"Mandatory means mandatory."
"True." He surveys the party. "Reaper's been asking about you. Where's your girl?"
"She's not—" I stop myself. "Nora's home with Harper."
"Right.The nanny." Danny gives me a look that says he doesn't believe that's all she is for a second. "You should've brought her. Michelle's been asking about her."
"It's a team party. Nora's not on the team."
"Neither is Michelle, technically. Or any of the other girlfriends here." He takes a drink. "But whatever, man. Your loss."
He wanders off to find his girlfriend, and I'm left standing alone in Reaper's living room feeling exactly as isolated as I did three months ago.
Some things never change.
I'm nursing my beer and contemplating how early I can leave without it being obvious when a woman approaches. She’s blonde, pretty, and wearing a dress that's definitely too nice for a house party. She's smiling at me in an unmistakably interested way.
"Tyler West, right?" She extends her hand. "I'm Amber, a friend of Reaper's girlfriend."
"Hey." I shake her hand briefly, already looking for an escape route.
"I've been watching you play. You're really good." She steps closer, her hand landing on my forearm. "That goal last night was incredible."
"Thanks."
"You here alone?" Her fingers are tracing small circles on my arm, and I realize with sudden clarity that she's flirting with me. Openly, obviously flirting.
And I feel absolutely nothing.
She's objectively attractive. The kind of woman I would've taken home without a second thought a year ago, back when I was miserable in Pinewood and drowning my problems in bad decisions, but all I can think about is auburn hair and hazel eyes and the way Nora smiles when Harper does something cute.
"I should—" I gesture vaguely toward the kitchen. "I need another drink."
"I'll come with you." She's still touching my arm, still smiling, and I gently extract myself.
"I'm good. Thanks, though."
I escape to the backyard, where it's quieter and there are fewer people, and pull out my phone. There's a text from Nora timestamped twenty minutes ago.
Nora: Harper went down easy. Reading on the couch. Have fun at the party.
Have fun.Like that's even possible when all I want is to be exactly where she is.
I type out three different responses and delete them all.What am I supposed to say? That I'd rather be home with her and Harper than at this party?That watching her smile is better than any social gathering? Or that I'm comparing every woman here to her?
I shove my phone back in my pocket and head inside.
The party continues around me. Guys getting progressively drunker, music getting louder, Reaper's hostility toward me palpable even from across the room, but some of the other guys are warming up. Danny keeps including me in conversations, Rodriguez asks about Harper, and even a few of the veterans nod at me in passing.
Progress, I guess.
Around eight, Amber finds me again. This time, she's bolder, standing too close, her hand on my chest.
"You're quiet," she says. "Not a big party person?"
"Not really."
"Me neither." She leans in closer. "We could leave. Go somewhere quieter."