Linc

 

Nate rang me in the morning, waking me from a restless sleep, to tell me we were playing golf with his dad later. I’d tossed and turned all night. Having Indie sleep beside me made things so much worse. I couldn’t shut my brain off. I needed to figure things out. I either had to make a move, bite the bullet, and tell Indie how I felt, or I had to learn to leave well enough alone. I was of two minds, constantly warring with myself, and it was driving me crazy.

On one hand, I didn’t want to ruin my friendship with Nate. Something I knew without a doubt would happen if I told him I was in love with his sister. There would be no way he’d let me live to see another day. He tied Timmy Fullson, the scrawny kid who lived on the other side of him, to the light pole down the street because he called Indie pretty. And we were friends with that kid at the time.

And besides, he knew exactly what I was like. I’d not had a long-term girlfriend except for the mistake that was Jasmine. What could I say? The body glitter and nipple tassels were intriguing for three seconds when my brain short circuited and I tried to push Indie out of my mind, but I couldn’t marry a stripper. So there was no chance he’d let me date his sister.

And then…what if after all that, Indie didn’t feel the same way? What if she laughed in my face and called me a loser? I’d have lost both her and Nate, and I didn’t want to do that. They were too important to me.

But on the other hand, if Indie felt the same way and loved me as much as I did her, the risk of losing Nate as a friend, and my manhood in the process, would be totally worth it, right? If I had her by my side, nothing else mattered.

I was doomed if I did and doomed if I didn’t.

 

***

 

The sun was scorching. I could feel my skin burning. My throat was dry, parched. A cold glass of water or eight wouldn’t go astray. The golf game was taking forever, mostly because none of us was up for it, except Jack and Ryder. Ryder didn’t look like he’d spent the entire night drinking in a club like the rest of us. He had a little black around the eyes, but that was it. Nate’s face was pasty white, and he was sweating profusely and groaned every time he breathed. I was pretty sure Brody had thrown up after every hole, and Jack was his chipper old self. He wasn’t tired at all, or sick. And he was hitting better than everyone else, including Steve, who was mildly impressed. What I wouldn’t give to know exactly what he thought of his daughter’s boyfriend.

“So what happened last night?” Brody asked, coming to stand beside me. He rested one arm on my shoulder for support because I was pretty sure he’d collapse otherwise.

“You were there. A lot of alcohol.” I watched Nate take a swing at the golf ball on the eighteenth hole and miss, silently grateful the game was almost over.

“After you left with Indie.” He groaned and crouched down, holding his stomach.

“Nothing. I walked her back to the hotel, and she went to bed.” I dug the club into the ground, acting like last night was no big deal. I couldn’t tell him I spent the night with her because she asked me to, because that would be stupid. I might as well shoot myself in the foot. But it was a big deal.

I hadn’t planned on staying in her room. I just wanted to give her the water and painkillers to make sure she woke up okay. I intended to leave the door open between our rooms, just in case. I didn’t like it when she drank so much, but she asked me to stay, and who was I to say no? I didn’t the first time she got drunk and asked me to stay, back when she was in high school.

She’d gone to a party at that douche Chace’s house—the one who knocked up Ryder’s sister and cheated on Bailey—and drank too much. I blamed Jayden, Ryder’s friend, for it, whether it was his fault or not. I didn’t know. But she was with him and had too many cocktails, but then he left her there. Alone. When she called me at one a.m. to come get her, I was ready to beat someone up. Unfortunately, there was no one around who deserved it. Ryder had already taken care of Chace. So I found Indie locked in a room by herself—at least she’d had the sense to get away from everyone else—and took her home. I knew Steve and Leanne would have hit the roof had I brought her home drunk, so I took her back to my place, put her in my bed, and was planning to let her sleep it off alone, until she asked me to stay. I was weak. I couldn’t say no to anything that girl asked, so I climbed into my bed beside her and held her all night.

“Fine, keep your secrets, but it’s all going to come out eventually, man. You can’t keep something like that bottled up for too long and not explode.” He pulled himself to his feet and took his shot rather slowly.

“What do you mean?” Brody was way more perceptive than I gave him credit for.

“Tell her how you feel.”

“Who? What?” I acted dumb, trying to pretend I didn’t understand what he was talking about, but I knew it was useless. He knew. Somehow, he knew.

