He let out a long, low whistle. “She single?”
“Not for you!” I barked.
“Is she single for you, Jonesy?” Sorrento asked pointedly.
“It’s complicated,” I mumbled.
“What was that?” Sorrento pushed.
“Could we please focus on the lines for tonight?” I tried.
“She got a sister? Is her mom hot?” Royce cut in.
Leroy scoffed. “Oh, you have discerning tastes, but you want Colt’s girl’s mom.”
“Relax. Age is just a number,” he said with a smirk.
Impossibly long legs under a short,tight skirt, a strip of skin on her midriff that made my lips ache, small breasts perfectly accentuated by her cropped shirt, and a jacket over top to pull it all together.
Friend date, I reminded myself. This was a friend date. Violet didn’t need me pinning her to her couch and gazing into her eyes while she was healing. She needed space. She was letting me be in her space, which was a privilege I would not squander.
And anyway, my foolish heart needed to cool its jets. Violet left me twice before. There were reasons we needed to go slow.
I stood to greet her, extending my arms for a hug. “Hey. Wow.”
“Wow, what?” she said as she folded herself into my arms, giving me a genuine squeeze.
“You . . . definitely look better than the guys I hang out with.”
She wrinkled her brow with a quizzical smile. “What?”
I scrunched my nose. “The beer with the guys comment. About tonight. You know what? It was stupid. Sit.”
I pulled out her chair. “Do you pull out chairs for the guys?” she asked.
I winced. “Sorry. Old habit.”
She grabbed my hand once I sat at the table and wiggled it. “Hey. Relax. It’s just us. Hanging out.”
“Yeah. Yeah, I know,” I said, trying to covertly tug at my collar. Why was it so unseasonably hot for October?
“I saw you guys lost yesterday.” She leaned on one hip to cross her legs, her foot brushing my leg under the table. “Sorry about that.”
Was she sorry about touching me or the preseason loss? I went with the latter.
“Meh. It’s the preseason. If we win, great. If we lose, it’s the preseason and it doesn’t mean anything.”
“Well, get it together. I’m still in Nouri’s NHL fantasy league and I’m counting on a whole lot of you.”
“Aw. At least somebody believes in the Rusties. Beats most of the rest of this city.”
Violet saluted. “I will go down with the ship, unless it’s midseason and you’re really tanking my score. I don’t want to eat atomic wings.”
I bobbed my head. “You know what? If you lose and your team is 50% Rusties or more, I’ll eat the wings with you. Put some skin in the game.”
She chuckled. “I thought the skin was winning the Cup.”
I waved a hand. “One thing at a time.”
