Chapter 5
Grant
The Problem
Ihad to admit, parties at Roland’s suited the place. Normally, I’d be dead-center on the dance floor, hands slipped around a woman or two, only escaping for shots, or beer, or whatever the fuck would dull my senses for the evening.
Instead, I found myself tossin’ darts back to back, sipping real slow on the same drink I’d had since I’d arrived almost an hour ago. Nerves weren’t really my thing, and if that’s what this was, then it fucking sucked.
I kept glancing past my shoulder toward the front door every time it opened, and over the past thirty minutes, I’d grown disappointed.
I noticed that’s what I was doing—waiting for her—about ten minutes ago, and ever since then, I’d missed the dart board.
I told myself all the dots lining the wall were proof that I wasn’t the only one who could be easily distracted.
But this was a bar, and the holes were probably from some sorry drunk fucker who couldn’t hold his liquor.
Liquor wasn’t my problem. Not tonight.
My problem was knowing Sophia was expected to show her pretty face at this very bar, and she might not be coming alone, either.
“You gonna throw it?” Hayes stepped in front of me, the tall, broad jackass I called one of my best friends taking the dart from my hand. “Or you gonna keep starin’ at it like it killed your snake?”
“Leave June out of it.”
He threw the dart, then picked up the two others I had yet to throw and tossed them, hitting one of mine out of place. “You’re up.”
“I was playing alone.”
“And now you ain’t.” Hayes pushed his messy, dirty blond hair from his face while greenish-brown eyes swept down to his bike riding boots, similar to what my sister wore on the track. “Is Tallie here?” he asked as I collected the darts.
“Why, you bring your bike to try to beat her outside?”
He chuckled. “Nah, no bike. Just curious since you take her everywhere.”
“She’s somewhere in here. Or better be. I don’t need any more shit tonight.”
Hayes’ brow arched as he scanned the bar over his shoulder.
I couldn’t tell if he was tryin’ to be discreet about looking for my sister, but if he was, it wasn’t working.
Sometimes I questioned the way he was lookin’, but then shook those thoughts away.
My best friend wouldn’t do that to me, and besides, they hated each other.
Their rivalry annoyed the hell out of me at first, but then I realized they were like two peas in a pod with motocross.
Nothing made her more fiercely competitive and ready to win than seeing Hayes out there, on the dirt at the same time, and the same went for him when he saw her.
Their mutual hatred for each other made for great races and great races made Tallulah happy.
Which made her a little less wild, which made my job ten times easier.
The door swung open, and Hayes shifted to follow where my attention had fallen. I muttered a curse and pinched the dart between my fingers as his chin jutted toward the door.
“Waitin’ on someone?”
I exhaled a heavy breath. “Yep.”
He smirked. “Take it that ain’t who ya wanted, then.”
“No.” I threw the dart without looking, and a sharp thud followed.
“Good on you.” Hayes clapped slowly, several of his metal rings clinking together. “You hit it.”
A waitress walked by, carrying a tray of shots. Hayes grabbed two, offering me one. We took them as we observed the rest of the bar.
“Carver went all out,” Hayes said, regarding the large layered cake on the bartop that had butterflies wrapped around it, angled as if they were taking flight. The dancefloor was packed, but every now and then, you could catch Carver and Lyra swaying in the middle as if no one else was around them.
I hadn’t noticed the door opening again until Hayes nudged my shoulder. “Think she’s lost?” he asked, gesturing with his head toward the blonde in a dress way too ritzy for Roland’s.
“Nah.” I grinned and pressed the back of my hand holding the empty shot glass into Hayes’ chest. “Can you go find Tallulah for me? Make sure she isn’t messin’ anything up.”
“Can do.” He took the glass and walked off into the sea of people. People that had no hope of blocking Sophia from my view. Now that she was back in it, I wouldn’t let her out of it as easily as I had before.