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Jesus Christmas on a stick. Was Samflirtingwith her right now?

“No!” she scoffed, focusing on the ball and whacking it again. This time it at least made it halfway up the course.

“Fine, I won’t teach you how to hit a hole-in-one.” Sam stuck out her tongue.

Taylor just flipped her off and smiled. With one more hit, she got it up the ramp, through a tunnel and luckily straight into the hole. She picked up her ball and brushed past Sam on her way over to write down her shot count on their scorecard.

“Beat that.”

Chapter Fourteen

They were over halfway through the course. Will’s lessons must have paid off with Alex because those two had already finished and were back at the bar, swooning over each other, clubs discarded.

Sam was trying her damnedest on this hole to beat Taylor. She squinted, lined up the putter and tapped. The ball went around the hole, refusing to drop in.

“Argh.” Sam stamped her feet.

“What happened to those awesome lessons you wanted to teach me?” Taylor tilted her head.

“Oh shut up.” Sam knocked the ball in the hole as Taylor wrote Sam’s score down with a cackle. Sam reached for her cocktail, downing the last of it. She made a face. She’d pickedFairy Floss,and boy, did it live up to its name. It was insanely sweet, making her jaw ache. She looked up to see Alex making her way over to them.

“Another round ladies?” She eyed Sam’s glass.

“Not gonna say no. Surprise me with the next one?” Sam held out her empty champagne flute.

“On it. Taylor?”

“Just a cola for me. Gotta drive tonight.” She gave a thumbs-up.

“Sure thing, Miss Sensible.” Alex saluted as she strode back off towards the bar.

They stood in front of their next hole, a jungle-themed course where you had to “escape” before the timer went off, with all sorts of obstacles and raised levels where the ball could fall off. Sam swallowed.

“And I thought the last hole was hard.”

“They’re definitely getting progressively difficult.”

Taylor geared herself up, taking a deep breath and dropping her ball through the starter timer. She quickly hit it through a swamp with rippled bumps that tried to throw the ball off course. Then she whacked it up the cliff, where it bounced off the back wall but luckily stayed on the top platform.

Sam watched on in awe at just how good Taylor was playing, wishing she could look that cool with a club. She couldn’t help but watch Taylor’s arms flex with every swing or the way she’d flip her hair out of the way to watch where her ball would end up. She really did want to run her hands through it, or give her those golf lessons she’d offered, even if she was absolutely terrible herself. She could picture it now.

She caught the thoughts. Held onto them. Rolled them around in her head. They felt… good.Why could she not stop thinking about Taylor like this?She couldn’t keep blaming it on that dream either. Maybe shewantedthis. She bit her lip as she felt the familiar heat creeping up again.

“Here you go,” Alex said from behind.

“Ah!” Sam jumped.

“Jeez, calm down. I’m not that scary am I?” Alex laughed, handing her a tall, bright green glass.

Sam eyed it suspiciously.

“It’s a Tokyo Tea. I got the same. Enjoy.” She winked, then turned to Taylor, “Your drink’s here!”

“Thank you!” Taylor yelled back from the top of the green as her ball wound through the treetops, finally landing in the hole just before the timer went off.

“Yes!” She fist-pumped the air.

“Good work!” Alex clapped. “Even I didn’t make the timer on this hole.” She turned to Sam. “She’s good.”