Two Truths & a Lime (The Love Game Book 3)

by Elizabeth Hayley

  I glanced at Brody hesitantly, unsure of whether it was best to celebrate something that hadn’t actually happened yet. I was kind of superstitious that way. Though at least Sean was on board with moving ahead with the Yard as planned. Short of the place burning down in the next week, the deck would be open and ready for customers.

  Which made me notice Brody. He was already plopping himself down on one of the barstools like he was preparing to settle in for the night.

  “What’re we havin’?” I asked, knowing after the drink I’d probably have to pull Brody out of his seat to get him to continue working.

  “It’s a surprise,” Xander said.

  He was already moving around the bar, focused and obviously excited for whatever he was making. A few moments later, he lined up some rocks glasses. He gave the shakers each a flip, one of which he managed to catch behind his back.

  “I’ve been practicing that,” he said when all of us looked shocked.

  He poured the dark-orange liquid into each of the glasses. Once we all had one in our hand, Xander suggested we do a toast.

  “I’m gonna have to object to the toast,” I said. “I don’t wanna jinx anything. Let’s wait until opening night for that.”

  Xander nodded his approval. “Fair enough. Drink up, then.”

  At first I was a little worried. I knew he’d been working on some drinks specific to the Yard, but I had no idea what was in them or how they would taste. He’d been pretty secretive up until now.

  “This one’s called Backyard Brew,” he said. “It’s kind of like a mule meets a Creamsicle. I’d usually top it off with an orange wedge, but we aren’t quite that ready yet.”

  That sounded like an absolutely horrible combination, but there was no way in hell we’d tell him that. Giving the others a cursory glance as they brought their glasses to their mouths, I tried to pick up on any reluctance, but they all seemed excited to try it. That made all but one of us. Until the compliments began coming. In the few seconds it took them to take a sip, they’d decided Backyard Brew was a keeper.

  And when I downed my first taste, I had to agree with them. Carbonated, with the tanginess of a grapefruit and the sweetness of an orange, it went down easily without being overly sugary. I could easily see people ordering rounds of these as they played lawn games.

  “This is awesome,” I told him before I drank the rest of mine down. “You gonna tell us what’s in it?” I had some guesses, but I hadn’t paid close enough attention as he was making it to know for sure, let alone know what the measurements were.

  “I’m only telling the bartenders,” Xander said. “It’s the one drink that doesn’t have the ingredients listed on the menu.”

  “What menu?” Brody asked, but Xander was already reaching under the bar to put them in front of us.

  “You made these?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

  At the top of the sleek menu was the Yard’s logo, and below it, Backyard Brew was listed as our signature drink. All it said beneath the name was A clever mix of Brody and Drew, creators of the Yard.

  I couldn’t argue with the clever part. I’d assumed the Brew half of the name had just been because there was some beer in there. I didn’t realize it had been a combination of our names, and no one else would’ve either if Xander hadn’t made sure to point it out.

  “Thanks, man,” I said, reaching my hand out to grab his. We met over the bar, using the handshake to pull each other in for a quick hug.

  Brody did the same to him a few seconds later. “You even put my name first,” he said. “That’s so sweet.”

  “Well, it made sense because the word brew begins—”

  Brody waved him off, telling him to stop talking before he ruined the moment.

  “These names are fantastic, Xander,” Sophia told him. “Wet Tea-Shirt Contest is hilarious. I’ll have to try all of these next weekend.”

  I looked at her like she was crazy at the same time Taylor said, “Girl, you must be up out of your mind. Did you drink so much the other night, you forgot completely that it happened?”

  “Unfortunately, I don’t think Drew’ll let me forget it, thanks to the video he took.”

  “You two hold less liquor than a paper shelf,” I told them. “I shudder when I watch that video. It’s worse than Scared Straight.”

