Caleb

aggie's shoulders are slumped. She stopped smiling as soon as Kendra showed up. I know things are tense with Kendra and Maggie right now, but as long as I'm in Paradise, I can't ignore Brian. And where Brian is, Kendra is.

I just didn't expect Kendra to come alone.

"Where's Brian?" I ask her.

"We broke up last night. The wedding is off."

"The hell it is," Brian says, appearing off in the distance. He's walking in a crooked line, as if he's on something.

"Go away," Kendra tells him.

"No," Brian slurs. He reaches for her. "You're my part„ net.

Kendra pushes Brian out of arms reach. "Not anymore."

"Can we start the game already and stop bickering, everyone?" Julio says.

When Julio talks, people listen. Even Kendra and Brian, who ignore each other even though they're partners in this game.

We start tossing our discs toward the baskets. At first Maggie is horrible. Her disc flies about ten feet in front of her, and she's not even using the putter disc.

"Flick your wrist," I tell her.

She tries, but the disc flies backwards and almost hits Kendra in the head.

Maggie's hand flies over her mouth as the disc whizzes past Kendra. "Oops, sorry."

"I bet," Kendra mutters.

Brian tells Kendra to be nice. She sneers at him and I think oh, buddy, you are going to pay for that remark later.

Moving from one fairway to another isn't easy for Maggie, who has to tread lightly on the uneven ground. At one point when she stumbles and falls, I almost offer to take her home.

"Hop on my back," I tell her instead, as we head to the next fairway.

She looks at me as if I'm crazy.

"Come on, Mags. It'll be fun."

"No, it won't," she says. When I take her discs and bend down so she can easily maneuver onto my back, she asks, "You sure about this?"

Yeah, I'm sure. "Just hop on." She grabs my shoulders and I carry her to the next hole. "You suck at this game. The last one was a par three, and how you managed to get an eight on it is embarrassing. I think I need to give you private lessons, so next time we can kick a little frolf ass."

"Private lessons sound good," she says, then kisses the back of my neck.

"You guys are dorks," Kendra says when we finally arrive at the next hole. I kneel so Maggie can slide off my back without too much stress on her leg.

"Don't call my best friend a dork, Kendra," Brian says.

Kendra puts her hand on her hip and flips her hair back. Oh, no. That's not a good sign. "Don't defend him. And he's not just your friend, Brian. He's my ex."

"He was my best friend before either of us dated you."

"We slept together behind his back," Kendra spits back with venom. "Some best friend you turned out to be."

With those words, Brian takes something out of the waistband of his jeans. It's a flask.

"Man, what're you doing?" I ask.

"None of your business."

Oh, shit. This is not happening. Not in front of Lenny and Julio and my sister. And not in front of Maggie, who hates Kendra drama more than anything. I want her to forget my past, not be reminded of it.

Kendra tosses one of the discs, aiming directly at Brian's nuts. Brian barely dodges the disc, takes another swig of whatever he's got in the flask, and looks his fiance right in the eye. "Let's have a contest."

Lenny's eyes light up. The dude loves challenges more than anything.

Julio leans into me and says so nobody else can hear, "These are your friends? They're all fuckin' lunatics."

And this is coming from a guy who's been in jail for robbery and money laundering.

"Tell you what," Brian says, getting really pissed at Kendra now. I can tell because his face is getting all red and splotchy. That only happens right after he works out or when he's really pissed. "If I win the next hole, the wedding's back on. If you win, you're free to call it off and be with Caleb."

Urn, not happening. "Brian, don't be an idiot," I tell him, but he's not listening. I don't know if he's high on top of being drunk. He's definitely not himself.

"Agreed," Kendra says, ignoring me. "But it's not a fair matchup."

"Fine. You pick who throws for me, and I pick who throws for you."

Maggie attempts to hide behind me.

"I pick Maggie. She'll throw for you," Kendra says through clenched teeth.

"Then I pick Leah," Brian says.

"Can I opt out?" Maggie asks them.

A red-faced Brian and a raging Kendra both say "no" at the same time.

"Guys, just kiss and make up already," I tell them. "You're pregnant, Kendra. And it's not happening between us, so get over it."

"Shut up, Caleb," Kendra says, venom in her voice.

"I got this," Maggie says, a fierce and determined look on her face.

I get it.

Maggie's fighting for me. She wants to win me, fair and square. Doesn't she realize she already has me, and doesn't have to fight?

I watch in awe as my girl takes a disc in her hand and goes to the tee.

"Maggie..." I say. "Umm ... You grabbed a putter. That won't go too far."

I hold out another disc for her, which she takes with a murmured thanks.

Maggie takes a deep breath, then lets it rip with an impressive grunt. She winces when it veers to the right and almost lands in some bushes.

Her hand flies to her mouth in horror.

"Good goin', babe," I joke.

"It's not funny," she says, taking this competition way too seriously.

My sister is next. Julio tries to give her some pointers, but I'm not sure my twin sis wants Kendra to win. My sister whips the disc, but it also veers and lands in the bushes.

Oh, man, this is torture.

In the end, it's neck and neck. My sister holds her putter while Maggie holds hers.

"Wait," Maggie says before Leah aims for the metal basket.

Leah stills.

Maggie holds her disc at her side. "I can't do this."

"Me neither," Leah adds.

Maggie limps up to Kendra. "I don't play games with people's lives like you do."

'Atta girl!

Maggie drops the disc at Kendra's feet. "If you let him go and he doesn't come back to you, he wasn't yours to begin with. It's a lesson I learned in first grade."

Man, my girl is one tough chick when she wants to be. I wonder if it has something to do with those big, comfy granny panties she's got on.

Maggie limps away, my sister at her side. It reminds me of when we were kids and they were inseparable. I like that they're figuring out how to be friends again.

I watch until Maggie and Leah are out of sight.

"I'm out of here," Kendra says, storming off to her car.

"Me too," Brian says, turning to storm off to his.

I step in front of him. "I can't let you do that."

"Why not?"

"Because you're drunk. I can't let you drive while you're fucked up."

"Move out of my way, Caleb, and don't be such a dork."

"I'm a dork, too," Lenny says. "'Cause I won't let you drive, either."

"Give Caleb your keys," Trish orders Brian. "Now!"

Damon the Enforcer would be proud of us Re-START misfits. Too bad he's not here to see us all in action.