Page 57 of Taking Sides

“Will I learn more about you with them or without?”

I grimace.

Whitney grins and then stands. She takes my hand and pulls me to my feet and then she’s leading me back toward my friends.

I spot our server and motion toward the bar. She nods knowingly.

“You sure about this?” I ask as we get over into the bar side. “We haven’t even eaten yet.”

“We can order from the bar.”

“Really. I appreciate this, but . . .” It feels pathetic.

She stops and turns to face me. This is the moment she bails. I wouldn’t even blame her.

“You aren’t going to screw this up.” She smiles at me. “Even without them, I’m pretty much a sure thing. I’ve been dying to see you again.”

“You have?”

She nods, and her smile curves higher. “And while hooking up with you is fun, I want to know some things about you too. So if this will make you more comfortable, then I’m fine with it. They seem nice.”

“Nice,” I huff. “They’re nosy as fuck.”

With one last grin, she pulls me the rest of the way to my friends.

D-Low and Travis are exactly where I left them. When they spot us, both break out into wide smiles.

“We decided to join you,” Whitney says. “So you can give me all the dirt on Conrad.”

Travis laughs. “With pleasure.”

“Awesome,” D-Low says. “What can I get you to drink?”

“I got it,” I say, still glaring at him a little. My expression softens when I look at Whitney.

“Dr Pepper and Fireball,” she says.

My brows rise.

“I know. It sounds terrible, but it’s good.”

“Two Dr Peppers with Fireball,” I tell the bartender. “And a couple of waters.”

“Ooh and can we get an order of jalapeno poppers?” Whitney asks. She pulls out a credit card, but I stop her before she hands it to the guy.

“I got it.”

She looks like she wants to protest, but I flash her a smile, and she puts her card away. With our drinks in hand, the four of us head to a table. It’s our usual one on game nights, so there are extra chairs on either side.

As if he’s thinking the same thing as me, Travis says, “Galaxy and Penn are going to be sad they missed this.”

“I’m sure you’ll fill them in.” I lean back in my chair. Whitney and I are sitting side by side now and it helps ease some of my nerves not looking directly at her.

“So, Whitney, you’re a high school hockey coach?” Trav asks her.

“She coaches the JV team,” D-Low answers, then tells her, “I was at the home opener with Shep and Penn. You have some real talent on the team.” He rests one elbow on the table and takes a drink of his beer while he waits for her reply.

Unlike me, D-Low has a way with people—specifically women. He makes everyone feel interesting because he’s genuinely interested in them. He likes people and talking, getting to know them, hearing different perspectives and learning things. If he weren’t my best friend in the world, I might be concerned he’d steal Whitney right from underneath me. But D-Low being here, however misguided, is all about helping me out. I know he’d do anything for me.