Game Saver (21 page)

“He’s right. In fact, I swear the only reason I was allowed out today was to get the low-down on you two lovebirds,” Noah adds.

I snort, knowing that my best friend is not lying.

“Things are good. Real good.”

“How’s the campaign going for Cade Senior?” Daniel asks.

“Apparently he’s a shoo in. Like there was ever any doubt,” I reply.

“Over it yet?” Noah asks.

“I’d rather just go about my business and not be stopped by everyone everywhere, wanting to talk to me about my dad. How happy they are that he’s running, asking me to tell him that he has their vote, wondering if I’m going to follow in his footsteps . . .”

“You knew it would happen,” Thomas says

“Have your parents gotten over the fact that you’re not dating a woman of their choosing?” Daniel asks.

Thomas walks towards me and slides his golf club back in his bag. “Oh, you mean Annabel and Cade Senior accepting that their children are
allowed
to date whoever they want? Sure, of course they have.”

I grimace, but he’s not wrong. He’s annoyed—at my father, not me—because last week he was called to Dad’s office where it was intimated that if Thomas was to give him information about Abi, he would be ‘handsomely rewarded.’

“We had a reporter approach us for a comment when we were out for dinner on Wednesday. They wanted to know what I thought about the latest poll showing my father leading the race.”

All three guys grimace.

“How was Abi with that?” Noah asks, pulling his own club and ball out to take his tee shot.

“She was fine. Well, she seemed okay with it anyway. She just ribbed me about it later.”

“It’s a strong woman who’ll take on everything Carsen,” Noah muses.

“So no more
talks
with your dad?” Daniel asks.

“I don’t think he’s that stupid.”

Thomas’s brows lift, and I know he’s wondering what drug I’m on and how to get some.

“As long as they don’t go after her. Are you worried about that?” Daniel says

“I was but nothing has come from their warnings so far. He knows not to push me. I don’t think they’d be that stupid. They’ve got to know by now that if they did, I’d turn my back on them completely.”

“Is she worth it?” Noah asks.

“Of course she’s fucking worth it,” I growl.

“Woah there, buddy. I get it,” he replies, holding his hands up.

“She’s the breath of fresh air I never saw coming.”

“What do you mean?” Daniel asks.

“Her. Us. What we have.”

“Jeez Carsen, sounds like you’ve got it bad,” Noah says with a grin.

“Finally,” Daniel muses. “It’s about time another one fell.”

Thomas starts singing ‘Another One Bites the Dust,,’ and I burst out laughing.

“No wonder you’re having a dry spell, if that’s what your voice is like,” Noah says, and we all chuckle.

“So Thanksgiving with Abi’s family . . .” Noah says.

I narrow my eyes at Thomas, who just shrugs. “You’re a worse gossip than a woman. Maybe you need to get laid so you’ve got something else to talk about.”

“I’m not getting laid until I find the one,” Thomas states, and he’s dead serious.

“So how long has it been then?” Noah asks, quirking an eyebrow at him.

“Four months.”

I look at Daniel and Noah with wide eyes. I didn’t realize it had been
that
long.

“Just you and Mrs. Palmer for a while then?” Daniel jokes.

“Are we going to finish this round or talk about our feelings?” Thomas shoots back.

I wrap my arm around his shoulders and mess up his hair. “Thomasina, it’s okay to be in touch with yourself.”

“Yeah well there’s been a
lot
of that.”

“And on
that
note . . .” Noah hops behind the wheel of our golf cart and turns the key. “You ladies coming? The clubhouse has a beer with my name on it.”

Thomas was right. The more I think about it, the more it
was
out of the ordinary for Abi to stay at home by herself last night. Over the last two and a half months we’ve been together—once we gave up the misconception that it wasn’t real between us—we’ve barely spent a night apart. If we have, it’s been because one of us was working.

Last night she changed her mind at the last minute after sending me dirty texts earlier in the evening explaining in graphic detail what she was going to do when she got into bed with me.

Now I feel like an idiot for not checking that she was alright. What if something happened at the club and that’s why she didn’t come over.

Cade:
      
Hey. You okay?

Abi:
      
Yeah, I’m fine. How’s golf?

Cade:
      
You know how it is, holding a good wood, whacking around some balls. All in good fun.

Abi:
      
That’s usually my job. Your wood and balls are mine, Carsen.

Cade:
      
You’re distracting me again.

Abi:
      
How?

Cade:
      
All I can think about is having your legs wrapped around my back.

Abi:
      
I like that thought.

Cade:
      
So do I, but it wasn’t conducive to winning a golf game against Thomas, Noah and Daniel.

Abi:
      
Would it help if I promise to reenact the scene later?

Cade:
      
Definitely not helping, but it’ll help pass the time until I see you.

Abi:
      
As long as that’s the only thing that happens quickly.

Cade:
      
Since when have I ever gone fast?

Abi:
      
The shower yesterday morning . . .

Cade:
      
That was because you woke me up with your mouth ‘round my cock. I was already halfway gone.

Abi:
      
Good, since I’m always gone when you’re around.

Cade:
      
Fuck, Spitfire, you’re good for my ego.

Abi:
      
Your ego doesn’t need any help.

Cade:
      
No, but my cock does right now.

Abi:
      
Poor baby. Should I kiss it better?

Cade:
      
Only if you’re naked and straddling my face while you do it.

Abi:
      
Now who’s being distracting?

Cade:
      
Fair’s fair, sweetheart. What time should I come over? When do you finish work?

She doesn’t reply straight away. In fact, her text doesn’t come through for ten minutes.

Abi:
      
I’ve got the night off.

Cade:
      
Weren’t you scheduled on?

Abi:
      
I took the night off. See you tonight

Cade:
      
Do you tonight ;)

Abi:
      
Even better.

Sunday evening, the whole gang are at Noah and Zoe’s for a catch-up—kids and all—before Thanksgiving.

I’ve quit the club, which—let’s be honest—was a
long
time coming, but seeing Bryce and letting everything he told me sink in, I decided I don’t want to give Cade’s parents any more ammunition to use against either one of us. Cade deserves easy and carefree, a life without drama or pressure from his family.

In the end, it was an easy choice. I’m in a committed relationship. Yes, it’s still early on, and it may not go where I want it to go—
God I hope it does
—but I don’t
need
to strip anymore.

It was fun while it lasted though. It was almost cathartic in some respects, and boy do I have some stories to tell about my time there, but all good things come to an end.

The problem is, I haven’t told Cade about quitting the Pink Monkey or Bryce’s visit. I don’t want to be the cause of any more friction in that family, because Lord knows there’s enough passive-aggressive behavior all around, and I know that Cade would lose his ever-loving mind if he knew his family still had investigators looking into me.

When he came over after Golf I was just grateful to see him, having tossed and turned all night Friday because I wasn’t with him. It’s irrational and unbelievable that I’m so used to being with Cade now; we barely spend a night apart.