouquet options.” Laney held the door open with a wriggling pup in her arms.

“Aren’t we going on Saturday with your family to pick out the flowers for the wedding?” Addison ran her fingers through the puppy’s soft fur before accepting a glass of wine from Marti. She folded her legs beneath her on the couch and picked up a bridal magazine.

“Yes, but you know how my mom and sister are. I want to have something in mind before I arrive. What do you think of this one?” Laney showed her a beautiful bouquet of cascading lilies and roses in soft pinks and whites. Very Laney.

“Oh, what about this one?” The picture Marti held up had a rainbow of vibrant-colored flowers.

“Both are beautiful. But I think it depends on your dress and if you want the flowers to stand out against the white of the dress or not.”

“I’m not sure.” Laney set down the magazine and pursed her lips. Addison could tell her friend was deep in thought. After a minute, she turned to Addison as if just remembering something.

Addison shifted and scanned another glossy image. Nothing to see here.

“How was your date?” Laney asked.

Addison glanced up from the page. Now both Laney and Marti were eyeing her in anticipation. She raised a brow, throwing the curiosity back at them like a mirror. It didn’t work. Her friends were tough and had far more patience than she did. She cleared her throat. “Fine. How about this bouquet? Mostly white and pink, but it has a few deeper purple blooms.”

“Just fine?” Marti’s brow climbed halfway up her forehead. The gesture was as clear as if she’d yelled “Bullshit” at the top of her lungs.

Man, Marti was like a dog with a bone.

Addison took a hearty drink, then set her glass on the coffee table. “Okay, it was worse than fine.”

“Taxidermy bad?” Marti asked.

“Different bad.” Both her friends settled into their seats, waiting for the recount of Addison’s date. “He’s a sports fan.”

“That’s right, he was going to take you to the Twins game. It was a great game. Cade and I watched it.” Laney stroked the dog, now lying between them on the couch.

“It was, but… there are sports fans and then there are sports fans.” She made air quotes with her hands when she said the latter. “The date started three hours before the first pitch.”

“Full-day date. You not cutting and running after the first hour means this guy couldn’t be all bad.” Marti’s face showed enthusiasm.

“I was trapped. We were tailgating. Brats on the grill in a hot, loud parking lot and grown men acting like frat buddies playing beer pong.”

“Not your usual date, but…”

Addison held up a hand, cutting off Laney’s optimism. “Not only did he dress from head to toe in Twin’s gear, but he painted his face in red and blue. I could live with that, but for dinner, we went to a sports bar that only served wings and hot dogs. I can only take so much sausage-casing food in one day.”

She was being petty and knew it, but when she asked about his family or life, he turned the conversation back to sports. It was like his whole life revolved around sports.

Addison liked sports, but not enough to know every stat.

Deep down, it came down to the fact that he wasn’t her type.

Wasn’t that the point? Internally, Addison groaned.

Laney’s sad expression was in direct contrast to Marti, who was chuckling under her breath. “Sorry, but I still don’t get why you’re dating these guys.”