It’s unfair, but it comes with the territory of being a best friend.
I reach over, squeezing Angie’s hand. “My bad, Ally’s ex is here and she’s talking to him, and I don’t know why.”
Angie looks past me and shrugs. “She’s been talking to him for a while. I think they’re getting back together.”
Over my dead fucking body.
“Yeah, no.”
Her brows come in. “Why does it matter? Do you like her or something?”
I shake my head. “She’s basically my sister, and that dude isn’t good for her. He makes her stupid.”
“It’s her choice, though,” she says simply.
“You’re right.” I take out my phone to send Ally a text. “But when it comes to dudes, she forgets she should be treated like a queen.”
Me: Seriously? What the fuck, Ally?
I set down my phone as Angie raises a brow. “A queen?”
I nod. “All women should be treated like queens. Life is hard, and it’s our job as men to care for, provide for, and love a woman good and hard so she knows she is invincible. That nothing can tear her down. And that jackass does not treat her like that. He brings her down, and I refuse to allow someone I love and care about to be treated like that.”
“Wow.”
Suddenly, Stella is beside me, her gaze on Ally and Taco. “Shut up.”
“I know,” I say as we both stare at Ally. She is ignoring her phone, which is fine.
“I can’t believe she’s with him. Harper and Jakob were pissed,” she says, and then she looks over at Angie. Stella’s face lights up, and she hugs Angie hard. They went to school together. “Oh! Hey, Angie—” She pauses, looking between us. “Wait, are you two on a date?”
“We were until Ally’s ex showed up. Now it seems your brother is more concerned about her.”
I look back at Angie. “There is no reason for jealousy,” I say, and she glares as Stella laughs.
“Letting you know now, Ally is Asher’s bestie. Get used to it now, or there is no point in dating him,” Stella says, leaning on me. “I can promise you, there is nothing romantic between them. They really are just best friends.”
I nod, but I don’t care. Angie is hot and I wouldn’t mind starting something up with her, but Ally is my number one. Angie’s going to have to accept that, or there is no point in doing this. I dig into my pocket, pulling out a twenty. “I’ll give you this if you spill a drink in his lap.”
Stella laughs. I knew she’d be down. She always has my back. She takes my twenty, kisses my cheek, and then says, “No way. Mom will kill me.”
And then she walks away. Asshole.
When my phone sounds, I look down to see a message from Ally.
Ally T: Let it be.
Me: No, you shouldn’t be with him. He’s a jackass.
Ally T: Seriously. Enjoy your date, and let me enjoy mine.
I glare as I look across the bar at her. She isn’t even smiling. She doesn’t want to be there!
Me: I can tell you don’t want to be there. Come with us.
Ally T: Ha. No thanks. I’m fine, and I do want to be here. He’s a great time.
Me: Whatever. You’re just horny. Make sure not to scream out Nacho when you’re fucking him. Might hurt his feelings.
Ally T: OMG, come up with a new joke.
I hate that it bothers me so much that she’s with him. It bothers me even more that I know she’s only with him to get some. She doesn’t love him, she never has, it’s only about sex. She deserves so much better. I stuff my phone in my pocket and look across the table where a very annoyed Angie sits.
“Sorry, she’s being dumb.”
She shrugs. “I think it’s her choice.”
I nod. “You’re not wrong, but it’s my choice to let her know she’s making a mistake.”
She doesn’t agree, and that’s cool. I can ignore Ally and her dumb mistakes. I’m on a date with a super-hot and smart chick. Ally can do her own thing, and I’ll do mine. “So, you’re going to school for sports psychology, right?”
Angie grins, and soon she excitedly tells me about her major. She’s really beautiful, and I want to say I listen. I want to say I hear every word she says and I care, but I don’t. Because I’m too caught up in the fact that Ally is here with TacoFuck. I hate how that makes me feel. I don’t understand how she doesn’t see how amazing she is and how she deserves the world. It drives me crazy.
“You already graduated?”
I nod, surprised I’m on cue. Maybe I am listening. I’m disgusted in myself; I usually don’t act like this, but it’s one thing to hear Ally tell me she’s made a mistake, rather than watch her do it. This is the part that was easier when I was living in California. “Yeah, I’m actually looking for a job working with jumbotrons.”
“That’s cool,” she says, leaning on her hands. “Why didn’t you play hockey?”
I shrug, grinning. “I sucked at it.”
“No way! Your dad is a legend, and Aiden is amazing.”
It’s refreshing that she doesn’t get that dreamy look in her eye when she speaks of my brother. “Yeah, but I wasn’t good. It wasn’t my passion. I like fixing things, I guess.”
“That’s cool. I play a little hockey, but I like volleyball more.”
“You’re really good. You and Ally are a great team.”
She nods. “Yeah, she’s one hell of a setter.”
“She is. I don’t miss a game when I’m around,” I say, and casually, I look over to where Ally and Taco are. They’re talking, and Ally looks more into it. That pisses me off. She’s probably forcing it since I called her on not wanting to be there. Man, she’s so stubborn.
“You’ve been gone three and a half years, right?”
“Yeah, I finished college, and now I’m back. I actually have an interview with the Assassins organization this Friday.”
“That’s cool.”
“How’s Jayden? Is his hand doing better?”
She nods. Jayden Sinclair is her uncle and the Assassins’ captain. “Way better. Being home has been nice for him. My cousins love it, and they are getting so big.”
“Yeah, it’s crazy how all of us are growing up. We’re all becoming adults and shit.”
“Scary, right?”
I laugh. “So scary. How’s your sister, Charlotte, and the boys?”
I forgot her brothers’ names, and unfortunately, she doesn’t help me out. “Good, in school and shit. It’s great that my dad is home now. I wish it was like that when I was growing up.”
“Right? Emery and Stella got more of my dad than Aiden and I did.”
“Makes you jealous, huh?”
“Yeah, but it’s okay. I got my work ethic from him.”
“Yeah?”
“Definitely.” I lean on the table, trying so hard to ignore Ally. It’s not working, and I’m finding now I’m the one forcing shit. “I’m actually going to call the athletic director at Bellevue tomorrow. Y’all’s jumbotron sucks.”
She nods. “So, you’re aiming for two jobs?”