No Matter What (The Billionaires of Sawgrass #4) - Delaney Cameron Page 0,55
make the tacky red-white-and-blue rented bowling shoes look cool.
He dropped down in the empty chair opposite her. “In case you missed it, Owen and I are in a heated battle for last place. Did my awesome bowling scare everyone off?”
In her experience, males tended to avoid activities they weren’t good at, especially in mixed company. It was that instinctive (and tiresome) fear of appearing silly. Evidently, Reece wasn’t hung up on such things. He had no problem poking fun at himself. The ego he’d referenced back at the shop wasn’t anywhere as large as she’d once believed.
“You’ve heard of the seven inning stretch in baseball, right?” she asked him. “This is the seventh frame stretch during which Miles and Owen visit the snack bar for reinforcements. Kait went with them to make sure they don’t go overboard.”
“How can they be hungry? I’m still full from stuffing myself at Mama’s Pizzeria.”
“I’m surprised you had time to eat anything. Owen bombarded you with questions.”
“I didn’t mind. He’s a great kid. Sharp as a tack, as my aunt would say. The way he talks about Baxter reminds me of how I was when I got my first dog. How’s the new place working out? I assume you’re all moved in.”
“Yes, we are, and we love it.” She laughed. “I’m not sure how much longer Kait will be living there.” At his look of confusion, she added, “Miles might have something to say about it.”
“Are they engaged?”
“Not yet, but it’s only a matter of time.”
“Is this recent? From something Miles said, I got the idea that he’d only been in Jacksonville a short time.”
“He moved back here in May, but that’s misleading. He and Kait dated in high school. I think it’s romantic how they found each other again after all this time.”
Reece leaned forward and propped his chin in his hand. “The chances of that happening to me aren’t very good. My high school sweetheart is happily married with four kids.”
“I’m out of luck as well. I didn’t have a boyfriend in high school.”
His eyes moved slowly over her face. “I find that hard to believe.”
She’d never been happier that the management of Beach Bowl dimmed the lights for red-pin bowling. With any luck, Reece wouldn’t see her blushing. “It’s true. I was painfully shy as a teenager. I was more comfortable living vicariously through the characters in the romance books I kept hidden in my closet. The heroines in those stories always knew what to say and how to act. They didn’t get tongue-tied when a boy so much as glanced in their direction.”
“Is that why you hung out at the bowling alley instead of the mall?”
“Partly.”
“You’re not going to leave me hanging, are you? Tell me the rest of the story.”
“It’s not worth hearing.”
“Says who? We’ve already established that I don’t allow myself to be bored so there’s no risk involved in telling me. Besides, don’t you feel you owe me something? I’ve given everyone here tonight their money’s worth in entertainment.”
Behind his teasing remarks, she sensed genuine interest. It was both flattering and disarming, even for someone who usually avoided talking about her past. But that wasn’t the only reason she didn’t mind telling Reece. The usual barriers that would have kept her silent on such topics had been removed early in their acquaintance when he discovered her fear of boats. That experience had taught her two things about him. He didn’t rush to judgment, and he could be trusted. Since that time, she’d discovered he was kind and compassionate as well.
“Okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. I’m not sure if Wade ever mentioned it, but I was raised in foster care. When I was twelve, I moved in with a family who lived near the old Palace Bowl in Green Cove Springs. I quickly formed the habit of stopping in on my way home from school. It was nearly empty at that time except for the employees. No one paid attention to me until the day I decided to check out the pro shop.
“The older man who ran it was named Lou. He was a former professional bowler. When I told him that I’d never bowled before, he rented a lane and gave me my first lesson. I didn’t know it at the time, but that was a rare honor. Lou didn’t often give lessons, and when he did, his rates weren’t cheap. The next day when I came in, he fitted me for my own bowling