  “Ahh, so I’m not the only Mason who’s famous for their poor decision-making. Where is this video, and why hasn’t it gone viral?” Brody asked. “Wait, hold that thought. I just saw my buddy pull in,” he added before I had a chance to tell him I was never sharing it because I valued my life.

  Brody set his drink down and jumped off his stool, heading eagerly toward the deck steps.

  “Yo, man,” he called. “We’re up here.” He gave a broad wave, but I couldn’t see who was coming.

  A few seconds later, I heard another male voice call, “Hey, Bro. This place is so sweet.” The source of the voice ascended the stairs and slapped Brody’s hand.

  I tried to place the guy since the way he and Brody were interacting already made me think he was a good friend. But I was sure I’d never seen the guy before. He had a few inches on Brody and was muscular in a way that told me he’d probably played at least one sport in college.

  “Who is that?” I asked Sophia and Aamee, sure that one of them would know.

  “No clue,” Aamee said.

  Sophia just shrugged.

  Brody seemed almost giddy. He practically bounced in place like he had a surprise for us. “Come on,” he said. “I can’t wait to introduce you to everybody.”

  “Oh my God,” Aamee nearly groaned. “That’s gotta be the guy Brody was telling me about. He was at the pool yesterday, and when he came back to our apartment, he was gushing about some guy he’d met while he was out there.”

  “Gushing?” I asked.

  “Yeah. It was embarrassing. Or it would’ve been if Brody had any sort of self-awareness. He was going on about how good-looking this guy was and how he played division one football or something when he was in college.”

  “Hold on,” Carter interjected. “D-one ball? You know where?”

  Aamee stared at him like she wondered why he was speaking. “I don’t know.”

  “I’ll ask him, then.”

  “You do that.”

  Brody approached us, grinning, one hand on his new friend as he went through our names so rapidly, I was sure there was no chance this dude was gonna remember them.

  “Wow, it’s great to meet you all. Brody was telling me all about you yesterday when we met at the pool. I’m so excited he invited me here.”

  “Yeah, you’re one of us now,” Brody told him. “Once you’re in, you can’t get out. We’re like a less intimidating version of the Crips.”

  “We’re nothing like the Crips,” I told him. “And I’m sorry, if you said your name, I didn’t catch it.”

  The guy looked a little embarrassed. “Oh, no, I don’t think I even introduced myself. I was trying to get all your names. I have like this mnemonic device type thing I do when I meet new people, and I was trying to associate attributes about you with letters of your name—”

  “He’s so smart,” Brody said. “Tell them how smart you are.”

  “Maybe you could just tell us your name first,” Sophia said, and I was thankful she’d chimed in so I didn’t have to ask again.

  This whole thing was already weird, even for something Brody would be involved with.

  “Oh, right. Sorry. I’m Ransom.” He ran a hand through his sandy hair, which was a bit out of sorts but somehow still managed to look good.

  The group exchanged a few glances with one another, all of us obviously unsure about what he’d said.

  “Forgive me,” Taylor said. “I’m not sure I heard you right. Could you repeat that?”

  “Ransom,” he said, carefully pronouncing each sound.

  “Did your parents kidnap you?” Aamee asked, seeming genuinely curious.

  Ransom tilted
his head like a golden retriever. “If they kidnapped me, would they even be my parents?”

  Aamee nodded slowly. “Solid question.”

  “Oh shit!” Carter’s eyes lit up as if he’d put together two pieces of a puzzle only he could see. “I knew I’d heard that name before. You’re Ransom Holt, aren’t you? You were an undrafted free agent from Ohio two years ago.”

  “I’m impressed,” Ransom said. “You know your ball.”

  “He’s the one I told you about who plays for Lazarus,” Brody said, motioning to Carter.

  “Yeah, man. I was shocked you didn’t get picked up. And it was your knee that went, right?”

  “Yup,” Ransom said. “Two surgeries later, and it’s still not right. But it’s all good. I’m in a master’s program for sports medicine now, which will allow me to still be involved in the game.”

