With a new mission on hand, Charlie hopped back over to the other bed and draped her arm across Gina’s shoulders. It wouldn’t be fair to waste such a fine specimen as Owen McDougall on someone like Charlie.
The man screamed commitment. He needed someone to help him with Olivia, since their mother seemed to need the help as well. This is what friends did for each other. Selfless love. She didn’t have any to offer a guy, but she could give her love to her friends.
And Gina deserved all the love in the world
“I’ve been thinking. About you and Owen.”
“Oh no. I can tell by the V between your brows you’re scheming something big. I’m so not getting in the middle of you and him.”
“Actually, you’re so close you’re totally missing where I’m going with this.”
“I doubt it.” Gina gathered her long mane of red hair in one hand and moved it to her opposite shoulder, exposing a glimpse of the puckered skin at the back of her neck.
“I think Owen’s the perfect guy for you.”
“Me?” Gina laughed. “You’ve been ogling him for months.”
“Have not.”
“Okay.”
Charlie ignored the sarcastic eye roll. “He is sweet with his sister.”
“I know. We all saw it the other night at dinner. It’s like how Drew is with his nieces and nephews.”
“Right? A man with kids totally turns you on, doesn’t it.” Charlie ignored the burning jealousy in her chest. This was about Gina. “I’m going to set you two up.”
“Four seconds ago, you were talking about sleeping with the man, and now you think he’s my soulmate?”
Best friend of the year award. Right here. She twisted Gina’s hair around her hand. “He’d be happy with you. You’re exactly what he needs.”
“And you know this how?”
“I’ve spent more time with Olivia than with Owen. That’s where my connection lies. With his sister. Owen’s hot. I mixed up my cues thinking I had a thing for him when really I just want to hang with Olivia.” Total lies but she hoped Gina could buy them.
“Maybe you mixed up your feelings, but I still don’t think I’m the one for him.”
“Stop it.” Charlie pulled away and crossed her legs so she could sit facing Gina. “You need to get past this fear of yours and start dating again. Owen’s the perfect guy to help you see your beauty inside and outside.”
Gina played with her hair pulling a thick strand over her eyes shielding her face from Charlie. Her nervous habit she’d started when she was in the hospital a year and a half ago.
“Fish.” The military nickname brought a sad smile to her face. “I want this for you. Please? Will you consider it?”
And there was the crux of it all. Charlie wanted to see Gina happy again, even if it meant there’d be no bedroom gymnastics with Owen.
“I’m not ready.”
“What is it you’re waiting for?” She took Gina’s hands in hers. “What needs to happen for you to be ready?”
Gina shrugged. “The right guy.”
“You think Owen’s hot, right?”
“Sure. I mean, he could use a haircut, but he seems sweet.”
“A haircut? Really? What about his eyes? Have you looked at them? His shoulders and arms are—”
“You sure you want me to hook up with him?” A hint of a smile poked through the long locks of hair.
“I wouldn’t hook you up with an ogre.” She squeezed her hands and slid off the bed. “Next week we have Monday and Tuesday off between camp sessions. Keep your schedule free.”
“You don’t need to do this. It’s not going to end well.”
“Sure it is.” Charlie picked up her shower caddy and slid into her flip flops. “You know me well enough by now to know my stubbornness won’t let this rest until I see you dating and happy again.”
“I still say this isn’t going to end well.”
“No pressure. One date. If you’re not feeling the Owen McDougall sexy vibe thing, I’ll back off. But seriously, he’s perfect for you.”
She hid her sadness behind a cheeky smile and pushed open the door. The squeaky hinges and the tap of wood on wood as the door closed behind her mirrored the sudden slam in her chest.
It was the right thing to do. A steamy affair would only make Charlie happy for as long as it lasted, but Gina’s happily ever after would last a lifetime.
That’s what BFFs did for each other.
CHARLIE HAD PUT THE last stainless-steel bowl away after a whirlwind weekend of campers when her phone vibrated in her back pocket. She couldn’t control the butterflies in her belly as she read the number.
