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“We could put up the guards,” Penny says, stealing another nacho from the basket. “As someone who has gone into the gutter nearly every frame so far, I am officially advocating for the guardrails.”
“Absolutely not,” Sebastian says. He sounds so offended that I start giggling. “Give me a ball.”
“Try the green one,” I say slyly. “I think it’s weighted better.”
“Sabotage!” Cooper says with delight. “Mia, you’re starting to understand how things work.”
Penny pushes the nacho basket in my direction. I sit next to her and pick up my beer. It’s warm, but I down the rest anyway. “Are these any good?”
“Nope,” Penny says. “And yet I can’t stop eating them.”
I grab a particularly cheesy chip and pop it into my mouth. She’s right, it’s terrible, but it’s the kind of food you want when you’re drinking from a beer pitcher. I watch as Sebastian grabs a ball—not the one I suggested, naturally—and sets up.
“Point your feet,” I call.
“You point your feet,” he grumbles.
I cup my ear. “What was that?”
“Damn,” Cooper says. “Mia di Angelo, secret cutthroat bowler.”
“I know,” Penny says fondly. “Why do you think I turned down every other double date idea?”
“Huh,” Cooper says. “I did think it was weird that you didn’t want to see the specialHow to Lose a Guy in Ten Daysscreening at the movie theater.”
“There’s plenty of time,” Penny says. “We’re doing this again, right, Mia?”
I watch as Sebastian’s ball spirals out of control, landing in the gutter right before the pins. “Oh, definitely.”
“What’s the bet?” Penny says. “There has to be a bet involved.”
I pour myself another beer. “It’s a secret.”
She gasps. “That means it’s naughty. Mia, I’m so proud.”
“No wonder Seb’s being such a sore loser,” Cooper says. He flops over at least three of the tiny plastic seats like a tired puppy. Penny rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling.
When Sebastian comes back to the sitting area, Cooper holds out his hand for a high-five. Sebastian gives him the finger instead. I grin into my beer, watching them bicker about technique. It must be weird for them both, not being good at something that involves a degree of athleticism. Sebastian mentioned the other day that even though his sport is baseball, he knows how to shoot a puck properly, and his football throw has a nice spiral.
I wonder what he’d say to football on the lawn with Dad and Anthony. If he comes to the barbecue, he’ll be strong-armed into it, that’s for sure. And if Dad finds out his brother is the quarterback of his favorite team? He’ll spend the whole afternoon talking about James’ stats. I might not be able to grab a second with Sebastian to introduce him to Giana or the rest of the family.
It’s weird to think about him in my parents’ backyard, laughing with my cousins and chatting with my parents. Giana’s right, they’ll probably love him. But he’s easy to love, with that handsome smile and quiet intensity. He’s the kind of guy they’ve always wanted for me, minus the fact he’s not Italian. I might actually win a smidge of my mother’s approval if I show up with him in tow.
Penny clinks her beer against mine. “This is nice.”
“Yeah,” I say. I wash down the emotion that’s threatening to show on my face with a gulp of my drink. “Good choice, Pen.”
“Anything for you,” she says. We watch as Sebastian gets Cooper into a headlock. “Should we break them up?”
I lift one shoulder in a shrug. “Eh. Something tells me it’s better to just let them go.”
At the end of the game, I’m just shy of a perfect score; Sebastian distracted me during the two last frames with kisses. A completely blatant attempt at gaining the upper hand, but it’s all too fun to kiss him when he clearly has to keep reminding himself not to get too handsy in front of the old guys playing two lanes over.
I grin at him over my shoulder as I start the next game. “Ready for what I have planned?”
“Wait, wait,” Penny says. She waves the empty beer pitcher. “If I’m forced to play another game without the gutter guards, I demand refreshments. Seb, come get another round with me.”
Sebastian unwinds himself from me, his eyebrows raised. “You good?”
