“You can hit the last one.”
He looked at the ball, then up at her. “Are you sure?”
She nodded. “Positive.” Truth was, she needed a break. Her arms were sore from swinging the club, not to mention the way her body had tensed when Joe mentioned Landon. She’d hoped he wouldn’t, but when he did, she couldn’t be dishonest about the date. She’d also genuinely thought Joe would gloat, but he didn’t. If anything, he looked sympathetic. Strange, since he had been so insistent that she not go out with Landon.
“All right.” He took one last drink and stood up, then took the ball from her hand and walked to the tee.
Sophie sat and grabbed her lemonade, the plastic cup slick with condensation. It was a warm night, but not too humid. Very pleasant for hitting golf balls. As she took a drink, she realized it was also pleasant to watch Joe. More than pleasant, she realized, taking in how good he looked as he squared up in front of the tee. His forearms were tan and muscular, but they didn’t compare to those biceps. Who knew I was such an arm girl?
She gave her head a hard shake, nearly spilling her lemonade on her lap. Where were these thoughts coming from? This was Joe, a man she hadn’t paid a lick of attention to in fifteen years. But for some reason, tonight she couldn’t keep her eyes off him. More importantly, he hadn’t rubbed her nose in the failed date. He’d also introduced her to a game she knew she was going to play again.
Friends, remember? We’re here together as friends.
Thwack! The sound of the driver hitting the ball brought her out of her thoughts, and she watched the white sphere fade into oblivion. Was it possible to hit a ball past the range? If so, Joe would be the one to do it.
He was grinning as he walked over to her. “Now that was a good drive.” He sat in the chair on the other side of the table. “Want to hit another bucket?”
She shook her head, then tugged the errant strand of hair that had been bugging her all evening behind her ear. “The muscles in my arms say no.”
Joe chuckled, resting one ankle over his knee. “Then we should listen to your muscles. You don’t want to injure yourself.”
Her gaze went to his biceps again, then she quickly took another sip of her lemonade. He’d caught her staring at him once; she didn’t want him to see her doing it again.
They sat in silence for a moment, then Joe uncrossed his legs. “I’ll take your driver and the bucket back to the clubhouse.”
Disappointment suddenly coursed through her. Their evening was over. They would get into their cars, and she would go back to her house. Alone. Like she always had. She glanced around the range and saw two empty stalls and no one at the clubhouse. The stall next to them had three teenage boys making the usual ruckus teen boys make.
“Do you mind waiting until I finish my lemonade?” she asked, a little embarrassed she was using such a weak excuse to extend their time together.
“Sure.” He leaned back in his chair. “I don’t want to rush you.”
She nodded, taking another sip, a tiny one this time. “Do you coach the golf team at school?”
He shook his head. “Nah. Football keeps me plenty busy. It’s my first sports love. Besides, the golf coach is excellent. His short game leaves me in the dust.”
Sophie had no idea what a short game was, but she would make sure to google it when she got home.
“Hold still,” Joe said, turning toward her.
“What?”
“There’s a bee hovering over your head.”
She looked up and saw the bee. She wasn’t afraid of them, but she also didn’t want to get stung. She remained still, only to cast a look at Joe, his placid expression transforming into fear.
“Sophie!” he suddenly yelled.
Before she knew it, they were overrun with bees. He grabbed her hand and she dropped her lemonade, then together they ran toward his pickup. He had the key out before they got there and quickly unlocked then opened the door, shoved her inside, scrambled in next to her, and slammed the door shut.
Chapter 6
“Are you okay?”
Sophie looked at Joe, who was only an inch or two away from her. She nodded, breathing heavily from the exertion of running across the parking lot. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d run anywhere.
“You didn’t get stung, did you?” Joe’s gaze roamed quickly over her body.
Her face heated and her breath caught in her throat. “N-no,” she said, trying to regain her composure.
“Good.” He scooted back on the bench seat.
“What happened?”
“I’m not sure. I heard the kids next to us throwing golf balls against the roof earlier. I have no idea who they are—they don’t go to Maple Falls High School. I bet they disturbed a nest when they were goofing off.”
Sophie looked out the windshield and saw the kids running toward a white SUV and flailing their arms in the air. As soon as they were all inside, the car’s engine roared to life and the teens peeled out of the gravel lot.
Joe shook his head. “Kids,” he said in a frustrated tone. Then he winced.
“Did you get stung?” Sophie leaned closer to him and saw several stings on his forearm. “Oh no.”
“It’s fine. Just a couple bee stings.”
She looked at his face and saw one on his cheek. Without thinking, she touched the spot right below the sting. “Does it hurt?”
His gaze held hers. “I can barely feel it.”
Did his voice sound huskier, or was that her imagination? She didn’t care. She also couldn’t move, and then he covered her hand with his.
“Sophie, I—”
“Ouch!” She yanked her hand away and started batting at a bee buzzing in the truck’s cab.
“That’s it.” Joe jammed his key into the ignition, turned it, and they flew out of the parking lot. As soon as they were on the road, he rolled down the windows. Two bees flew out.
“Are there any more?” he asked over the wind rushing through the cab.
Sophie looked around, then shook out the hem of her T-shirt. “I think they’re gone.”
“I’m keeping the windows open just in case.”
“Where are we going?”
“Back to my place. I have some calamine lotion in the medicine cabinet.” He glanced at her. “If that’s okay.”
She nodded, and when he faced forward, she winced. Hopefully he didn’t see it, because the bee had stung her on the cheek, too, but unfortunately not the one on her face. She shifted on the truck’s bench seat and leaned as much as she could to her left without drawing attention to herself.
When she glanced at Joe’s forearm and saw red welts forming, she knew he was making the right decision by getting some medicine as soon as possible. “You’re not allergic to bees, are you?”
“Fortunately, no. At least, not much. I don’t go into anaphylactic shock, but my skin reacts.” He looked at her. “What about you?”
“No allergies.”
“You’re lucky, then.” He turned into the entrance of one of the two modest suburbs on the outskirts of Maple Falls, then pulled into the second driveway. He shut off the engine.