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“You and Micah,” Jo says. “He’s never brought a girl to a team get-together before.”
A wave of goose bumps spreads over my body and to my toes flexing in the water. “Is that a big deal?”
Jo laughs. “The biggest.”
With a short brown bob, Jo’s outspoken and confident. The kind of girl I imagined Cesar Tipper to go for. During dinner, they complemented one another so well. “What about the model?”
Jo makes a dismissive wave. “She didn’t come around at all. Too busy, probably.”
“Who’s the model?” Charley asks Briar.
Briar shrugs. “Newish here, too.”
“Absolutely no one to be concerned about,” Jo announces, and she looks at me with a grin. “One hundred percent.” She peers over my shoulder at the guys and snickers. “Look at them looking over here. They’re probably wondering what we’re talking about. Bunch of cavemen.”
Briar laughs. She’s waded out onto the first step, the water hitting just below her knees. “I second that.”
Charley peers over at Cade with a half-smile. “Really?”
“I know how they operate,” Jo responds. “They clash with guys all the time on the field. Testosterone fuels them from sunup to sundown, and that comes through in every aspect of their life.”
I smirk. I hadn’t quite related the two, but from what I now know about Micah, I’m pretty sure this is actually true.
“Cade’s nice,” Charley says.
“Oh, I’m not saying he’s not nice. He’s charming, and a bit of a goofball, too, but that isn’t his entire personality, is it? What lengths did he go to pursue you?”
Charley presses her lips together and looks down, and it takes a beat before a smile curls her mouth.
“I knew it!” Jo says. “Relentless, right?”
“He definitely wouldn’t take no for an answer,” she admits.
I chuckle, and Jo stares at me. “And you’re in the throes of it, and I want you to spill. The. Tea.”
My stomach flips. Charley peers over to look past Jo to me, and Briar looks at me with a genuine smile. The camaraderie sends awareness up my spine. Glancing behind me, I notice Micah is staring right at me.
“I see it, too,” Jo says, leaning in conspiratorially. “He keeps checking up on you. He wants to make sure that you’re okay.”
“You know what this party needs?” Briar exclaims. “Margaritas. I’ll be right back.”
Briar leaves for about five minutes, and it almost seems like the line of questioning is forgotten…until she reemerges from the house with a tray of green liquid in margarita glasses.
“Hey,” Cade shouts. “Where’s ours?”
“Beer’s in the fridge,” she calls back.
I turn to find Micah staring, and he winks when I take a drink from the tray. Who knows, a boost of alcohol might help calm me down a little.
Athena runs over to me and lies down, her front paws also dangling into the pool. She keeps staring at her reflection, twisting her head this way and that before she relaxes.
I take the offered drink from Briar and take a sip. “Mmm, these are good.”
Briar lifts her drink, and I swallow quickly to clank my glass with everyone. “To our j/p men.”
“J/p?” I ask.
“Jealous possessive.”