Page 83 of Rival Darling

A group of girls was standing outside the front of the alley, and they all started giggling at each other as we passed. I really hated when they did that, and I wasn’t the only one who seemed to have noticed.

Violet was frowning in their direction. “And by everyone else, you mean the girls…”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Did the Instagram post help at all?” She sounded somewhat flustered.

“A little,” I said. “I definitely heard more people at school talking about us after the weekend. But maybe we need to post a few more pictures to make sure everyone gets the message.”

“Well, we haven’t got long left.”

I did my best to ignore her comment, but my stomach clenched uneasily at the mention of our impending fake breakup. I could not handle the thought of only having one more week with her.

The sound of bowling balls thundering down the alleys and clashing pins greeted us as we walked through the entrance. It wasn’t as busy here tonight as I’d expected, so it was easy to spot Grayson and Paige who were hanging out near the lanes. Paige was chatting animatedly with my brother while he was scowling at some kid who had committed the crime of entering their general vicinity. I doubted Grayson was scowling at the kid on purpose. That was just the way he looked when he was forced to do something against his will.

I’d had no luck convincing any of my friends to come tonight. To be fair, I’d only given them thirty minutes’ notice, it was a Friday night, and I was sure they all had much better things to do than unwittingly help convince a girl to like me.

“I thought you said a whole bunch of your friends were coming.” Violet was frowning as we approached my brother and Paige.

“I’m sure they’re just running late,” I replied. There was a small chance some of the guys hadn’t seen my message and could still rock up.

“Violet,” Paige squealed before she ran toward us and gave her a hug.

At first, Violet appeared surprised by Paige’s enthusiasm, but she quickly seemed to accept it and smiled brightly as she hugged her in return.

“This is so fun,” Paige continued. “I’m so glad you could make it.”

“Yeah, me too,” Violet replied as Paige took hold of her hand and led her over to the shoe rental counter. As I watched the two of them, I had to wonder if roping Grayson and Paige into this had been a mistake. Knowing Paige, she’d monopolize Violet all night, and I’d get very little alone time with her.

“I still can’t believe you’re making me do this,” Grayson grumbled as we followed after the girls.

“Sorry, I freaked out and suggested the first thing that came to mind.”

“Bowling was the first thing that came to mind? We never go bowling.”

“Like I said, I freaked out.”

“Yeah, well, you owe me.”

“Noted.”

When we got our shoes, the girl behind the counter smirked as I told her my size. I recognized her from school, but I couldn’t recall her name. Tiffany, maybe? I didn’t really care. I was too focused on the way Violet’s eyes lit up as she and Paige joked over how silly their bowling shoes looked.

Tiffany coughed, drawing my attention once more. “Here you go, Reed.”

I gave her a tight smile in thanks, but when I went to take the shoes, she didn’t release them. Instead, she leaned across the counter toward me. “You know what they say about guys with big feet…”

“They make great clowns,” I replied coldly.

Tiffany’s expression shuttered as she took in my hard gaze, but before she could respond, Paige snatched the shoes from her hands. “His girlfriend is standing right there, Abigail!”

I guess I’d been way off with the name, but that was the least of my concerns. My gaze went straight to Violet who was glaring at the girl. Was she pretending to be upset because that was her job as my fake girlfriend, or was she genuinely concerned to overhear a girl flirting with me? Either way, the timing sucked. I was trying to show Violet that I wasn’t some relentless player. There was no way she’d consider dating me for real if she thought we couldn’t even go bowling without girls hitting on me. She’d think I was just as bad as every other jock she’d sworn off.

Paige slammed the shoes into my chest. “I can’t take you guys anywhere,” she complained before walking over to Grayson.

I was slightly nervous as I approached Violet. “Sorry about that.”

She smiled though and slipped an arm around my waist. “Don’t worry about it, babe.”