  “Told you,” Brody said. “Super smart. I knew you guys would like Rans.” Only Brody would be on a nickname basis with someone he’d only met one day earlier. “I was supposed to meet him at the pool again tonight, but then it was getting late and we were still working here, so I figured I’d just invite him here for a drink instead.”

  “Were you going to tell me any of this?” Aamee asked.

  Brody shrugged like it was no big deal. “Doesn’t matter now. We’re all here together. One big, happy family.” He’d already had an arm around Ransom, and he brought the other up and put it on Aamee’s shoulder.

  Aamee rolled her eyes. “You’d better be careful your wife doesn’t find out about your new boyfriend.”

  S O P H I A

  “I brought you a muffin,” Jake said.

  I lifted my gaze from my computer screen long enough to glare at him, hoping it would be enough of a warning. Preferring to ignore his existence entirely, I’d barely spoken to him since he’d pilfered the Yard’s name and presented it as his own stroke of creative genius.

  “I’m not hungry.”

  He approached my space like one might a caged lion who hadn’t eaten a meal lately, and if he wasn’t careful, I might bite his fucking head off. “I’ll just leave this here then in case you want something later?”

  I don’t know why he said it as a question, because he put the paper bag down on the table without waiting for me to respond. Someone needed to teach him a lesson about consent, but that person sure as hell wouldn’t be me because that would involve interacting with him.

  It was bad enough Carole had tasked us both with working on the same project—a gym opening within the city limits—though I’d done a pretty good job of breaking it up so that I could communicate with him as little as possible. I’d decided to organize the majority of the promotional plan, and Jake didn’t fight me when I suggested he be the one to research local competitors.

  With the exception of the clicking of the mouse or keyboard, we’d both worked in relative silence for another hour or so. I’d noticed Jake’s eyes dart across the table to me a few times like he wanted to say something but thankfully decided against it.

  “You wanna take a look at this when you get a minute?” he finally asked.

  Nope.

  “Take a look at what?”

  “I was comparing other gyms that cater mainly to women, and most of them seem to emphasize that they won’t be surrounded by big dudes lifting and grunting and all that shit. I’m not a woman. Obviously. So I’m just wondering why this angle would appeal to the female demographic.”

  He couldn’t possibly be this stupid. “Do you really not know, or are you just asking because you want me to talk to you?” The second part came out a bit more narcissistic than I’d intended, but it was too late to amend it now.

  “Well…it’d be nice if you spoke to me more than the bare minimum, but I honestly don’t get why it’s so important for women to be mainly with other women. I’d think that all those guys would be too self-involved to notice or care about what other people are doing, especially women. If they’re paying attention to someone else, I’d assume it’d be other guys. That’s their competition, right?”

  “I guess,” I said, reluctant to admit he had a point.

  “And women are more judgmental in general,” he continued. He must’ve recognized the disgust on my face because he said, “I mean…not like that.” He sighed heavily, but thankfully, for both our sakes, he decided not to elaborate.

  “What’s your point?”

  He looked surprised that I asked. “I guess I’m wondering if it might be a better idea to focus on the positive about the place instead of comparing it to what could be a negative about other gyms.”

  Shrugging, I focused on my work again. “I think the way I have it should be fine.”

  “I really think we should rethink our angle.”

  I looked up from my work and gave him a cold stare. “There is no our angle. I’m in charge of the promotional proposal, and this is the plan we discussed with the owner. You can add an addendum if you really think it needs it.”

  “Yeah. But Carole put us both on this project. We should probably at least make some of the bigger decisions together. It’s as much of a reflection of you as it is of me.”

  This time I looked up. “Since when do you care about how things affect me?”

  “Sophia, I said I’m sorry. I don’t know what else you want me to do.”

  “How about not blackmailing me into keeping your secret? Or better yet, not stealing an idea and presenting it as yours in the first place? Oh, that’s right. You can’t do that because the damage has already been done.”

