Better If He Goes (Always You #1) - Allie Everhart Page 0,19
open them and toss the dart. It hits just outside the bullseye.
"Riley, that's awesome!" Brad smiles and pulls me into a hug. It seems totally natural, like he does this to everyone. Some people are huggers, some aren't. I'm sure Brad's a hugger and that's why he hugged me, but having his body pressed against mine is heating me up even more.
"Your turn," I say as he lets me go.
He gets in position and I watch his arm flex as he throws the dart. It lands right in the center.
"You got it!" I say, feeling the need to hug him like he hugged me. But instead, I wait as he throws another dart. It lands just outside the bullseye.
"Damn," he mutters. He squints his eyes and holds the third dart up, pausing a moment before throwing it. It lands right in the center of the bullseye.
"Brad, that's amazing!" I hug him before I even realize what I'm doing. I'm about to pull away, but then his big strong arms go around me, hugging me back.
"Thanks, but it's not that impressive," he says with a laugh. "I played darts all through college."
He lets me go, but I wanted to keep hugging him. Friends can hug, right? And I really like his hugs. The feel of his hard, warm body pressed against mine. His big, strong arms wrapped around me.
"Your turn." He hands me my darts.
"I'm kind of intimidated now that I know I'm playing with a pro."
"Not a pro, just a college kid with too much time on his hands."
"You couldn't have had too much time being pre-med. Didn't you have to study a lot?"
He shrugs. "Not really. I mean, I did, but I still made time for other stuff. I'm someone who needs time to relax."
"So you played darts."
"Not all the time. Just now and then."
Too hot to wear the sweatshirt, I take it off and set it on the chair next to me.
Brad is watching me and says, "You don't want it?"
"I was getting warm. Between the dart throwing and fierce competition, I'm really heating up."
"Forget the competition. We're just playing for fun." He points to the bar. "Want another drink?"
"I'm good for now." I should throw a dart, but instead I stay where I'm at, my eyes drinking him in. That body. That smile. If he wasn't Nate's cousin, I'd definitely be making a move on him right now, or at least flirting. "What else did you do for fun? Besides darts?"
"Went out with friends. Played sports. Hung out with my girlfriend."
"You had a girlfriend?" I ask, trying not to sound overly interested.
"Several." He pauses. "That sounds bad. What I meant is several over the course of four years."
"Any of them serious?"
"No. Well, some of them assumed it was serious even though I told them upfront that's not what I wanted."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm not ready for that. I still have med school to get through and a residency. That's at least seven years that I'll be studying and working nonstop. It wouldn't be fair to get involved with someone and have that be their life for the next seven years. I wouldn't be able to give the girl or the relationship the time it deserves. Eventually, that would lead to us breaking up, so I didn't even want to go down that road."
"But you want to get married someday, right?"
Why did I ask that? It's way too personal, and too serious a topic to discuss when we're supposed to be having fun playing darts.
"If I find the right girl, then yeah, but not until I'm done with school, and preferably when I'm done with my residency."
"But you'll still date? Even though you know it won't go anywhere?"
"Yeah, definitely, but I always tell the girl before we even go out so she doesn't get her hopes up that it'll turn into something more."
"And girls are okay with that?"
"Not all of them, but some are. There are plenty of girls out there that want to spend their twenties focused on their career. That doesn't mean they don't date."
"But what if you find the right girl in your twenties? Would you still break up with her?"
"I'm not sure. Guess I'd have to figure that out if it happened. But I doubt it would. I tend to date women who are career driven and focused more on their future success than a relationship. Makes it hard to ever get too close to them, you know?"