Chapter 28 - Happy Birthday
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
COLSEN
One would think that getting the biggest party boy I’ve ever met to go out to a club on his birthday would be an easy task.
But since the day Baety invaded Tucker’s duffel bag, and we brought her back home from the vet, Tucker has morphed into a doting, overly anxious mama duck.
Or Motherducker, like Mack, Nash, and I renamed him.
Tonight is no exception. Tucker almost bailed twice on us, trying to convince us to order takeout and stay in instead of going out. The only reason why he didn’t is that Taryn insisted.
Without her help, I would have had to explain to a furious Talia why the guest of honor of the surprise party she’s been organizing for over a week decided to stay home in his sweatpants.
“I’m sorry,” I ask as my knees hit the glove box of Taryn’s Volkswagen Beetle for the umpteenth time since we all crammed into her car.
“Is there a reason why we’re going in the smallest car we have between us rather than taking my SUV or Tucker’s truck?
Not to be rude, but this is gonna look like a clown car when we’re gonna try to get out. ”
Taryn giggles as she turns into the parking lot adjacent to the pier. “Because I figured that if you guys wanted to have a drink with the birthday boy, I could drive.”
“You could have driven one of our cars, or we could have booked a ride.” I pull on the seatbelt that’s practically cutting my air supply. This car isn’t made for people over six feet two.”
“I’m more comfortable in my own car.” Taryn objects. “I’ve never driven a truck or an SUV.”
“I agree with Col,” Mack chimes in from the back seat. “On the way back, I’m riding shotgun, you’ve all been warned.”
Tucker’s knees are digging into my back. “I’m sorry, but whose birthday are we out to celebrate? If anyone should be getting to ride shotgun, both ways, it’s me.”
“Well, fuck.” I laugh. “You snooze, you lose, buddy. Besides, you’re being rude. You’ve been on your phone since the second we stepped foot out of our apartment.”
Tucker surges forward, his arm sneaking around the seat so he can shove his phone right in front of my eyes. “I’m not being rude. I’m just making sure Baety is ok. Look, see? She’s sleeping.”
Sure enough, the screen shows Baety’s playpen where the duckling has wrapped herself in another pair of Tucker’s underwear.
“Seriously? A baby monitor?” I gawk.
Tucker slaps my shoulder with his free hand. “No, not a monitor, dipshit. A camera. I can control the app through my phone. I couldn’t come out unless I knew Baety was ok.”
He’s fucking hopeless. “Is she getting bigger?” I muse when the duck wakes up with a shake of her fluffy feathers.
“Yeah, I think she is.” Tucker’s smile is brimming with pride. “She really likes her pellets, and the vet said I could give her peas. Those were a hit. Baby ducklings grow pretty fast, by the way. Very soon she won’t look like a baby anymore.”
“Ok, we’re here.” Taryn parks the car and gets out.
It takes me, Tucker, and Mack a few beats to detangle ourselves out of her tiny car.
“It’s a shame Nash didn’t want to join us,” Tucker muses. “I asked him, but he said he was busy. He was very curt, too.”
In reality, Nash is waiting inside the club with Talia, the rest of our teammates, and almost the whole group of cheerleaders. “People get busy and tired during summer training. You know how it is.”
“That’s right.” Tucker grunts at my comment. “I tried to ask a couple more of our teammates, and everyone was tired or busy or whatever. So I gave up. It’s the curse of being a summer baby.”
“A curse? I was born in December, and it was always too cold to do anything cool. My dad used to play for Vancouver when I was little, and it sucked big time to be stuck indoors.” Mack gripes.
Tucker, however, won’t be one upped. “Yeah? Try being born during school holidays. I could never have a birthday party that wasn’t just my siblings and extended family.
All my school friends were always out of town.
Even my hockey friends since it’s the offseason.
And this is a tourist town, it’s beyond me why people would leave.
The ones who didn’t were usually busy working because it’s high season. So I never had a decent party.”
Taryn and I exchange a smile. Tucker thinks we’re going to eat dinner at Morelli’s, that’s further down at the end of the marina. He has no idea that he’s being punked.
“Come on, Tuck,” Taryn links her arm with his. “Let’s go.”
He wraps his arm around her shoulder but resists when she begins steering him behind the pier complex. “Baby, this is the wrong way for Morelli’s. The marina is further down.”
“I know. There’s just something I wanted to check first, if you don’t mind.”
Tucker follows her but begins to question our girl’s sense of direction again. “Where are we going? This is just a service road to the places along the marina. There is nothing here but loading bays and dumpsters.”
