Chapter 23
SUTTON
I’m tempted to stop by Lila’s building on my way home from work, but I resist the urge. I know that artist has been there with her today and I still hate it, but I almost blew things yesterday. I don’t want her to think I don’t trust her.
After my naked visit next door, half the neighborhood knows about Lila and me. It’s time to tell Amos. First, I’m going to ask Lila to be my girlfriend. Tonight. No more secret fuck buddy. And we can talk about how to tell Amos about us.
It’s later than usual when I get home, thanks to some mandatory overtime, and I’m surprised to smell weed when I walk in. Amos looks up from the couch. “Hey.” Something in his tone isn’t right.
“Hey. Is everything okay?”
He rubs the back of his neck. “Fine. They’re replacing broken machinery at work so I have the night off again.” That was what brought him home at such a horrible time last night.
“Cool. Do you want to text Lila and see what she wants for dinner? We can order something.”
“She won’t be here tonight.”
What? It’s everything I can do to keep my voice casual. “Did she move into her apartment?”
“Not yet. She went to shop for some equipment or something in Ohio with her friends.”
It feels like an opportunity is presenting itself.
Lila is gone and Amos has the night free.
We haven’t got to hang out without others in a long time.
“Let’s go play pool or something,” I suggest. “Unless you have plans with your girl.” Maybe I can bring up me possibly dating his sister.
Or hint around it. Kind of feel him out.
He considers it for a minute. “There’s that new bar on the west side. They have axe throwing.”
Having this conversation surrounded by sharpened hatchets wouldn’t have been my first choice, but okay.
It’s a week night so Blades and Beer isn’t very busy. We both grab a beer, and Amos also gets a shot. He takes it, orders another, and we head to one of the throwing cages that’s empty. The areas are divided by metal fencing and a small wooden bar with two stools sits at each entrance.
“Want to practice before we start taking score?” Amos asks after we read over the laminated sheet of rules and score keeping.
“Good idea. I’ve never played before.”
“Me either, but we’re good at darts. How different could it be?” He stands at the black line and chucks the hatchet. It flips multiple times, bounces off the target and clangs to the floor.
“Stand back, let me show you how it’s done.” I grab the ax and mime throwing a few times, trying to get used to the weight of it and determine how far it’ll rotate. It flies straight, rotates too far, hits the target, and joins Amos’s on the floor.
“You were saying?” Amos snorts.
Two women are throwing at the next cage, and one of them grins over at us. “Loosen your grip and don’t throw so hard,” she advises. We watch as she tosses hers and easily sticks it in the target.
“Come and show me how?” Amos invites, flashing a smile.
“Buy me a drink?”
“Absolutely, your friend too. I’m Amos.”
“Mia.” Both women join us and she introduces her friend as Jenny.
Damn it. I’m not here to hit on women when I have no interest in anyone but Lila. Why is he flirting when he’s with Mandy, anyway?
It doesn’t work out for him because Mia is only interested in the game. “My husband loves to bring me here on date nights and he always wins. So I started sneaking away to practice. Next time, he’s in for it.”
We order another round of drinks, and Jenny sits beside me at the small bar while Mia shows Amos how to throw. “My first boyfriend in seventh grade was named Sutton,” she says, flipping back her blond hair. “Little skinny kid with a buzzcut.”
You’ve got to be kidding me. Sometimes I hate living in a small town. “Until you moved away in the middle of the year?” I suggest.
Her brown eyes widen and she claps her hand over her mouth. “I didn’t recognize you at all.” She drags her gaze over me. “You really grew up.”
“I hope so since we were twelve.” We both chuckle at the situation. She grins at me over her drink. “You were my first kiss.”
“Really?”
We get interrupted when Amos lets out a hoot. His axe is embedded at the edge of the target. “I got it!”
Mia waves her hand, gesturing for me to take a turn. “Come on, I’ll show you how.”
It takes me a couple of tries, but then I get the hang of it, and we start a game with the four of us. The drinks keep coming, but I stop at two beers since I’m the one driving. Amos is throwing them back left and right.
After a couple of hours, Jenny lays her hand on my knee and leans to talk into my ear over the music. “We have to go soon. Do you want my number?”
“I’m sorry, but I’m seeing someone.”
Amos walks up and slaps a hatchet down on the bar. “I’m too drunk to throw anymore. That was fun.”