  “Lower your voice,” he said, his own voice dropping to a whisper.

  “Don’t tell me what to do,” I said even louder in protest.

  I hadn’t thought about anyone else eavesdropping, and we hadn’t actually revealed anything worth listening to, but I should’ve anticipated that our conversation looked extremely unprofessional. Which explained why Carole was standing at the end of our table when she was usually in her office at this time of the morning.

  “Everything okay here?” she asked, though it seemed to be more of a warning about our behavior than an actual question.

  “Yeah,” Jake said.

  “I’m sorry. We’ll keep our voices down. We were just debating the best angle to promote the gym.”

  “Oh. Well, a little passion for the project is good. Just don’t let it get out of control.” And with that, she left.

  Once she was back in her office, Jake gave a quick look around, causing me to do the same. It seemed like everyone had gone back to work once Carole had left.

  “What damage? I’m seriously asking. Did your boyfriend have to change the name? Was his boss pissed?” He sounded more apologetic than defensive, but that was probably because it came from a selfish place of worry about how all of this might affect him. “I spoke without thinking. People do it all the time. I wasn’t trying to screw anyone over.”

  “But you did.”

  Jake exhaled a long breath as he seemed to be trying to compose his thoughts. “I was just trying to make myself look good. Aren’t we both trying to do that here?”

  Of course we were both trying to do that. It was part of the reason I was so upset about what Jake had done. “Yeah. The difference is that I’m not being a snake about it.”

  “I wasn’t being a snake.” He sounded disgusted at the word, which seemed strange to me, considering that’s exactly what he was. “I didn’t premeditate any of that. I just have poor impulse control.”

  I laughed humorlessly. “Poor impulse control? Poor impulse control is when you eat an entire sleeve of Thin Mints, not when you deceive the supervisors at your internship and screw over a coworker.”

  Jake looked like he might jump across the table to silence me, which was perfectly fine, because whatever happened next would be considered self-defense.

  “Can we not do this here?” There was an urgency to his whisper, and his eyes widened with anxiety.

  It satisfied me in a way I hadn’
t expected, and a small part of me wanted to continue—to have the same “poor impulse control” Jake was guilty of and let the entire situation slip to the whole office.

  But the larger, more responsible—and I liked to think wiser—part of myself said, “Actually, let’s not do this anywhere.”

  I went back to my work and didn’t speak to him for the rest of the day. And shockingly, he made no attempt to speak to me either.

  Chapter Twenty

  S O P H I A

  I sat on my bed, trying to find the will to get dressed.

  Drew was due to be here any minute, and I was still in mesh shorts and a tank top. After my run-in with Jake earlier this week, I was just…tired. I was burned out from having to be the best version of myself rather than the version I actually was. And now I had to go to Drew’s grand opening and pretend to be the adoring girlfriend I desperately wished I could be.

  It wasn’t that I didn’t want to support Drew. Of course I did. Everything I’d done for the past month and a half had been about my supporting Drew. But I’d done such a shitty job of it, it had all blown up in my face, and now I was left…empty. What I wanted and what I felt capable of were no longer on the same page, and I wasn’t sure how to overcome it.

  A small knock sounded against my door, and Drew poked his head in. He was smiling until he saw me. Then his brow furrowed in concern.

  Fuck. I needed to get my shit together, even if I had to get myself moving by sheer force of will.

  “Sorry,” I said. “I’ll be quick.”

  He stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. “What’s wrong?”

  I busied myself in the closet, sifting through clothes so I could avoid looking at him. “Nothing. I just lost track of time.”

  “Soph.” He settled his hands gently on my shoulders and turned me around so I was facing him. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

  I blinked against the rising tears and whispered, “Nothing.” He gripped me a little tighter, and the tears spilled over. “Please, Drew.”

  I wasn’t even sure what I was begging him for. To drop it? To magically understand? To make it better? Maybe a little of all those things.