Since their talk with Gina three nights ago, she hadn’t been able to get Owen out of her mind.
Liar. He’d been on her mind twenty-four-seven since their grand opening weekend. This was the right thing to do, she told herself over and over and over again.
“Hello?” she said as calmly as possible. Tonight, she’d planned on calling Owen to set up the not-so blind date with Gina. His call, however, was a welcome surprise.
“Hi. It’s Owen McDougall,” he said as polite as pie as if he really needed to introduce himself. She’d gotten his number from Olivia the day they made her birthday cake, only she had yet to call him.
“Hi, Owen. I was actually going to give you a call tonight.”
“I’m sorry. Is this a bad time?”
“Not at all. The last camper got picked up about twenty minutes ago and I’m finishing up putting the dishes away.” She hopped up on the counter and swung her legs.
“I don’t want to be a bother, but Livy asked me to call you.”
Her heart sank a little. He wasn’t calling because he wanted to talk to her. It was better this way, she reminded herself. Owen wasn’t meant for her.
“How’s Olivia doing?” Better to keep their conversation on their mutual buddy—and then incorporate Gina into the mix—than on the pressure in her chest.
“Great.” He chuckled. “She can’t stop talking about her birthday dinner. You and your friends went pretty far out of your way to make her feel special. The boat ride and the baking lesson made her day. Her year.”
“I’m so glad we could do something for her.”
“Which brings me to the reason for my call.” She hated that he had a reason. Someday she wanted a guy to call her for no reason other than he was thinking of her.
Not this guy. Not Owen.
“Sure. What’s up?” She hoped she sounded casual.
“I promised Livy I’d bring her bowling and she, uh, said she wanted you to come as well. I guess you two talked about it?”
The weight in her chest lifted and turned into a smile on her face. If she couldn’t have Owen, at least she’d made an impact on a little girl’s life. “I’d love to.”
“You would?”
“Sure. Don’t sound so surprised. I adore your sister.”
“Um, thanks. I know hanging out with an eleven-year-old probably isn’t your definition of a good time.”
“It absolutely is. And to make it even more fun, is it okay if I bring a friend?”
“For Livy?”
For you. “I don’t have any other eleven-year-old friends at the moment. I was thinking Gina. She really loved spending time with Olivia as well.”
“Oh. Okay. Sure. What, uh, what day works best for you two?”
“We have tomorrow and Tuesday to recover before our Wednesday campers arrive at ten. They won’t leave until next Sunday and then we have another troop coming in from Monday through Friday, but we have the weekend off.”
“I don’t know if Livy can handle waiting another weekend. Do you think you guys could join us tomorrow night? Maybe around seven?”
Charlie whistled. “I didn’t know you were the party animal type. And on a Monday to boot.”
There was a moment of silence before Owen spoke again. “We’ll meet you at seven then.” He named the bowling alley and gave her the a
ddress before hanging up.
“Awkward.” She supposed it would be this way until he and Gina became a thing. That’s how Charlie needed to think of Owen. As Gina’s.
Gina needed him more than she did.
CHAPTER NINE
“When will they be here?” Livy swung her feet from the bench in front of their lane and tapped her bowling shoes together.
“Any minute, peanut. Why don’t you run to the bathroom before we start?”
“I don’t have to pee.”
“You drank a gigantic Sprite at McDonalds. You’ll have to go sooner or later. Might as well go now rather than in the middle of the game.”
“Fine,” she said with a dramatic sigh and scurried off to the restroom.
As soon as she rounded the corner, he caught a flash of Charlie’s blonde ponytail and her wide grin. Gina must have said something funny because he could hear her infectious laugh across the bowling alley.
Their gazes met. A shy grin formed on his lips and he held up his hand in a quick wave. Charlie paused and then her facial expression changed to annoyance.
Owen kicked his work boots aside and strode over to her in his slippery bowling shoes.
“I’m glad you two could make it.”
“I haven’t been bowling in years. Thanks for inviting us,” Gina said.
