blow out a breath. “It won’t go anywhere, Connelly, so get that idea out of your head. The only reason I’m here is because you bullied me into a date.”
“Keep telling yourself that, babe.”
Do I feel a little bit tingly when he calls me babe? Yes.
Do I like the sensation? Not at all.
I take a desperate gulp of my beer and then set the bottle down on the ledge. “All right. Let’s do this thing.”
18
Jake
Brenna is a terrible bowler, but she’s damn fun to watch. She saunters up to the foul line in those abysmal shoes, her hips swaying and her ass looking phenomenal in those tight, black jeans. I’m an ass man, and I can’t take my gaze off her backside.
Despite the fact that she sucks at bowling, she gives every frame one hundred and ten percent. Concentration creases her features as she swings her arm back, rotates her wrist, and releases the bright pink ball. Her timing is off and her follow-through is nonexistent, but for the first time in six frames, the ball moves in a straight line.
Brenna cheers happily as her ball careens toward the jackpot. At the last second it veers, knocking over four pins instead of giving her the strike.
“So close!” she wails.
Then she turns around and she’s never looked more beautiful to me. Her cheeks are like two red apples, her eyes are sparkling, and she performs a cute little dance as she shimmies off the shiny floor.
“I’m getting better!” she exclaims.
“Nowhere to go but up,” I agree, and then I get up and bowl a strike.
“I hate you,” she announces when my score appears on the screen.
I’m beating her in the ass-kicking of the century, but I don’t think she truly cares. To be honest, I’m not paying much attention to the score. Usually I’m competitive as fuck, but tonight I’m just happy to hang out with Brenna. It’s been ages since I’ve been on a real date. Last night’s dinner party doesn’t count, because neither of us had much fun. And the cognac at the bar afterward doesn’t count either, because we did more kissing than talking.
Tonight allows me to see Brenna in a way I haven’t seen before. Bowling isn’t the most romantic of activities, but it can give you insight into a person’s nature. Are they competitive? Petty? Are they a sore loser, or, worse, a sore winner? And with girls specifically, a bowling date can reveal whether a chick is high-maintenance. I know women who would turn their noses up at the alley’s sticky floors or crappy beer. But not Brenna.
After I win the first game, it’s Brenna who suggests another one. “Ha!” I gloat. “You like bowling.”
“I do.” She heaves an overdramatic sigh. “I’m really into this.”
I study her to see if she’s fucking with me. But there isn’t an ounce of fuckery on her face.
“I’m serious. This is awesome.” She shakes her head in amazement. “I think I actually like bowling.”
Her visible shock makes me double over in laughter. Once I’ve recovered, I move closer, my tone going serious. “I guess we’ll have to do this again sometime…” And then I wait.
She doesn’t answer. Instead, she approaches the touchscreen and says, “All right, I’ll let Little Jakey go first this time.”
But when my name flashes on the screen, it simply reads: Jake.
I swallow my satisfaction. I think I’m growing on her.
She’s definitely growing on me.
“So are we allowed to talk hockey?” I ask as I walk over to the ball return. I’ve fallen in love with a neon-green ball I’ve been calling the Strikemaker.
“What about it?” she asks suspiciously.
“Well, we’re playing each other soon. It’s a big game.”
“It’s a big game,” she agrees.
“Which raises the question—who will you be rooting for when you’re sitting in those stands? Your school or your new boyfriend?” I flash a cheeky smile over my shoulder.
It’s her turn to double over in laughter. “You’re not my boyfriend.”
“That’s not what you told Mulder…”
“Mulder is a prick, and I don’t feel bad lying to him. Now turn around and bowl, Jakey. I want to check out your ass.”
My grin nearly breaks my face in half, and I’m grateful she can’t see it. For her benefit, I make a big production out of my turn, flexing my arms, stretching forward in a way that makes my ass stick out. I hear a choked noise from behind me. When I turn my head, there’s heat sizzling in Brenna’s dark eyes.
“You’re such a tease,” she accuses.
“I’m