Jenny slides off the stool and nods to her friend. “We should get going. Thanks for the drinks.”
As soon as they walk away, Amos takes her spot. “Dude, she was into you. Did you ask her out?”
“No, I’m not interested.”
“Are you allergic to pussy all of a sudden?” His phone beeps and he checks it. “Lila said she’d text when they made it safe to Ohio.” He shows me the picture she sent of her, Cara, and Maren at a table with margaritas. It’s captioned Girl’s Night. “Let’s send one back.”
We take a picture with both of us holding axes like we’re going to chop the other one, with the drinks visible on the table behind us. It looks hilarious and unhinged. Amos captions it Boy’s Night and sends it back before heading to the bathroom.
My phone beeps with a text from Lila.
Lila
Do I even want to know what you two are doing?
Me
Dueling to the death, of course.
Lila
Very funny.
Me
New bar in town where you can throw axes. It’s fun. I’m taking you on our next date.
There’s a long pause before she responds.
Lila
Try not to open an artery before we get back.
I still haven’t broached the subject of dating Lila with Amos. I know the decision to tell him should be made with Lila, so I’m going to ask it as a hypothetical for now. Like, would he be upset if I asked her out in the future. That’s my plan when I see him walking back, but I don’t get a chance.
He grabs his beer, drains the last of it, slaps the bottle back down on the bar and says, “I fucked up. Like I really fucked up bad.”
Oh no. “What happened? Did you lose your job?”
“Mandy is pregnant.”
His words hang in the air while my stomach hits the floor. “No.” The word escapes in a whisper. “Are you serious?”
He nods, dropping onto the bar stool.
“Jesus, man. What the hell were you thinking?” My raised voice draws a few glances but I don’t care. I can’t imagine anyone less prepared to raise a kid than him.
“It was accidental. Birth control failed. Shit happens.” He hangs his head. “It always seems to happen to me.”
I’m not in the mood to hear his poor me bullshit. “How does Mandy feel about it?”
“She’s scared. I told her I’d support whatever decision she made. That we could go over into Illinois if she wanted a termination.” Terrified eyes meet mine when he looks up. “She’s going to keep it. She wants kids.”
I’m pissed at him for being so stupid, but I’m also scared for him and Mandy. For the mess this is definitely going to be. Lila is going to lose her mind. “Fuck.” It’s all I say as I sit on the stool next to him.
“Yeah,” he says with a bitter laugh, and flags down the waitress.
I’m trying to think of something positive or supportive to say. “At least you have a steady job and cheap rent. For all three of you if necessary.” My worst fear is always homelessness. No one understands how quickly it can happen until it happens to them.
“Dream come true.” He throws back two shots. “Working a shit job for life so I can raise a kid in a trailer park.”
He orders two more shots. The waitress eyes me to see my reaction because he’s pretty wasted already. They’re probably close to cutting him off. “Last ones, and we have to go,” I tell Amos. She gives me a silent smile and nods then goes to get them.
“Killed the mood, didn’t I?” Amos says.
“An unplanned pregnancy will do that. But we need to head out because I have an early doctor’s appointment.
” Trying to lighten things a little before he starts crying in his drink, I add, “I hit the come number goal.” Surpassed it, actually, thanks to Lila, but it took a while to get an appointment.
His lips tilt up. “Nothing like jerking off in a cup after breakfast.” He shakes his head. “I swear on everything if this turns out to be a false positive or something, I’ll get my shit snipped too. I don’t want kids.”
A little late for that realization. He tosses back the last two shots as I answer. “Stop by the proctologist too and have your head pulled out of your ass.”
He throws back his head with a laugh then turns serious again. “Don’t tell anyone about this. I don’t want anybody to know yet.”
“I won’t.” Great. Now I’m keeping a huge secret from Lila and him. “Let’s get out of here.”
He wobbles when he gets up and sways on his feet as we walk to my truck. By the time we get home, I have to hold him up and practically drag him inside.
He kicks off his shoes and lays back on his bed with his arm over his eyes. I think he’s passed out until he slurs. “I should bail. Run away.”
“You should pass out.” A loud snore immediately follows.
He’d better not take long to tell Lila because I really don’t want to keep this from her. Especially when I plan to make her my girlfriend.