Last Chance - L. P. Dover Page 0,44
out laughing and patted me on the back. “It’s okay. It’s just some of our friends from the Cougars.”
Many years ago, I never would’ve thought I’d have any famous friends. Now my sister was married to one of the best wide receivers in the NFL and I was involved with a famous dirt bike racer. Being with someone like him wasn’t going to be easy, if I chose him.
The shaved head behemoth who called my name marched over with his arms wide open. “Come here and give me some sugar, sexy mama.” He didn’t wait on me to go to him. Scooping me into his arms, he crushed me to where I could barely breathe. Everyone laughed, including Grayson.
“Chris, let her down. She can’t breathe,” Summer giggled.
He let me down and I gasped for air. “Thank you. You almost killed me.”
Putting his arm around me, he led me back to my bar stool. “I just wanted to give you some love. We’ve missed you around here.”
Another one of the guys sat beside me and grinned. He had auburn hair like Grayson, but his eyes were a bright blue, not green. “How ya feeling?” he asked.
“Much better. I’m glad to be alive.”
Grayson walked over and nodded at the guy with the shaved head. “Lara, this is Chris Waters. He and the rest of the team usually come here on a regular basis. And this,” he said, nodding to the guy on my other side, “is Derek McLaughlin. They’re both Evan’s buddies. You usually joke around with them when they’re here.”
I glanced at both guys. “I’m sorry I don’t remember you.”
Chris squeezed my shoulders. “No worries, baby. Give me a few hours and I’ll remind you of all those long nights we had while your boy here was working.”
“Oh yeah?” I laughed.
Grayson snorted. “Keep it up, Waters. You may be bigger than me, but my brother taught me a thing or two.”
Chris squeezed me again and let go. “Fine, I’ll stop. It was worth a shot though. You’re not wearing your ring, so I figured you were fair game.”
I looked down at my hand and then to Grayson. He avoided my stare, but I could tell Chris’ words bothered him. Why didn’t I have my engagement ring? It wasn’t at my house, nor was it returned to me in the hospital. Wherever it was, I was going to find out.
I waited for Grayson by his car. It was six o’clock and he was finishing up inside the tavern. It’d been fun talking to Chris and Derek; I wished I could remember them. I hated having to get to know everyone again. There were a lot of important people who’d entered my life in the last five years.
I looked over at my car and there was a piece of paper on the windshield. When I slid it out from behind the windshield wipers, I could see the handwriting inside.
Lara,
Just wanted you to know I was thinking about you.
~Luke
My heart skipped a beat. Pulling out my phone, I called him. I needed to tell him about my date with Grayson before he found out from someone else.
“Did you get my note?” he asked.
“Yes, I did. It was really sweet.”
“So what are you doing tonight? I thought maybe I could see you again.”
Sighing, I leaned against my car. “That’s why I called. Grayson asked me out tonight.” The line went silent and it hurt my heart to know he was angry. “You know I have to do this.”
He huffed. “I know, but it doesn’t make it any easier. The thought of him touching you pisses me off.”
“Just because I’m going on a date with him doesn’t mean anything. I need to talk to him, Luke. He was a big part of my life. I’ll call you when I get back home.”
“Okay,” he replied, sounding less angry. “I’ll be at my house.”
We said our goodbyes as the back door of the tavern opened. Grayson strolled out, wearing a pair of jeans and a snug T-shirt that hugged his muscles. He must’ve changed when he was inside.
“You ready?” he called out.
I slipped my phone and Luke’s note into my back pocket and smiled. “Let’s go.” We got in his little sports car and headed out. “Where are we going?”
Smiling wide, he winked at me. “I thought we could do something adventurous.”
“Sounds like fun. What all did we do when we were dating?”
“Lots of things. When we weren’t at the tavern we were always out and about. You