Page 64 of Love is a Game

Andrew nodded. “Yup. Trying to pick up some of that mountain-man energy, you know?”

He’d sort of forgotten that his facial hair was getting so long. He couldn’t remember the last time he had shaved, but he was pretty sure it had been over a month. It was hard to muster the energy in the morning to put himself together. Most days he just threw on a pair of shorts and whatever shirt laying around his room smelled clean. He felt out of place among all of the clean-cut first responders. He wasn’t the only one with facial hair, but everyone else’s was neatly trimmed. Maybe he should have cleaned himself up before coming.

“Hey, guys!” Tyson called, carrying a couple of six-packs into the room. “I think this is everyone, so we can start the game whenever.”

They all moved to the table, dropping their cash into a shoebox by the door. Johnson handed out chips while Tyson shuffled the deck and dealt out the first hand. Andrew lifted the corner of his cards. A queen of spades and a three of diamonds. Nothing spectacular, but it wasn’t the worst way to start the game. They went around the circle, and everyone made their bets. Andrew pushed two chips into the center with the rest, and then Tyson turned over a two of diamonds, a seven, and a ten of clubs.

Kimura and the movie theater guy both checked, which meant Andrew was next. He considered for a moment and then made his bet.

“Is Julie painting tonight?” Rivera asked.

Tyson shook his head. “Nah, she’s at my in-laws.”

Andrew felt the tension in his shoulders ease. No chance of running into her, then. He moved to get more comfortable in his seat. As long as she didn’t come back, he might be able to enjoy himself.

“Raise.”

More chips were added to the pot and Johnson folded.

“They’re celebrating,” Tyson went on. “You remember my sister-in-law, Sadie?”

Andrew nearly dropped his cards at the sound of her name. So much for getting comfortable. He kept his eyes glued to his cards, afraid of what his face would betray if he looked at Tyson.

“She was here last month, right?” Webb asked, then added, “Fold. The one Kimura was flirting with?”

“You mean the one who helped him cheat,” Rivera corrected.

“It wasn’t cheating,” Kimura shot back. “She’s some kind of consultant, right? She was consulting.”

“Not anymore, she isn’t,” Tyson said, flipping over a jack of spades. “She quit her job yesterday.”

Andrew’s eyes snapped to Tyson’s face and he froze. Could it possibly be true? Tyson was caught up in the betting and didn’t look at him. Without thinking, Andrew tossed two chips into the pot. Why would she quit when she was about to get promoted?

“She’s moving back home, possibly for good this time, so they’re all pretty excited,” Tyson told them.

“You hear that, Kimura?” Rivera laughed. “You might have a chance at her.”

Kimura shook his head. “Not me. I’ve got my eye on that new detective. Have you seen her?” He whistled.

Andrew tuned them out. Sadie was coming back. She’d quit her job and she was coming back. His first thought was that she might be coming back for him, but he knew that was ridiculous. After their fight, she probably never wanted to see him again. Did he even want to see her?

Yes. His heart was pounding at the very possibility. There was a part of him that was still upset. He wasn’t sure how he would handle seeing the Cypress transformed into a corporate franchise, but as the days passed, he felt more and more like he was at fault for that. She’d been right about the application. He didn’t know why he hadn’t tried harder to get it turned in. He could come up with plenty of excuses, but the truth was that he just hadn’t tried very hard at anything since his mom died. Sadie had been right about that too.

The more his anger softened, the more he missed her. Yes, she was still irritating, but in a way he had grown accustomed to. A way he kind of liked.

“Your bet, Price.”

Andrew blinked. Tyson was looking at him expectantly. He glanced at his cards again. A queen and a three. Without thinking, he pushed chips into the center of the table.

What would it take to convince her to give him another chance?

He could shave, for starters.

He had to show her that he was listening. She wouldn’t want anything to do with him as long as he lacked direction. She’d made that clear.

“All right, we’re taking it to the end, I guess,” Tyson said. “Last card.”

Andrew cleared his throat and sat forward. He had to focus on the game; he’d barely been paying attention the whole round. Tyson flipped over a queen of hearts. The cards on the table were just two cards shy of a straight. His pair of queens couldn’t beat that.