Page 37 of Striking Range

I have a very simple job: be a good boy, be kind, make money, and marry a smart, beautiful woman. That is what life is; that’s what I am built for. And I am good, and I am kind. I just have to stay this way, to keep myself molded into this person that I’ve so desperately been clinging to for so long.

That is what I’m meant to do. Nothing more, nothing less. And anything else, any slight deviation from the plan, feels like failure.

So, it’s decided: I’ll start finding myself a suitable girlfriend just as I was advised to do. No more messing around with these worthless thoughts, these dangerous desires. All it is is torture. In the end, I am only hurting myself.

And maybe once I do, once I bring someone home and finally make Ash proud, this insatiable want I have for Skylar will go away.

Maybe then this jealous, this nasty side of me, will up and walk away too.

The next couple of days are stressful and honestly quite boring. I go home, I do homework, I sleep. If I’m not in class, I’m in my room buried in a workbook as I avoid Ash and Felicita.

And, if I’m honest, I’m also avoiding Skylar. I’m afraid that if I see too much of him, I’ll chicken out, and I won’t go through with my girlfriend plan. I only see him a few times between Monday and Friday, mostly just for lunch with Henry and Kelly, and never alone.

I can tell that he feels it, this rift I’m creating between us, but he doesn’t comment on it. He doesn’t push me.

And if I’m not doing schoolwork or avoiding my adoptive parents and my best friend, I’m texting Ashley. I got her number on Tuesday morning during one of our mutual lectures.

That’s how we ended up here at Seabird, on our first official date. Unfortunately, it’s a Friday night, so everyone else is here as well. Including Skylar.

On the bright side, he’s not working, so it’s easy to avoid him. I don’t have to ask him to make a drink, and for some reason, with Ashley at my side, he does not approach me.

“When are you guys going to start studying for midterms?” one of Ashley’s friends asks as we crowd into a booth toward the back of the bar.

I can see Skylar and Kelly dancing together on the makeshift dance floor. I’m simultaneously relieved that he has someone to hang out with while I’m preoccupied, and feeling a bit left out as I watch my friends enjoy the night without me.

“On Monday. They’ll give us two weeks to prepare, I’m pretty sure. Right, Everett?” Ashley is leaning into me where I have my arm wrapped around her shoulders, and I turn my attention back to her.

“Yep,” I agree.

She looks beautiful tonight—all dark, shadowy makeup and tight clothes. Her cleavage is on full display, her skirt short but still covering what it needs to. Just the right amount of appetizing.

I really wish Skylar wasn’t here to distract me from it.

“Thanks for asking me out. I’m having fun,” she says lowly, meant only for me to hear. Her smile is genuine and sweet.

“Of course.” I clear my throat. “You look amazing.”

It is a different line to walk, much more delicate, when you’re courting a woman. When I’m picking up a hookup, I’m not stressed.

Ashley preens, giggling at me in a way that’s natural, not intended to be flirty. “I dressed up for you.”

It’s an honest admittance, and it makes me smile. “Very good.”

She blushes, tucking her face into my neck.

I hear one of her friends laugh at her embarrassment, but before I can react, I feel her warm tongue on my throat. She’s being discreet, sure, but I’m definitely not.

My eyes widen, skin flushing a dark shade of red. Her hand is on my thigh, and I’m just now noticing, becoming increasingly more aware as it travels higher and higher.

As her tongue works its way to my ear, she whispers, “Will you take me home tonight?”

To Ash’s? Ha.

“I was hoping you would take me home,” I counter, to which she giggles some more, kissing my jaw.

I let a hand run down her back, tangling into her hair. I try to refocus on the feel of her mouth, of her hand traveling up my leg and what this promises, but it’s hard when I know who else is in the room.

At this thought, I raise my eyes to find him, looking past Ashley and into the crowded bar. It takes me a minute, but then I spot him at the center of the dance floor. He’s still with Kelly and her friends, laughing as they dance around with their drinks.