“Man, the woman’s mind.” He chuckles.
I nod. “Then, I find out that you actually did drugs. And you’d better be off of them and never do anything that idiotic again. Got it?” I toss him a stern look.
He holds his hands up. “Promise.”
“Good. To be honest, Brad, I’ve never stopped loving him. As much as I tell myself I’m not, I constantly compare poor Curtis to Tanner.”
“Curtis is a douche, Piper. I’m not sure what you saw in him to begin with. He’s the polar opposite of Tanner.”
“Have you ever felt that you weren’t good enough for someone?” I ask, staring up at the dark sky with a few stars peeking out.
“Yeah,” he says, tipping his own head back. “You feel you aren’t good enough for Curtis? If it’s the money thing, you gotta let that go.”
“No, I’m the wrong fit for Tanner. I’m not adventurous or risk-taking. He’s so free and fun-loving. I drag him down.” I cross my ankles, taking the bottle out of Brad’s grip.
“See, as an outsider, I find another scenario. You are free, Piper—with your love and belief in someone. I can only imagine what Tanner must feel for you.” He laughs. “As much as he protected me two years ago, when he returned here, he picked you over me.”
“I’m not sure I understand, Brad.” I’m confused as to how Tanner picked me over Brad.
“That first night, when we played volleyball in the pool, after everyone left, Tanner and I stayed outside and talked. He flat out told me, he was here for two reasons, and the second was my wedding.”
“The first?” My heart soars, hopeful Tanner confessed what I think he did.
“To win you back. He told me about you guys two years ago and how you got mad. He never asked me permission to tell you the truth. He just said he was going to at some point.” Brad sits up in the chair, facing me. His forearms rest on his legs, and his honest eyes peer into mine. “He loves you and deservingly so. He’s a good guy, Piper, and I’m not saying that because he’s my best friend. He’ll treat you right, make you laugh, and since you love him, too, I’m not going to try to stand in the way.” He stands up. “One of us has to be happy, so go for it. Take the leap, and I guarantee, it will pay off for you.” He begins walking away from the pool.
“Brad!” I call out.
He turns around, his mood somber.
“Do you want to talk about you and Bayli?”
He shakes his head. “Nah.”
He turns again, and even after I call his name a few times, he never looks back
eighteen
“SHOOT, PIPER.” TANNER BOUNCES THE basketball to me.
I catch it, immediately shooting it at the basket. The ball sinks through the net, and the boys cheer.
“Let’s play a game. Ashbys versus McCains,” Tanner says.
As much as I love basketball, I’m exhausted from the running around I did with my mom today.
“Nah. Go ahead.” I wave Dylan, Brad and Tanner off, plopping down on a lawn chair next to my dad.
“Hey, sweetheart.” My dad pats my knee.
I smile over at him. “Hi, Dad.”
My mom and Lana busy themselves, gossiping in the corner.
“Why don’t you get out there?” I nod my head toward the boys.
My dad laughs. “I’ll wait for Patrick. Plus, the boys go easy on us now, so it’s not as much fun.” The warmth in his grin shows how proud he is of my brother. “I’d rather spend time with my daughter anyway.”
He pats my knee again, and we share a smile. I was never a pure daddy’s girl, but he has that instinct to know when there’s too much on my mind.
Admiring Tanner bouncing the ball back and forth between his legs makes me wish he were mine already, so I could saunter over there, wrap my arms around his broad shoulders, and rise on my tiptoes to kiss him. As though he can read my mind, he glances over to me with a sly smile and then turns his attention back to the net. Shooting the ball, he scores and then glances over again, tossing me his classic wink, before Brad takes his shot.
A little bit of guilt surfaces because I haven’t ended it with Curtis yet. Tanner still thinks he has to earn me back, but he won last night. He just confirmed that he’s the only one out there for me, and what I have with Curtis doesn’t even enter the stadium.
For all those years I was scared of Tanner cheating on me, I’d never do that to someone else. The problem is, every time I’ve called Curtis today, it has gone straight to voicemail. It’s almost as if he knows what I ‘m going to tell him, and he thinks, by not answering, he can delay the inevitable. My mind is a jumble, and I have no clue how I will tell him I lied. That not only did Tanner and I have a relationship prior, but Tanner’s the one I’m breaking up with him for. Worse yet, he’ll lose me and the possibility of signing Tanner.
“Come on, Pipe.” Brad walks over, dribbling the ball in front of me. “You know we can beat the McCains.”
“Yeah, come on, Piper. Let me cover you,” Dylan hollers over.
Tanner hits him in the chest.
“Ouch!”
They share a look between them, and Dylan laughs.
Smiling, I sense my dad’s eyes on me, but I ignore them for the time being. I’m sure they’re filled with curiosity.
“No way. I’m exhausted.”
“Pipe, our parents did me a huge disservice by not giving me a brother. Now, you’ve always held your own with us, and you can’t stop now.” Brad does a variety of fancy moves with the basketball, lastly spinning it on his pointer finger.
I jokingly look around for a sign of girls anywhere. “There’s no one to impress here, Brad.”
Then, it dawns on me. There’s no Bayli, no Bayli’s parents, no Bayli’s bridesmaids.
“Where’s Bayli?”
The ball drops and bounces down the driveway. Brad jogs down to get it, and I make my way to meet him halfway.
“Brad?” I question.
He blows a bubble with his gum. “Relax. She’s with her friends. Something about the dresses. They’re on their way.”
He walks past me, and I see the dullness of his eyes. He’s terribly unhappy.
I turn around to go back to my chair and Brad swivels to face me. “Now, go get your shoes on, and let’s beat these guys’ asses.” He pretends to elbow them and puts Dylan in a headlock.
The four of us laugh, and I’m about to walk up the driveway to join them in a game because it will be good for us to get to a state of normalcy.
“Hey, beautiful.” Curtis’s arm swings around my shoulders.
My eyes veer to Tanner first. He’s shooting lasers at Curtis and then softens when he turns them at me.
I bite my lip, and Tanner turns around to shoot layups with Dylan and Brad. I slowly move my head up to see Curtis, and see him beaming down at me.
“Hi,” I greet him.
He steps in front of me. “What kind of welcome is that?”
He pulls me into a hug, and I loosely place my arms around his middle, trying to figure out how I’ll dodge a kiss.
“I tried to call you today,” I mention with the hopes that I’ll find out if he’s clued in on the fact something is coming.
“I know. Sorry. I was busy the entire day. Dad had a stick up his ass, and he was hell-bent on taking it out on me and my brother.” He pushes back, takes my hand, and begins to lead us up the driveway.
I try to non-verbally grab Tanner’s attention. To somehow tell him that this isn’t what I imagined, but he’s doing everything in his power to ignore me. Actually, Dylan is, too. Strike that—all three of them won’t even look at me or say hello to Curtis.
“Hi, Chris. How are you?” Curtis extends his hand out to my dad.
It’s not hard to miss my dad’s confusion about the sudden tension on the basketball court.