“Indie. Tell her how you feel. What’s the worst that could happen?”

“Uh, Nate would murder me.” I sighed. It felt good to finally admit it to someone.

“Nate wouldn’t hurt a fly, and you know it.”

“Maybe, but he’d definitely kick my ass and never speak to me again.”

“No, he wouldn’t,” Brody argued, stopping short when Ryder came over.

“How’re you travelling, man?” Ryder laughed and slapped him on the back.

“Fine, just telling idiot here to ’fess up to Indie.”

Dammit.

“Will you shut up?” I shoved him in the chest.

“What? It’s not like he doesn’t know.” Brody laughed. I looked at Ryder, and he nodded.

“Really?”

“Kind of hard not to figure it out,” Ryder said and walked off again.

It wasn’t that obvious, was it?

Brody chuckled.

It was that obvious.

“Linc, your shot,” Nate called out.

I teed up the ball and took a swing. It soared through the air perfectly, landing on the green at the other end. I wasn’t half bad at golf when I was in the mood to play.

“Nice,” Nate cheered, getting a little life back in him.

The rest of the game went quickly, for which I was grateful. And then Steve announced he was buying us all drinks at the bar. Nate and Brody groaned. Ryder looked at his watch like he had somewhere better to be, and I was willing to bet that was wherever Bailey was. It didn’t worry me what we did. I could do with a drink. Or a sleep. If things kept going the way they were this week, I was going to end up an insomniac with a drinking problem.

“So, last night?” Nate fell into step beside me as we followed his old man back to the bar. My stomach dropped. He didn’t know, did he? He couldn’t.

“Mmmm,” I muttered.

“Harper,” he said.

I closed my eyes and smiled. He didn’t know. “What about her?”

“She’s fun, right? Seems like a pretty cool chick.”

“Yeah, I guess so. Why?”

“I don’t know,” he said then went silent.

“What happened after I left?”

“A lot of alcohol, man. Too much. I don’t really remember, but when I woke up this morning, I wasn’t alone.” He ran his hands over his face and groaned. “And I don’t remember it.”

“So, Harper?”

“Harper.” He nodded as we walked in the door to the restaurant.

“Nice.” I laughed at his confused expression.

“You boys want to eat?” Steve asked.

“Yes!” everyone shouted in his face.

“Okay then, table for six. Thanks.” He smiled at the waitress and followed her to a booth in the back.

Steve ordered us a round of beer, and even though we’d all had a pretty big night—some more than others, judging by Nate’s and Brody’s appearances today—the beers went down well, quenching our thirst from playing eighteen holes in the blistering heat.

And food had never tasted so good. I hadn’t realised how hungry I was until my meal arrived. Everyone devoured everything on their plate.

“Big night?” Steve chuckled.

“Could say that,” Nate mumbled through a mouthful of food.

“Well, you boys remember, tomorrow night is the rehearsal dinner, so you need to be sober. I don’t want any hangovers for my wedding the following day.”

“Whatever. It’s not like it’s your first wedding. And besides, you’re remarrying Mum, so it doesn’t have to be perfect.”

“It does. This is what your mother wants, so it will be perfect. We never got a real wedding the first time, so this is it.” Steve wiped his mouth with his napkin and set it on his plate.

“What do you mean, you didn’t get a real wedding the first time?” Nate asked.

“Just that we got married at city hall in front of two random witnesses we met on the street. That’s why this wedding is such a big deal. So, please, stay sober tomorrow night.”

“Sure.” I nodded. I didn’t want to drink anymore, anyway.

“Okay,” Nate agreed, followed by the rest.

“Good. Now, I’m off for my suit fitting. You boys stay here and enjoy ringing everything up on my bill.” Steve stood and clapped Nate on the shoulder. “Oh, and before I forget, Nate. You and Lincoln need to be in the ballroom upstairs in the hotel at four p.m. for a dance lesson.” He smiled and walked out.

“Why?” Nate groaned and banged his head on the table. So much like Indie. “Why? Why? Why? I hate dancing.”

“It’s one dance. Get over it,” Ryder said.

“I can give you some pointers if you like,” Jack offered. He’d been so quiet, I’d almost forgotten he was there.

“No. Thanks.” Nate scowled and signalled the bartender for another round of beers.

It was going to be a long afternoon.