The sight of Taryn pulling on Tucker’s arm is quite comical due to the over one foot difference in their height and Tucker’s much larger frame.
“Come on, just one second.” She knocks on the back door of the club that’s opening tonight.
“Wait a second, isn’t this the back of Starstruck?
Tonight is their grand opening. The owner is friends with my parents.
If you wanted to come here, you should have told me.
I would have gotten us an invitation. But it’s gonna be manic.
There’s no way they’re going to let us in.
Especially from the back entrance, they—”
He finally shuts up when one of the bouncers opens the red, metallic door and ushers us in.
“This way, Taryn.” The burly man smiles.
We can hear the music even in the service hallway, which must be full of offices and storage rooms.
“Where are we going?” Tucker whisper-yells in Taryn’s ear when we’re instructed to climb up a metal spiral staircase. “Are you trying to buy drugs? If that’s the case, we don’t—”
Taryn parts the gold curtains at the top of the stairs, where another bouncer just nods in silent greeting.
The room has dim lighting, and the music from the club’s main floor beneath assaults our ears.
In a matter of seconds, a loud “SURPRISE!” Covers even the music.
Tucker is stunned. I’ve never seen him speechless.
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TUCKER!” Talia and all our teammates, all the girls at cheer camp, and several friends who graduated this year are there to celebrate.
“Happy birthday, Tuck!” Candace, the Zeta president who was first in this year’s graduating class, hugs him.
“Hey dude. Twenty-three looks good on you.” Her boyfriend and former teammate Corey slaps his back.
Talia throws herself into her big brother’s arms. “Happy birthday, huge pain in my butt. I love you to the moon and back.”
“Was this your doing?” Tucker squeezes his little sister into one of his famous bear hugs.
“It was. But I couldn’t have pulled it off without Taryn’s help. She made sure to run interference so you wouldn’t hear about it. Were you surprised?”
Tucker’s eyes are welling up with tears; it’s impossible to miss it even in the dim lighting of the club’s VIP room. “I’m still in shock. I’ve never had a party with all my friends. And never, ever a surprise party. I’ve only ever organized them for other people.”
“It was about time someone organized one for you.” Talia beams.
Tucker turns to look at Taryn and… fuck.
I had a hunch that my best friend was falling fast for our pretty girl, but the way he looks at her tells me that he’s got it even worse than I thought. He’s a goner.
The trouble is, I’m starting to feel the same way too.
I’ve only been able to speak to her on the phone, mostly via text due to our hectic training schedules.
But every new little thing I learn about her only makes me want her more.
I’ve been dying to take her out on a date, to spend some alone time with her.
I can’t get the night we spent together out of my head.
What the fuck are Tucker and I going to do? I don’t want Taryn to choose Tucker. Or Nash.
I’m pulled out of my mini meltdown when Jamie Hart, our star center who mentored me last year, offers me his fist to bump.
“Hey Col,” he smiles. “How are you doing?”
“Nice to see you, Jamie. I thought you’d already be in San Francisco.”
Keene, one of our former defensemen, joins him. “We’re driving there tomorrow. We had to stick around for a trial up in Bridgeport. We came back to get the last of our stuff and we couldn’t have missed Tucker’s surprise party.”
I follow Keene’s gaze as Bex and Connor wish happy birthday to Tucker and get introduced to Taryn.
“So Tucker’s got a girl, huh?” Jamie asks.
Tucker’s arm is tightly wrapped around Taryn’s waist, so I don’t bother correcting their assumption. “Yeah, I guess he does.”
“Gotta give it to Tuck,” Keene observes. “He has good taste, and he definitely has a type. Taryn’s looks remind me a lot of Bex.”
My vague noise of agreement doesn’t go unnoticed.
“Oh, I see.”
A look passes between Jamie and Keene.
“What do you see?” I play dumb.
“You’re into Taryn, too.” Keene doesn’t beat around the bush. “Does she know? And does Tuck know?”
I run a hand through my hair. “Yeah, they both do. We’re both seeing her. At least for now.”
There’s another look between my two former teammates.
“What?” I bite out.
“Nothing,” Jamie shrugs. “Something like that happened with us and Bex last year.”
As far as people knew, Bex was Jamie’s girlfriend. “Really? I always suspected that Keene was into Bex. Connor too, to be honest.” I admit.
Jamie pulls me closer. “Yeah. Look, it isn’t a secret, but we don’t particularly advertise it, especially since there has been a lot of attention on Bex after what happened in Bridgeport. But all three of us are dating her. And we want to keep this going long term.”
“Forever, if possible.” Keene adds.
“Really? How does it work? Aren’t you guys jealous of each other?”