Page 40 of Fair Catch
“What did you do?”
“Both,” he says. “I have a game-worn jersey up for auction, plus I donated. The Pioneers have tickets to this season’s Super Bowl, signed balls, stuff like that.”
“And the DILFs?” I need to know if I’m bidding on something.
Alex laughs. “I don’t know. We can go to the auction room and look.”
“No, it’s okay.”
“Sure, it is.” He laughs and gives his name to a man at the door, who repeats it into his headset. A woman approaches and takes us to our table. Autumn and Julius are already seated, together with two other couples whose names I don’t recognize.
“Alex!”
He turns in time for a woman to throw her arms around him. I step back to give them some room. Alex pries her off him and tries to put some distance between them but she doesn’t take the hint.
“Hi, Estelle. It’s nice to see you.”
“I’ve missed you, Alex. How come you don’t come around anymore?”
Alex and I make eye contact. If he’s trying to tell me something, I’m missing it.
“Uh.”
“I know. I know. Things don’t need to be awkward though.”
“Right. It was nice seeing you, Estelle.”
“Let’s sit and chat,” she says as she reaches for the chair next to her.
“This isn’t the time or place.”
For whatever reason, she turns and looks at me with nothing but snobbery and disgust on her face. Honestly, I’m taken back by her demeanor. “Alex, who’s this?”
“My girlfriend,” he says, taking me completely off guard. I do my best to maintain my composure, but I know I’m failing.
“Huh?” She scoffs loudly. “Does Maggie know?”
Alex cocks his head slightly. “What does it matter if she does, Estelle? Maggie and I aren’t together.”
Estelle’s head whips back to Alex. “You know you can never replace her.”
“Not trying to, Estelle.”
She steps toward me, shakes her head, and then walks away. I watch her until Alex touches my arm. “Ignore her.”
“Um . . . I’m not sure I can. What?”
“Seriously, ignore her,” Autumn adds. “I heard most of the conversation and saw the looks. She’s a snake. Always trying to cause issues for people.”
“Oh, okay.” What the fuck just happened? I close my eyes and take a couple calming breaths. If Autumn says to ignore that woman, I should. But I can’t help the anxiety creeping in or how fast my heart beats right now. The look she gave me . . . if they could kill I’d be begging for my life.
Alex leans into me and whispers, “She’s friends with Maggie. A lot of people are. My guess is she saw us come in together and figured she’d make a stink. Please don’t let her ruin our night.”
I nod against him. “Okay.”
He kisses me below my ear, and then my cheek and finally on my lips. When he pulls away, I look at him and ask, “Girlfriend, huh?”
A wide smile spreads across his face. “Yeah, girlfriend. Unless that’s too antiquated for you and you prefer something else, like partner or companion. Personally, I like it and it doesn’t leave any ambiguity.”