Chapter 17
Thank you, giant anchor in the sky.
Miles
“You made it!” Harper squeals, and I glance over my shoulder. Phew. Hazel came. I wasn’t certain she would. She’s jumpier than a smuggler who just spotted a Prohi.
Hazel scans the interior of The Drunken Anchor Lanes and frowns when her gaze lands on me. “I’ve been scammed,” she mutters before whirling around toward the exit.
I rush to intercept her. “Blaze, wait!’
She fists her hands on her hips. “Give me one reason why I shouldn’t leave now.”
“Because it’s Sirens & Strikes Night and I know how much you enjoy it.”
“So you asked your sister-in-law to invite me?”
I stuff my hands in my pockets and shrug. “I didn’t think you’d say yes if I invited you.”
“Miles, your whole family is here,” she hisses instead of answering my question, which is kind of an answer.
“You love my family.”
When we were dating way back in high school, Hazel spent nearly as much time at my house as she did at hers. She laughed and joked with my brothers and helped Mom prepare meals. She was a part of our family.
Until I went and screwed it all up. But she will be a part of our family again. I will do everything in my power to convince her to give me a second chance.
She blows out a breath. “And you’re deliberately misunderstanding my point.”
“Not deliberately. I don’t understand your point.”
“Your family will think we’re back together.”
“Would it be so bad if we were back together?” I hold my breath as I wait for her answer.
“Miles.”
I step closer. “Everyone in my family knows I want a second chance with you. They also know you haven’t given me one yet.”
“They’re also staring at us.”
“You can’t be surprised. My brothers are as nosy as you are.”
Her jaw drops open. “Me? Nosy?”
I snort. “Did you or did you not end up with detention in freshman year for eavesdropping on the principal?”
“Is it eavesdropping when she’s screaming loud enough for everyone on the island to hear?”
“It is when you stick your ear to a glass against her door.’
“Whatever.”
“Come on.” I motion to the lanes. “It’ll be fun. I already spotted the contraband item in our lane. I bet you can’t knock it loose.”
Sirens & Strikes Night isn’t your usual bowling night. Each lane has a hidden ‘contraband item’ — toy rum barrels, fake gold coins, a mini anchor. If your ball knocks it loose, you win a prize.
Hazel’s eyes narrow on mine. I’ve got her now and she knows it. She can’t resist a challenge.
“When I knock the contraband item loose, you have to parade around Drunken Anchor Lanes clucking like a chicken.”
I’d parade around the lanes naked with my face painted purple, if it would get her to stay. I hold out my hand. “You’re on.”
As soon as she shakes my hand, I usher her forward. “We have lanes six and seven.”
“Brave. Lane seven is cursed.”
“It’s not cursed just because you always lose when you bowl on lane seven.”
She glares at me. “I do not always lose on lane seven.”
I lift an eyebrow. “You don’t?”
“Stop challenging me.”
I chuckle. “But it’s fun.”
“How about another bet?”
My brothers inch closer – they’re addicted to betting – but I motion for them to stay where they are. This is between Blaze and me.
“Name your bet.”
“If I win, you have to sing I Believe In A Thing Called Love over the intercom.”
I groan. “I can’t sing that song.”
She giggles. “I know. I remember you trying to sing it at Mermaid Karaoke. You were booed off the stage.”
Not one of my proudest moments but Kai dared me. I don’t turn down a dare any more than Hazel refuses a challenge.
“You want everyone to boo me.”
She shrugs. “If you’re a loser…”
I narrow my eyes at her. “If you lose, you have to attend one of my surfing classes.”
Hazel is not a fan of surfing. She enjoys watching it, but she hates getting too far out in the ocean where all the ‘vicious animals’ are. She’s never recovered from the Jaws marathon we watched when she was fourteen.
She shivers. “Fine, but if the sharks eat me, I am going to return as a poltergeist and haunt the mermaid out of you.”
“If you can knock on windows or throw objects, you’re totally haunting your brothers.”
She sniffs. “I can haunt you and my brothers at the same time. I’m a woman. I can multi-task.”
“No shark is going to eat you anyway.”
She smirks. “Because you’re not going to win.”
“Game on, Blaze. Game on.” I place my hand on her lower back to lead her to the lane. She gasps at my touch and I duck my chin to hide my smile. She still wants me, but she’s being cautious. And stubborn. I’m not worried. I can out stubborn Hazel any day of the week.
We join my family at lane seven, and the lights begin to flash.
“The pins aren’t the only things going down tonight,” the DJ declares.
Eli hands out shot glasses filled with moonshine.
“To the bootleggers!” The DJ hollers before the lights go out. Our glow-in-the-dark shots provide the only illumination.
“Masters of the sneaky snips and secret stashes. Thanks for keeping the party alive,” we toast before drinking our shots and the lights blink on again.
