20. 20
Lisa refused to think about the call from the police she’d received that morning before they’d left. They’d given her some news that had answered a few questions and left her feeling even more glad that she’d come back home to Dickenson and that Randy was locked up.
The local police had searched her old apartment, to see if there was any evidence Randy had been there. They found cameras hidden in every room. Every room, including the bathroom.
That explained how he’d known when she was gone, and probably how he’d tracked her phone too. There was no doubt he’d seen her typing her passwords and had been able to get into any of her accounts. She knew she would need to change them all but not now. He was locked up and couldn’t hurt her today. Today she was going to have fun.
Lisa pushed all thoughts of Randy from her mind as she laughed and danced around the pullout and picnic area in front of the giant grasshopper sculpture. She and Ava were having a blast being goofy and taking silly pictures. They were still trying to get the boys involved, but Deke and Cowboy would look at each other, shake their heads and just watch as she and Ava carried on.
She didn’t care if they looked like kids, or if someone stared at them. They were having fun, and after yesterday, she needed a little fun.
“What do you think it will take to get them involved?” Lisa leaned close to Ava and asked in a soft voice. They were far enough away from the guys, they wouldn’t hear that, but they might if she spoke out loud.
“I’m not sure.” Ava turned and watched the men for a moment. They were talking and shaking their heads at their antics.
“Maybe we should make it a little more fun.”
“What do you mean?” Ava frowned at her.
“A bet.”
“What kind of bet?”
“First one of us to get their guy to goof off and be silly with them wins. But you can’t tell them there’s a bet, because those two are competitive enough they’ll do it just to win.”
“But what does the winner get?”
Lisa pursed her lips and pulled them to one side as she thought for a moment.
“I know,” she said with a snap of her fingers. “Next weekend, that’s not a club ride weekend, is it?”
Ava shook her head. “No that’s not until the following week.”
“Good. Next weekend we will get together for a game night. Don’t tell Cowboy about the games, he’ll whine.”
“Okay, but I’m not seeing the prize here.”
“Loser has to cook for the day.”
“Ohh. That’s a good one.”
“Or if we decide to order out and make it easy, loser has to do the cleanup.”
“That makes it even better.”
“I thought you might like it.”
“First one to get their guy to goof off and be silly with them wins?”
“First one to get their guy to goof off and be silly and take pictures, wins. The pictures part is important because they can be used for blackmail material later. But this is more than just a little fun today.”
“What do you mean?” Ava frowned at her.
“Think of it this way. We’re setting a standard. We are both early in our relationships, if we can convince them to cut loose, to be silly and have fun with us they’re more likely to do it again. You have to remember that Cowboy and Deke grew up together. The two of them together aren’t like they are with some of the other brothers. They are closer. They’ve been through a lot more together.”
“And you were there for most of it.” Ava looked sad, as if she regretted not knowing as much about their men.
“As the annoying little sister that they couldn’t wait to ditch. Deke started actively avoiding me when I was about seventeen. Then I was gone for a long time. Besides, things are different now, Deke and I are working on rebuilding our relationship with an entirely different dynamic. Not my brother’s best friend and the annoying little sister, but lovers, partners.” She turned to watch where the two men were now looking at the bikes, talking about something having to do with the machines from their hand gestures. The wind blew their words away and she couldn’t hear them.
“You love him, don’t you?” The wonder in Ava’s voice made Lisa look back to her.
“Is it that obvious?”
“I don’t know, maybe only to someone who’s recently found themselves feeling the same way.” She turned and watched the men too.
“I’ve loved him for nearly fifteen years. And he never knew.”
“Does he now?”
“Yeah, but only because I told him. Last night in fact.”
“What did he say?”
“Not much, but I didn’t expect him to. I kind of blindsided him with it.”
“Just so you know, he watches you the same way you watch him. If he hasn’t told you yet, it’s probably because he doesn’t know.”
“That wouldn’t surprise me. Men are not the fastest and clues are pointless. I learned that a long time ago.”
“You aren’t kidding. I’d been married almost ten years before I figured that out. And that’s not even why he’s my ex.”
Lisa wanted to know what had happened but wasn’t going to ask. Eventually she’d get to know Ava enough that she would volunteer the story. That would be soon enough for her.