Page 172 of Always Love You More

We drop off the beers we brought into the big cooler, and Jameson grabs us a couple before we set up our blanket among the others.

I look over toward the water as a girl shrieks, watching as Billy splashes her. Laughing, I crack open my beer.

“Cards?” I ask Jameson.

He nods, and I pull out a deck.

Two games of gin later, Billy saunters over, dropping down next to us. “Deal me in,” he says, shaking out his wet hair and leaning back.

I pass Jameson my cigarette then shuffle the cards. “How’s the water?” I ask.

“Feels like a bathtub.” He sorts his cards. “You gonna go in?”

“Yeah,” I answer, taking my cigarette back from Jameson. “I’m baking.”

“Well, you can go in real soon, right after I beat you.”

“Like how you beat me the last time we played.” I pause, tilting my head. “Oh, wait, that’s right; I beat you both three times in a row.”

“That was luck.”

I snort. “Then I guess you’re pretty fucking unlucky ’cause I beat you all the time.”

He picks up a card, turning to Jameson. “Help me out here.”

Jameson shrugs. “She’s not lying.”

“Whatever.” Billy grins. “This is gonna be my time, you’ll see.”

What’s supposed to be one game turns into three because when I win the first, Billy wants a rematch. Then, when he wins the second, he wants a tiebreaker.

Setting down my cards, I call outgin, and Billy throws back his head. “Come on. Seriously?”

“Guess I’m still lucky,” I taunt.

“Whatever,” he grumbles, but I know he’s only teasing. He stands, starting for the cooler. “I’m gonna go grab another beer.”

Glancing over at Jameson, I raise a brow. “What? No whining from you?”

“I like it when you win,” he answers simply. “You get this look.”

“What look? What do you—”

“When you win”—he leans forward—“right before you set down your cards, your face gets all”—he shakes his head—“I don’t know … excited.”

I stare back at him. “Do you even like playing?”

“Sure, it’s all right.”

“Jamie!” I throw out a hand. “We play all the time … or we used to, at least, before things went to shit.”

“I know.”

“So, you’re saying that you’ve been playing all this time just ’cause you like the look on my face when I win?”

“I mean, that’s not the only reason,” he answers. “But yeah, mostly.”

“That makes no sense.”