Hazel slams her shot glass down on the table. “That was way better than whatever moonshine Miles tried to poison me with the other day.”
I frown. “I wasn’t trying to poison you.”
She blinks. “Oh, it was a lucky side effect?”
“Lucky?” I snort. “I think not. Do you not remember when you got food poisoning junior year and moved into the bathroom for two days?”
“Dad was not amused. One bathroom for six people is not enough.”
We sit down to change into our bowling shoes. Everyone who grew up on the island has their own pair since bowling is the most popular gym course during senior year of high school.
Hazel wanders off to find a bowling ball. I can’t help but watch her. She smiles at everyone, stops to talk to people she knows, and generally spreads joy wherever she goes. I need her to aim some of that joy my way.
Zane sits next to me and bumps my shoulder. “You’ve got it bad.”
I elbow him. “You promised to behave tonight.”
He jumps to his feet. “Too bad you never defined behave.”
Jaxon frowns. “Classic mistake.”
I shoo him away. “Aren’t you on lane six?”
“Come on.” Blossom grasps his arm. “We’ll be out of the danger zone but still within the watching zone.”
Hazel skips back to our lane with her bowling ball. “I hope you’re ready to parade around clucking like a chicken.”
I tug on one of her curls. “You need to knock the contraband item loose first.”
“How hard can it be? There’s a toy rum barrel in the middle of the lane. I’ll knock it loose on my first try.”
I motion her forward. “By all means.”
She stands at the end of the lane and tilts her head from side to side as she studies the best way to hit the toy rum barrel. After a minute, she nods and raises her ball into the air. She takes two steps and an alarm sounds as a giant anchor slowly lowers from the ceiling.
Everyone in the bowling alley freezes. If you move while the anchor is lowered, you get a gutter penalty. And everyone heckles you.
“You moved!” Sloane points to Hazel.
“Anchor breaker!” Zane chants, and soon enough, everyone is chanting with him. “Anchor breaker! Anchor breaker!”
“I didn’t move. I got a cramp!” Hazel exclaims before stomping over to put her ball in the ball return.
She collapses on the chair next to me and I hand her a shot. “Bottoms up, anchor breaker.”
She narrows her eyes at me before she raises the shot glass and drinks the moonshine. “I was in the middle of my approach. It’s impossible to stop on a moment’s notice.”
I pat her arm. “Sure, it is.”
“Don’t patronize me.”
“It means to treat in a way that appears kind or helpful but betrays a feeling of superiority,” Jaxon says from the lane next to ours.
I give him the finger. “I’m not an idiot.”
He fiddles with his glasses. “You’re not?”
Hazel bursts into laughter. “I forgot how much fun your family is.”
“You should give Miles a second chance,” Sloane says.
“And then you can be part of the family,” Harper finishes.
“How much did you pay them to say that?” Hazel asks.
“Nothing,” I claim at the same moment Sloane says, “A weekend of babysitting.”
Hazel’s eyes widen. “You’re going to babysit for a weekend?”
I wasn’t planning on it since I never agreed to babysit baby Adele but her surprise has me scowling. “I can babysit. I’m responsible.”
“Miles Raider is going to miss a weekend of surfing to babysit?”
“You make it sound as if I spend every single moment in the surf.”
She lifts an eyebrow. “Don’t you? After all – there’s nothing more important.”
“Wrong,” I grumble. “I can give you a list of things more important than surfing – starting with spending time with you and ending with spending time with you.”
Her eyes dilate, but she shakes her head. “You’ve been drinking again.”
I bite my tongue before I growl. I’m about done with her thinking the only reason I want her is because I’m drunk. I’ve proven otherwise but she’s still skittish.
“I had one shot of moonshine. Nothing more. But if you don’t believe me, you can message Weston and have him come here and do a sobriety test.”
She rolls her eyes. “Please, we spent a month practicing the walk-and-turn and one-leg stand until we could do it while completely smashed. A sobriety test means nothing.”
“I meant a breathalyzer.”
“You would do a breathalyzer test right here, right now?”
“Yep.”
“You haven’t been drinking?”
I guide my finger down her cheek. “I told you, Blaze. I want you. I want my second chance with you. I’ll do whatever you need me to, to prove I’m worthy of a second chance.”
She nibbles on her bottom lip as she studies me. I want to be the one nibbling on her lip while my fingers thread through her silky hair.
But there’s more to us than our chemistry. So I inhale a deep breath and keep my hands to myself.
“You surprise me, Miles.”
“If you let me, I’ll surprise you every single day for the rest of our lives.”
“The rest of our lives?”
I shrug. “Or until we’re senile.”
“Miles!” Kai shouts. “It’s your turn.”
“There’s no rush, Blaze. Take your time and think about what I said.”
I wait for her nod before I stand and saunter away. I will continue to push her, but it’s enough for today. I don’t want to overwhelm her. I want her to have fun. She deserves to have all the fun in her life.