It was Charlie who had invited her, and he appreciated the distraction. There’d be less flirting, fewer opportunities for him to work his foot out of his mouth, less likely he’d go against his resort to keep Charlie at bay.
“I’ll take a size eight and she’ll take a seven and a half, if you have it,” Charlie told the girl behind the shoe counter.
When they had their shoes, the three of them walked over to lane seven. Livy came barreling out of the bathroom and rushed into Charlie’s arms.
“You came!”
“Of course I did. And Gina too.” She crouched to whisper in her ear loud enough for him to hear. “She was super jealous and wanted to celebrate with you as well. By the way, she absolutely loves hugs and gives the best ones back.”
Livy rushed to Gina and encased her in a hug as well. “Can we make the fairy house you told me about?”
“Anytime.” Gina kissed Livy’s cheek and smoothed the hair around her face. “I’ll let you know when I have all the materials.”
“Owen bought me a phone for my birthday. Want to see it?” She pulled it out of her pocket and turned it on. “It doesn’t take pictures. When I’m a teenager I can get a cooler phone.”
“I think it’s perfect,” Charlie said. “I didn’t have a phone this nice until I was in my twenties.”
“That’s what Owen said.” She turned to him and pointed at his phone in his front pocket. “Take a picture with me and Gina and Charlie on your phone.”
She reached for Gina and Charlie’s hands and tugged them to the bench in front of their lane, sitting in the middle and patting the spaces next to her.
“Now that she’s eleven she’s extra bossy.” He stepped back so he could fit the three of them in the frame and snapped a few pictures.
“I want to see.” Livy rushed to him and took his phone to inspect his handy work.
“You’ve got an awesome big brother getting you such a cool gift,” Charlie said looking over Livy’s shoulder.
The phone was a cheap track one from Walmart, but it was all his sister needed. A way to call or text him if she was alone, scared, or if anyone unsafe came back into her life. The sense of security would help him stay more focused at work during the day and sleep better at night.
“Let’s make bowling teams. Olivia, can I be with you? And Gina and your brother can pair up.”
“We don’t need—”
“Sure we do,” Charlie cut him off. “It’s more competitive this way, and I love a good competition.”
“Why can’t we—”
“Since you’re the birthday girl, you get to go first.” She handed Livy a ball and pushed him and Gina so they sat next to each other on the bench.
She was being awfully pushy—literally—and a little out of sorts. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the crimson blush covering Gina’s cheeks. She played with her hair shielding him from seeing all of her face.
“Four pins! Great job, Olivia,” Charlie cheered from the other bench.
After she’d thrown her three candlepin bowling balls down the lane, Livy slumped her shoulders and joined Charlie on the opposite bench. “I suck.”
“Livy,” he warned.
“It’s true. Even with the bumpers up I keep throwing at the same empty spot.”
“You can come up with better words to use.”
“Well, you keep calling me Livy.”
Owen tried not to roll his eyes. Now that she was eleven, apparently it meant she was too old for nicknames.
“My name is Olivia. That’s what Charlie calls me. You can call me Olivia or Liv. Livy is for babies.”
He didn’t like the idea of his sister growing up so fast.
Gina insisted he go next. There was a little more pressure bowling with the women. He felt their stares at his back as he let one ball go down the lane after the other. Nine pins.
When Charlie went up, he did his best not to notice how her denim shorts hugged her butt, or how her legs were as long and slim as they were a few weeks ago. He hadn’t been paying attention to the pins she’d knocked down until she spun around and clapped her hands.
“Eight. I’ll take it.”
Gina bowled next and didn’t fare much better than Livy. Liv.
“Look at that,” Charlie said with a laugh. “Gina’s not the greatest bowler either. Maybe Owen can give her some lessons.”
For the next hour, Charlie continued to drop subtle and not-so-subtle hints about him and Gina.
“You two are cute together,” she’d said at one point, completely embarrassing them both. “Gina’s the perfect woman. She’ll be an amazing mom one day,” she’d said when Gina had gotten up to use the bathroom.
