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As soon as they were inside, it was a bustle of people and noise. They made their way to the table on the far wall where they purchased their cards. Eli got four, two for her and two for Sarah. They were stopped several times before they found a place to sit down, but Eli had planned it so they arrived just minutes before everything was supposed to start.
There was a single microphone up front, and Judy Carsen took center stage with it. She always seemed to be in charge of events like this. Clenching her jaw, Eli set her cards out in front of her so she could see them. Judy went through the standard list of thank yous, what they were there for, and then finally the rules.
Eli leaned over at one point and whispered into Sarah’s ear, “That woman likes to hear herself talk more than anyone else in this room does. Trust me.”
Sarah erupted into giggles and had to work hard to contain them, her shoulders shaking. A flush reached Eli’s cheeks at the sight of the crinkles at the corner of Sarah’s eyes and her lips as she elicited a similar response in Eli herself. When Sarah turned to make a comment, they were almost mouth to mouth. Eli jerked in surprise and turned in her seat to face forward.
Cady slipped into the seat on the opposite side of Eli and nudged her with her shoulder. “Hey there, girl.”
“Hey. Cady, this is one of the guests at my house, Sarah. Sarah, this is Cady. She owns the hardware store in town.”
“Nice to meet you.” Sarah reached across Eli and offered her hand.
Once numbers were called, Eli was focused on Judy and only Judy. She pressed her stamp onto the cards one after the other, cursing silently when bingo was called on the other side of the room. They all swept up their cards. Eli put a hand on Sarah’s shoulder. “I’m going to get us a couple more.”
When she got back to the table, Cady and Sarah were deep in conversation and Sarah had taken over Eli’s chair. She took Sarah’s still-warm seat. Shifting in it, she set out their cards in front of them just before the call went out for the second round to start.
As numbers started to be called, Sarah leaned closer to Eli and whispered, “So if all the proceeds go to the school, what does the winner get?”
“Bragging rights,” Eli muttered, her stomach twisting with how close Sarah was.
“Makes sense I guess.”
Eli risked turning her head, finding Sarah even closer than she’d originally thought. Luckily, Judy called the next number, and Eli had to find it on both her cards, and Sarah’s since Sarah wasn’t paying attention. She marked Sarah’s one card that had it and leaned back in her chair. A different kind of smile played on Sarah’s lips, and Eli wasn’t sure what it meant, but it sent a thrill through her stomach and up and down her spine.
Judy called the next number, and Eli had to blink and work hard to focus on what was said. Hunching over her card, she skimmed her gaze over it until she gave up searching. Whatever number Judy had said, she’d forgotten it already.
“Here,” Sarah whispered as she moved her stamp close to Eli’s and pressed it to the card on the left. “You missed it.”
“Thanks,” Eli muttered.
Managing to keep her distance until the next round, Eli replaced their cards, but as she went to sit down, she was surprised to see Bridget standing by the door of the building, staring directly at her. With her breath tight in her lungs, Eli stared back, curious as to what Bridget would do and what she wanted. With a jerk of her head, Bridget indicated she wanted to talk outside.
Eli leaned in close to Sarah, a hand on her shoulder with a tender squeeze. “I’ll be right back. Play my card until then, would you?”
“Sure.”
Sarah gave her a confused look, but Eli said nothing else as she stalked toward the back door. Bridget had already slipped outside. She had a feeling she knew what this was about and that she wasn’t going to like the conversation.
As soon as the door was shut and the sounds of the building muted, Eli knew she’d made a mistake coming out there. Bridget’s dark hair was pulled into a loose bun at the back of her head, her shirt was tight over her breasts, and her dark jeans were the ones that made Eli take a second look every time.
“What’s wrong, Bridget?”
“I…I wanted to talk.”
“What about?” Eli clenched her jaw and crossed her arms over her chest. “Because we haven’t talked in two years.”
“We’ve talked.”
“Not about what I’m sure this conversation is going to be about.”
Bridget bit her lip and lowered her lashes, having the decency to look a little sheepish. While Sarah clearly did it out of a bad nervous habit, Bridget was trying to be coy—and failing, because Eli had been down that road several times, and she was tired of it.
“I just…don’t you ever wonder what if?”
“No.” Eli’s voice was firm.
Bridget ignored her. “What if we were still together? What if it had worked out?”
