A burst of laughter came out of all three of them, and as I looked up to see what I’d missed, a familiar gaze caught my eye.
Holland Kennedy had spiked white-blond hair, a slim build, and had been a friend with benefits on my short list for a long time, but it’d been over a year since I’d seen him, or seen his number pop up on my phone.
But he sure saw me now, his crooked smile widening as he started in my direction.
Oh fuck. Not now. Not here.
There was no way I wanted a reunion in front of Reid, even if all we’d ever be was platonic, so I quickly excused myself from the table before Holland could make his approach…and turn it all to shit.
twenty-three
REID
WHEN OLLIE TOLD us he’d be right back, I figured he was going to the restroom or maybe the bar for more food or drinks. What I didn’t expect was that he’d walk straight over to a surfer-looking guy, who greeted him with a hug and a kiss on the cheek.
Whatever Deb had been saying faded into the background as I zeroed in on their interaction. The guy rubbed Ollie’s spine before Ollie broke off the embrace and took a step back. But as the two continued to converse, the other guy touched Ollie’s arm and leaned back into him to whisper something in his ear. The way the blond smiled at him and invaded his personal space made me think they’d been intimate with each other at some point. Or maybe even now. Ollie had said he was single, but maybe that didn’t refer to hookups.
I pushed my beer away as my stomach began to churn, and when the guy’s hand slid up Ollie’s arm again, a different scene sprang to my mind—one at a bowling alley with a guy in a red shirt, staring at Ollie in a way that made me want to give them privacy, but also made my blood heat.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I noticed you were giving your friend pointers, and I thought…maybe you could help me aswell?” red shirt guy said, ignoring me completely as he licked his lips and smiled at Ollie.
“Actually, I’m a little busy—” Ollie said from where he stood beside me and had been showing me the right technique for keeping my bowling ball out of the gutter.
“That’s okay. I’m a quick learner.” He gave Ollie a long once-over. “It won’t take long.”
“I don’t think?—”
“You should go.” The words came out of my mouth automatically, even though that was the last thing I wanted. “It’s selfish to keep you all to myself when you could be helping someone else.”
“Reid?”
My eyes snapped up to Ollie’s from where I’d apparently been staring off into space while lost in whatever that had been. That couldn’t have been a memory. I’d never been at a bowling alley with Ollie. Had I drifted off to sleep standing up or something?
I shook my head, erasing the images from my mind. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”
“Everything okay?” Ollie asked, coming around the table to stand beside me. When I looked up, Deb and Mike had resumed their conversation, but I could see them peeking over to see what was going on.
Way to make a scene by daydreaming, Reid.
“Everything’s good. Maybe need to lay off the drinks and eat something,” I said, and reached for another nacho.
“Yeah, of course, let’s go ahead and order. Did you decide what you want already?”
“Hmm. What’s good?”
Ollie flipped open a menu, and we both scanned over it. “Their chicken enchiladas are amazing, but I gotta say, their fish tacos bring it home for me.”
Something flickered on the edges of my mind. “Tacos?”
“Yeah. You like tacos, right?”
“With homemade seasoning,” I murmured.A mixing bowl. Spices spread out along the counter, and Ollie pouring them one at a time as he smiled at…me?
“Well, I don’t know how homemade the seasoning is here, but it gets the job done. You’ll have to come over the next time I make some and try it out.”
My forehead creased, and I rubbed it with my thumb. “You make your own?”
“It’s the only way.”