Page 18 of Fore Better or Worse (Return to Starlight Bay #16)

Chapter eighteen

Leah

T he eyeliner pencil trembles in my hand as the Golf Channel reporter on screen announces Hays’s pair finishing the Pro-Am.

The camera pans over, showing Hays high-fiving Emmitt Buckley as they celebrate what must have been a good round.

As they make their way off the green, they’re ushered toward her, and I can tell she’s going to have a chance to ask them a few questions.

“You might want to put the pencil down,” Tabitha says wryly from her perch on my bed. “Unless you want to poke your eye out before the big night.”

I follow her advice and grip the edge of my vanity, watching as Hays approaches the camera with that easy confidence. He’s wearing a navy polo, and he lifts his hat to run a hand through his hair in a way that is incredibly sexy.

“The round went well,” he’s saying, in answer to her question, with a relaxed smile that makes my stomach do a little flip.

“Emmitt’s a natural athlete, so even though hockey’s his game, he can hit a ball nearly as well as a puck.

Plus, he’s got the trash talk down to an art form, which keeps things entertaining. ”

The camera shows Emmitt, the Phoenix Freeze’s star forward, grinning and shaking his head in the background. They must know each other. One of the friends Hays wants to introduce me to tonight.

“Speaking of entertainment…” the reporter says. “There have been some interesting photos of you around town this week. Care to comment on the mystery woman who seems to have captured your attention?”

My breath catches. Mystery woman. That’s me. I’m now a “mystery woman” being discussed on national television.

Hays’s smile grows wider, those dimples on full display.

“I can confirm there’s a woman who’s turned my world upside down in the best possible way,” he says, his voice softer.

“Someone who sees right through all this,” he gestures at the cameras and crowd around him, “and somehow still thinks I might be worth her time. Whether I’m good enough for her…

Well, that’s what I’m hoping to prove this week. ”

“The photos show you at a local bookstore where she appears to work. Can you tell us anything more about her?”

I swallow hard. They know where I work? Did they follow him here?

But before I can spiral, Hays continues.

“Only that she’s brilliant, beautiful, and way too good for a guy who hits a ball around for a living.

” His self-deprecating charm makes my heart skip.

“That’s all I’m comfortable sharing at the moment. ”

“Will she be a distraction this week when you’re favored to be on the leaderboard going into Sunday?”

“A distraction? She’s the reason I’m playing the best golf of my life.”

“So you—”

“I need to get cleaned up for tonight’s event,” Hays says firmly, that perfect smile never wavering as he steps away from the microphone.

I reach for the remote and press mute, my heart hammering against my ribs.

“Well,” Tabitha says. “Look at you, mystery woman.”

“He…he basically told the world he’s in love with me. On live TV.” With cameras rolling and the golf world watching, he could have easily deflected or given some generic non-answer. Instead, he put his feelings out there for everyone to see.

“The man’s completely gone for you,” Tabitha confirms with a click of her tongue.

I stare at my reflection in the mirror, unease sweeping through me. “Tab, I’m freaking out.”

“About what he just said? Because that was—”

“About tonight. About all of this.” I gesture toward the screen where Emmitt is now fielding questions while Hays can be seen in the background signing autographs for the throng of fans.

“I don’t understand what it is about him.

We’re complete opposites. He thrives in that chaos, enjoys the spotlight.

I live a quiet life in Starlight Bay and—”

Tabitha silences me with both hands on my shoulders, giving me a small shake. “Love doesn’t have to make sense, babe. It just has to feel right.”

Love. The word hangs in the air, terrifying and thrilling at the same time.

“But what if it doesn’t work?” I whisper.

“What if we’re too different? When we’re apart, like now, it feels impossible.

All I can think about are the reasons we shouldn’t be together.

But then when I’m with him…” I trail off, remembering Monday night, at my place.

How natural it felt to spend time together.

“When you’re with him?”

“Nothing seems impossible.” I pick up the eyeliner again, my hand steadier now. “It’s like he’s determined to make me believe in the fairytale version of my own life.”

“Maybe, because he sees the you that you’re still learning to give credit to.”

I glance at her in the mirror. “What do you mean?”

She slides onto the counter and shoots me a look.

“You’re not the same person you were when you met Hays that night on the boat.

” Her voice is gentle but firm. “You were still heartbroken over David, convinced you weren’t cut out for grand gestures or adventures.

But look at what you’ve done since then. ”

She’s right. I’ve gone on adventures like I promised myself I would. But still…

“With David, I knew exactly what to expect,” I admit. “It was safe, predictable.”

“Boring,” Tabitha adds.

“With Hays, it feels like jumping into the ocean without knowing where the tide will take me.”

“And that terrifies you.”

“Completely.” I start working on my other eye.

“Good,” Tabitha replies, testing the shade one of my lipsticks on her hand. “Especially because you already agreed to marry him. It’s just a matter of when. Unless you’re going to change your mind.”

I pause, mascara wand halfway to my lashes. Do I want to change my mind? The logical part of my brain screams yes, that the arrangement was insane to begin with. That I still barely know the man who’s from a world that might as well be on a foreign planet. That happily ever afters are for books.

But my heart? It remembers the way he caught me when I fell, the way he listens when I talk, the way he makes me feel like the most important person in the world.

And my body? It is still achingly sore in the best possible way from Monday night.

And still remembers the way he kisses as if he can’t get enough of me.

“Honestly?” I set down the mascara and turn to face her. “I never really believed the pact would hold up. I figured he’d forget within a month. Maybe, two.”

“So you didn’t expect him to show up with a rock the size of Gibraltar and tell you he’s been thinking about you every day for years?”

“No!”

“Are you going to wear it tonight?”

My lips press together. “I’m not ready to. Not yet.”

“The man on the screen, just now? He’ll wait, believe me.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.” She slides the cover back on the lipstick. “I mean, didn’t he give you carte blanche with his credit card for a shopping spree for anything you might need for tonight?”

“Because I needed something to wear for my first real taste of what his world looks like up close and personal!”

“You’re going to be fine.” Tabitha slides off the counter and grabs the hanger off the closet door, holding my new dress up against her in front of the mirror. “And look like a million dollars.”

The nerves fluttering in my stomach like moths around a UV bug zapper say otherwise. “All those sponsors and VIPs and photographers. I have no idea what I’ve gotten myself into.”

“You’ve gotten yourself into a chance at happiness with a man who’s clearly crazy about you.”

I take the dress from her, running my fingers over the silky fabric. “Speaking of crazy about someone, want me to pass along anything to Rory about what you’re looking for in a man?”

Tabitha’s cheeks turn pink. “Oooh, let me think about that.”

I stand and start changing into the dress. “I’ll make sure to mention you’re single and available.”

“A good start—”

“And that you’re fantastic at giving relationship advice.”

“Maybe, he needs it.” She throws a pillow at me, but she’s laughing.

I head into the bathroom and slip into the dress. I barely recognize the woman in the mirror, who looks back at me with bright eyes and flushed cheeks. A woman who seems as if she might actually belong at a fancy cocktail party on the arm of a professional athlete.

I emerge and Tabitha smiles. “You look beautiful,” she says. “And brave. And ready for whatever tonight brings.”

I take a deep breath, thinking about Hays’s protective deflection during the press conference. Maybe, jumping into the ocean isn’t so scary when you trust the person swimming beside you to help you find your way back to shore.

“Okay,” I say, reaching for the lipstick. “Think this is the right shade?”