“I’m fine!” Tanner said. “Jesus.” He pointed to Sam. “I liked it a whole lot better when you were the one we were all worried about.”
“Yeah, but you helped me straighten my shit out,” Sam said calmly.
“What about Cole?” Tanner pointed out. “Only last month he was all sorts of fucked up.”
Cole smiled. “I got over myself.” His smile faded. “Your turn.”
Tanner shook his head and finished his beer. “Whatever, man. I’m fine.”
Sam’s phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket. In the old days, he never answered his phone. But that was B.B. Before Becca. Suddenly the silent, brooding Sam was Mr. Chatty Cathy.
Sam slid his phone away and grinned. “Gotta go.”
Undoubtedly he’d just gotten a booty call from Becca.
“Me too,” Tanner said. He didn’t know where, he just had to move.
“Where you going?” Cole asked.
Tanner narrowed his eyes. “Why, you writing a book?”
“Just answer the question.”
“Not until you tell me why you want to know.”
“You’re so suspicious all the time.”
“With you I have to be.”
“You’ve been to war,” Cole said. “You’ve nearly been killed in a rig fire. What could I possibly dream up that would be worse than either of those two things?”
Good point. “I’m going to walk around and clear my head. Okay with you, Mom?”
“Sure,” Cole said. “I just didn’t want you going after Callie and messing with her head.”
“I wouldn’t do that,” Tanner said.
“Not on purpose,” Cole agreed.
“Your concern for her is touching.”
“Actually,” Cole said, “my concern is for you. You gotta get your head screwed on tighter before you go for it with her. Hurry up and get that handled, and the two of you could really have something.”
And with that confusing-as-shit—and wrong—assessment, Cole left.
Tanner said to his back, “I won. I want it on record that I won. I don’t have to take the geriatrics out tomorrow. One of you two assholes has to.”
“Fine,” Cole called over his shoulder.
“Fine.” Satisfied that he wasn’t the only miserable one now, Tanner left on Cole’s heels and stood in the chilly night air for a moment. He had a nice buzz going but it wasn’t coming close to chasing away the look on Callie’s face.
He’d hurt her. He hated that.
He crossed the street to the pier and stood at the entrance to the arcade, surveying the action.
There was very little.
It was a weeknight and cold as hell. There were a few teenagers huddled together in front of the dart booth and no one else.
Nope, scratch that. There was one more person at the far end, in front of the football-through-the-tire booth.
Callie.
She turned, frowned at him, and then shocked the hell out of him. “Well, hurry up then.”
He craned his neck and looked behind him because surely she wasn’t talking to him.
“Can you do this or not?” she wanted to know, pointing at the game in front of her.
Shoving his bare hands into his pockets, he strode over to her. Toe to toe, he stared down into her stormy eyes, noticing with some grim satisfaction that her breath hitched at his nearness.
“Do what?” he asked.
Her gaze dropped to his mouth and she drew her lower lip in between her teeth. “Um.” She gave herself a visible shake and hoisted the football in her hands. “I’ve spent twenty-five bucks on this stupid game to win a stupid stuffed animal and I’m not leaving without one. Your throwing arm is legendary. Teach me how to throw.”
He blinked but nope, she was still here, looking hauntingly beautiful and, better yet, speaking to his sorry ass. “Show me what you’ve got.”
She wound up and tossed the football. It missed the target by a mile. In fact, it would’ve hit the lanky kid behind the counter if he hadn’t thrown himself to the ground.
The kid got up, retrieved the ball, and handed it back to Callie.
Callie stared down at it. “What am I doing wrong?”
“Other than throwing like a girl?”
Eyes sparking, she thrust the football at him. “You’ve got two shots.”
“Actually,” the kid behind the counter said, “only one more shot.”
Callie glared at him.
The kid lifted his hands. “Hey, lady, I don’t make the rules.” He gave Tanner a good-luck look and backed away.
Tanner weighed the football in his hands. “I haven’t thrown in a long time.”
“I’m not leaving here without a stuffed animal, Tanner.”