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These guys are terrible,Montez thought, watching in disbelief as Mark took another awkward swing. No way this man paid for professional lessons. If he did, they ran game on him.
Losing to Mark would be an insult, but then he remembered what was at stake—Desiree’s promotion. And a date with her. Not a hook-up, but an actual date. Which technically he shouldn’t be doing since he was working for her, and At Your Service had that pesky no-getting-involved-with-the-clients rule.
When the ball went wide of the hole, Montez repeated the same sentence over and over in his head:Failing will be worth it. Failing will be worth it.He missed his shot on purpose, though it would have been very easy for him to sink the putt.
“Better luck next time,” Mark said with a sympathetic smile and pat on the arm.
Montez nodded his head and groaned on the inside. He caught Desiree’s eye, and he clearly saw her stifle a laugh by biting her upper lip. Oh, she thought this was funny, huh?
They piled into the golf cart and traveled over the green. Desiree sat up front with Mark, and Royce sat in the back with Montez, both of them careful not to touch. At the next stop, he eyed Royce’s stance and itched to correct his posture but remained silent. Royce swung and hit the ball a solid blow, and it bounced over the grass.
“Good one,” Mark complimented him.
Royce grinned. “Thank you. I don’t play golf very often, so it takes me awhile to warm up.”
Behind them, Montez rolled his eyes heavenward, praying for the strength to hold his tongue in check.
“I can see the improvement,” Mark said.
Then it was Desiree’s turn. She shifted her cute butt in his direction, and he silently directed her into the right position. As if she heard him through telepathy, she straightened her spine and lined up the club with the ball.
With a graceful swing, she sent the ball in a low arc over the green.
“Great job, babe.” The endearment slipped from his lips, sounding more natural than the forced “sweetie” he had used as an inside joke at the dinner party. She tossed a smile over her shoulder at him. “Thanks, sweetie.”
He smirked and then caught Royce’s peeved expression. What was this fool’s problem? He was married but acted as if he still had feelings for Desiree.Did he?
Standing at the back, Montez took a good look at Royce. He knew guys like him. They didn’t appreciate what they had until it was gone, but he couldn’t blame the guy. No shade to his wife, but Desiree was quite a catch. Poised, smart, beautiful. Losing her had been a major fumble on Royce’s part.
Hours later, Mark sank the ball into the eighteenth hole and won. He pumped his fist and turned to face them with an excited expression on his face.
“That’s it! Look at that! I won!” He acted as if he had won The Masters.
“Incredible,” Montez said.
“Congratulations,” Desiree and Royce said at the same time.
“Time to see who comes in next.” Mark stepped aside.
Royce walked up to the tee. Grasping his club, he paused to concentrate. After several seconds, he tapped the ball… and missed. He swore in a low but audible voice.
“You’ve got this. Just relax,” Mark coached.
He don’t have shit, Montez thought, watching his form. He could give him pointers, but he didn’t like the guy and suspected he wouldn’t take advice from him anyway.
It took two more strokes for Royce to sink the putt.
“Finally!” he said with a relieved laugh. He turned to Desiree. “Your turn.”
She moved into place.
“You got this,” Montez said.
She cast an appreciative look over her shoulder and then shifted twice on her feet.
She took the shot, and it couldn’t have been more perfect if he’d done it. The ball rolled slowly across the green and dropped into the cup.
“Oh my goodness! I did it!” She ran over to Montez and flung her arms around his neck.
