Page 108 of Kickoff

“That sucks.”

“As long as he’s happy, I supposed it’s good enough. Sometimes, I wish he was more of a big brother, you know. I could use a sibling relationship like you and Craig…or his outlook on stuff…someone who sides with me when my parents are treating me like a kid or gives me advice. Having a guy’s point of view would be useful sometimes. Anyway, those kinds of things.”

“I hit the jackpot when I landed Craig as a big brother. I know I’m lucky. He’s the best.”

She mirrored my smile. “He really is. You guys have the kind of bond everyone would wish for.”

Melinda unbuckled her seatbelt and followed me on the path leading to the cabin. I slowed my steps and locked my fingers around hers when she neared me. We climbed the few stairs to the front porch and stopped. I cracked my neck on both sides and rolled my shoulders back. “Okay. Wish me luck. And stay behind me if you’re not ready for whatever we witness in there.”

“You think it’s gonna be that bad?”

I bobbed my head. “It usually is. The last two times he called me stating it was an emergency, well, let’s just say it was…” I scratched my head, not sure how to describe my friend’s antics. “I wanted to bleach my eyes afterward.”

“What did he do?” She whispered as if we were in on a secret. “Now I wanna know. You can’t tease me like that and not say anything.”

“All right. I’ll save you the details, but one of those times, Jax thought he would have a threesome. Turned out he was dating two girls at the same time and one of them offered him a fun time with her twin sister. The twins were not identical, and he was indeed dating both of them and had no clue. They got their revenge by tying his wrists and ankles together behind his back like he was a piece of meat, pulling his pants down, and strapping a gag ball into his mouth. It was epic. Traumatizing, but spectacular all at once.”

Her hand flew to cover her growing smirk. “Ohhhh.”

“Yep. Not a sight I wish to ever see again. They wrote Pig on his chest with red lipstick. It took him over an hour to be able to make a phone call.”

“I bet. That is horrible. I’m glad you didn’t bleach your eyes, but I understand why you wanted to.” A low chuckle parted her lips. “Let’s be brave. How bad can it be this time around?”

“You’re right. Let’s get it over with.” I knocked on the front door before making my way inside. “Jax? Man, are you there? If you’re naked, please warn me or grunt or stomp your foot so I’m not walking in on a scene that will traumatize me for life. I’m still not over your latest fuck-up. And I have company, so please don’t scar us for life.”

“Why is it so dark in here?” Melinda murmured from behind me, her grip around my fingers tightening.

“No idea. It’s already sketchy. No matter what it is, I hope he’s dressed.” Running my palm over the wall, I flipped the light switch on, and a loud “Happy Birthday” resonated through the room when my friends and teammates popped out from behind furniture and cheered on me.

I cocked my head to look at Melinda, who stared at me with glints in her eyes. “Happy birthday, Mase.” Gone was the heaviness of the last hour on her features. Her smile was back and blinding and looked genuine.

I clamped my nape with a hand and turned toward her. “You knew?”

“Yeah. I’m glad the surprise worked. I was in charge of keeping you busy all day. I didn’t have to go home either. It was a ruse so you wouldn’t suspect a thing when Jax texted you.”

I lifted her in my arms and twirled her around. “Thanks. I had the most amazing day with you today.”

We fixated on each other for an infinite minute before I lowered her to her feet as my friends came to clap my back.

“I’m not naked this time,” Jackson said as we fist-bumped.

“Thank God. I wasn’t ready for a repeat experience of last time.”

“Happy birthday, Captain.”

“Mase, my man.” Sheldon walked up to us, handing me a shot glass. “Just to be clear, there’s no party tomorrow.”

I laughed with my head tilted back. “I kinda guessed it.”

We clinked our glasses and downed them in one gulp. When I searched for her, Melinda had disappeared in the crowd. A piece of my heart cracked, and I prayed we really would be fine after all.

“Birthday, man,” Craig said as he pulled me closer and ruffled my hair. “Glad you could make it. We’re finally the same age again. How was your day?”

“Great...”

He pulled me aside. “What happened?”

I hung my head as the name “Tanya” left my mouth.