“Who else was coming?” Jen asks when the bell rings. I don’t respond, but I smile. She showed.
“Oh my God!” I hear Jen squeal.
“Who is it, babe?” Ryder walks toward the front door. “About damn time you showed your face.”
“Hey, guys.”
Olivia’s head snaps to the side when she hears Bri’s voice. “Bri?” She stands and goes to check for herself. Bri laughs at something Olivia says, but I stay focused on the game, ignoring Cash’s inquisitive stare from the corner of my eye.
“Hey, guys,” Bri says as she walks into the living room.
“Hey!” Jason and Cash say at the same time, standing to give her a hug.
“Hi.” I smile up at her from the couch before standing to give her a hug. Only Cash knows I’ve been visiting Bri, and I know I’d get a lot more questions than I care to answer from the guys.
“Who invited you? Shit, I didn’t mean to sound like a bitch. I’m fucking happy you’re here.”
“It’s okay, Jen. Cole actually mentioned it, and I thought I’d stop by for a bit. I brought wine.” She holds up the bottle and her mouth quirks.
“Well, if you brought wine I guess you can stay.”
Bri’s laugh serenades me. I feel like I’m holding a dirty secret when all I’ve done is visit her to make sure she’s doing all right. With a hopeless need to be with her.
We all settle back down, Bri sitting next to Liv, and watch the game. Our focus on the game, we call out at different times until halftime.
“Who wants another beer?” I ask as I stand.
“I’ll take one,” Jason says.
“Me too,” Cash replies.
I grab the bottles from the fridge and pop them open. I’m glad Bri came today, but I wish I could sit next to her, drape my arm over her shoulders, kiss her. She’s that one girl who made me consider a relationship. Even when I knew she was off limits. I’m all sorts of fucked up, but Bri is the ideal woman—beautiful, honest, loyal, and spunky.
“Hey, thanks for inviting me.” Bri walks into the kitchen, searching through the drawers. “Wine opener?”
“Here.” I hand her the opener. “You’re welcome. I’m glad you came.”
I lean against the counter, crossing my right leg over my left ankle and take a swig from my beer. I take a moment to observe her as she opens the wine bottle. She’s a natural beauty in her Vols t-shirt, with her wavy brown hair and expressive green eyes. I know I should look away, stop staring, but I’m held captive.
“You got the beers?” Jason walks into the kitchen and halts at the entrance. Busted.
“Yup.” I hand him one. “Was just catching up with Bri.”
Jason smiles and walks up to Bri. “How are you doing?” He drapes an arm around her and my spine straightens.
“I’m doing all right,” she responds as she pours the second glass of wine.
“It’s good to see you out again. We should hang out soon.” Jason mocks me with his smile. Fucker.
“Yeah. Just taking it day at a time. Some days I want to stay under the covers, and others I’m getting around to leaving my house for minutes at a time.”
“That’s good, Bri.” Jason removes his grip from around her.
“Thanks. You guys coming back out there?” She corks the bottle of wine and grabs the glasses.
“Yeah, we’ll be right there. Just gotta talk to Cole a sec.”
“Okay.”
Once Bri is out of earshot, Jason raises an eyebrow and stares at me.
“I knew something was up, but Bri? Come on, man.”
“Don’t fucking start.”
“Start? Brother, I’m not sure where to even begin with this.” The motion of his headshake makes my nostrils flare.
“You don’t get it.”
“She’s Bri.”
“I know who she is. Trust me, I’ve never forgotten. I’ve been making sure she’s good. You know, has someone to talk to when she needs it. Man, I couldn’t stand seeing her so lost anymore,” I confess. No point in pretending anymore.
“Fuck. We’ll talk more about this when we get home.” Dismissed like a fucking child who disappointed his parents and will get rebuked at home to avoid a scene in public.
I sit back down on the couch, shoulders tense. The sounds of everyone speaking and laughing moves around me, but I’m numb to the sound. I’m tired of being labeled as the irresponsible one. My friends know I’m not an asshole, yet they’re all warning me off when it comes to Bri. Have I screwed around? Yeah, but I’m not the only man who has. Would I be willing to settle down with someone like Bri? In a heartbeat. Not just someone like her, but her. Am I aware that it may never happen and I could ruin a friendship? You bet your ass I am, and I’m risking it all for a chance at love. If she’s ever ready. ’Til then, I’ll be there for her, as a friend, because at the moment she needs all of her friends.
“What do you think, Cole?” Jen calls out.
“What?” I look around the room.
“You okay?” she asks.