She’d been acting weird all afternoon and then it hit him.
She wasn’t interested in him and was using Gina as a buffer. Even going so far as to attempt to match them up together.
There was nothing wrong with Gina; she was a beautiful, sweet woman. Any guy would be lucky as hell to win her affection. But she didn’t cause a... stir in him. Her face wasn’t the first thing he pictured when he woke up in the morning or the last thing he saw before he drifted off to sleep at night.
Her laugh wasn’t stuck in his head, neither were her jokes or pick-up lines. While Gina and Liv got along as well as Charlie and Liv, he didn’t have the same reaction when he saw them together.
“We’re on the last frame and we’re only down by two pins. Concentrate hard, Olivia. We can do this,” Charlie encouraged, squatting on the edge of the hardwood.
When Olivia knocked down the final pin with her third ball, Charlie jumped up and down with excitement. Even though it would make beating their team more of a challenge, Owen couldn’t help but grin.
Bowlers from lanes four and five looked over at her with annoyance. Yeah, she went a bit over the top, but Liv didn’t think so. She held onto Charlie’s hands as they spun around the floor.
“Nice job, peanut.”
“We’re beating you.”
They were, but he and Gina still had to bowl, as did Charlie. “It’s going to be tough to recover from this one.” He picked up a ball and stood in front of the lane. At first, he thought about throwing the game and letting Liv win.
Then he glanced at Charlie who gave him the evil eye as if knowing what he contemplated doing. If he let them win, Liv would figure it out and be insulted. Plus, it was important for kids to learn how to lose gracefully and win gracefully as well.
Rolling his shoulders back, he held the ball close to his chest, took a step, and tossed the ball down the lane. Eight pins.
He spun around and first noticed Gina’s applause, then Liv’s frown, and
then Charlie’s raised eyebrow.
Impressive she mouthed. Those lips, shiny from her tongue or her Chapstick, he didn’t know, and didn’t care. Blinking away his lust, he picked up another ball and tossed it down the lane. Nothing.
The third ball mirrored Liv’s, knocking all ten pins down.
“Good job, Owen,” Liv said with sad enthusiasm.
“We got this, kiddo.” Charlie bumped her elbow into Liv’s side. “Gina got eight pins down. Must be from the lessons Owen’s been giving her. Wish me luck, buttercup. I’m gonna knock ‘em all down.”
“I can give you a lesson too, if you want.” The words slipped out of his mouth before he had time to recant them.
Gina stirred next to him and he avoided making eye contact with her. It was rude of him to offer if their purpose this evening was to set him up with Gina, even if he wasn’t interested in pursuing any sort of relationship with her.
With anyone he reminded himself. Just because Charlie intrigued him didn’t mean he was going to do anything about it.
“I’m good. Thanks.” She glared at him before turning around and facing the lane. Her first ball struck down six pins and the second ball knocked another.
“You can do it, Charlie,” Liv cheered from her seat.
“Thanks for believing in me.” She held out her hand and did a fist bump with her and then went back to the lane. She tossed the ball and knocked them all down.
“You did it!” Liv bolted out of her seat and attacked Charlie in a hug as if they’d won a state championship or the Olympics. “We won.”
“It was a good game. Good match up. Owen and Gina make a great pair, don’t they?”
“And you and I make a great team. We should do this again.”
Again with the obvious matchmaking. He heard her loud and clear. She wasn’t interested. He didn’t want to, but to make Charlie feel more comfortable, he ignored her and tended to Gina.
“I’ll bring your shoes up to the counter if you’d like.” The offer didn’t mean he had a thing for Gina, but him not offering to help Charlie should send the message he wasn’t interested in her either.
Lies.
“Thank you.” Gina handed him her shoes with a shy smile, keeping her eyes downcast, her hair falling in her face as usual. On any other woman, the shyness could be interpreted as playing hard to get. He didn’t think that was the case with Gina. She hadn’t sent off any vibes or cues she was interested in him in any way other than friendship.
A Thousand Sunsets (Band of Sisters) Page 8