“Yup, just thinking.” I refocus on the game and forget the rest. I’m starting to act like some pissy chick. I need to get myself in check. No way can I allow anyone to mess with my head this much. Less so that Bri came over and I’m not acting like the person she’s grown used to being around.
“Oohh! Touchdown!” Cash yells, standing up to cheer. I jump up, reacting slow to the play, and high-five him. We all relax more as the game goes on, including Bri, who jumps up with her own comments throughout the game.
The game ends with a win for the Vols and a few beers under my belt. I stare at Bri and her smiling face, unable to contain my own smile. I’m proud of her for coming out and spending time with her friends. Even prouder hearing her laugh and watching her interact.
“Thanks for telling me to come.” She walks up to me and wraps and arm around my shoulder. My body stiffens a second and then relaxes. I swallow slowly and smile at her.
“You’re welcome. Having fun?”
“Yes. I needed this, Cole.” Her eyes twinkle and my heart thumps in my chest. “I needed to spend time with y’all and see Liv outside of my house.”
“Glad I could help.” I stare into her green orbs. She squeezes my shoulder and releases me, leaving me with a need to grasp onto her. I watch her walk toward Liv, Jason shaking his head.
I hear Bri, Liv, and Jen’s voices carrying through the living room, but disconnect from that view when Cash calls me.
“What’s up?” I ask as I turn toward the guys.
“Shot?” Ryder holds up a bottle of Fireball.
“Just one,” I tell them. Ryder cocks his eyebrow. “I’m driving,” I explain. What I don’t say is that I don’t want to get drunk and confess my feelings to Bri. One drop of alcohol too much and my heart will be split open, bleeding my emotions.
Shit, I’ve turned into Cash. I could probably use that for a song.
“Serve him a fucking shot, for the love of God,” Jason says as he squints his eyes at me. Motherfucker. I don’t need Ryder knowing about my feelings for Bri.
I grab the shot glass and throw it back without waiting for any of them to toast. Then, I hand my glass back to Ryder for a refill.
“Slow,” Cash warns, but I ignore him and shoot the burning alcohol back.
“Shots?” Jen calls out. “Without us?” She hurries over to us, Liv and Bri following.
Ryder serves everyone a round, refilling our glasses. So much for not drinking too much.
“Anyone down for beer pong?” Jen asks.
“Me! Come on, Cash, I can use your freakishly long arms to help me win.” Olivia laughs, and I have to chuckle with her.
“You like my long arms when—”
“Not another word!” she interrupts him. We all laugh, and Ryder teases Liv.
“Ryder, you wanna be on my team?” Jen asks him.
“I’m always on your team.” He kisses her cheek. Cash and Ryder are goners when it comes to their wives. I look at Bri from the corner of my eye. I’m not too far from them. In a different life, having a real chance with Bri, I’d be just like them. Holding on tight for fear that I’d drown without her love in my life.
“Bro.” Jason slaps my back and guides me outside to the yard where the four of them are already setting up on the table.
“How’s work, Bri?” Jason asks.
“Good. Happy that I stay busy.”
“You look good though,” Jason compliments.
“I’m better. Thanks to this guy making sure I don’t drown in my sorrow.” She juts her head my way and smiles gratefully.
“Anytime,” I respond, tight-lipped.
“Good thing you’ve got him as a buddy.” Jason looks at me pointedly.
“Yeah, I know I should see you guys more often. Go out more, but it’s been tough. I’m taking it day by day and hoping that one day I’ll be ready to be fully on my own again.”
“You’ll get there, Bri,” Jason assures her.
“Yeah, but tonight’s about fun. What’s up with you? Haven’t had a chance to talk to you in a while.”
“All is well. Music, shows, hanging out. You know how it goes.”
“I do. You guys just keep on growing. I feel like a proud momma.”
“Ha! Not sure about a momma, but thanks.” Jason smiles. We’re all proud of how far we’ve come, and that we have remained best friends and bandmates throughout the years. It’s not always easy, and we have days where we want to call it quits, but we’ll never abandon one another.
“You know what I mean.” She pushes Jason’s shoulder and turns to look at the beer pong game. “Who do you think will win?”
“Cash and Liv,” I say. “Jen and Ryder eat too much shit.”
“Yeah, but they have fun.” Bri looks over at me.
“They do.” I nod my head, holding the urge to reach out and grab her hand. To pull her into my side.
“You guys want a beer?” Jason asks.
“I’ll take one.”
“Me too,” Bri adds.
We stand in silence, watching our friends play, as a million thoughts cloud my mind about the oblivious woman standing next to me.
By the end of the night, I’ve got a buzz and strong desire to kiss the brunette beauty when Jason rips me away from Ryder and Jen’s house and makes sure I get home with my pride intact.