* * *

We left the arena with my hand swallowed up by his larger one. I lost but it wasn’t surprising. Buddy, Sheldon, and Keenan were waiting nearby, their gear already shed.

“Where is Dash and Willow?” They all shrugged and I immediately looked up at the Keiran. When he quickly averted his gaze, I narrowed my eyes.

“Buddy could you please go see where you sister is?” Keiran’s hand squeezed mine in warning but I ignored him.

“Why?” he asked and stayed seated.

“Remember that time in the fifth grade…”

“I’m going.” He shot up from his seat and disappeared back inside the arena.

“What happened in the fifth grade?” Keenan asked.

“A lady never tells.” Sheldon answered for me.

He looked at her with his eyebrows raised. “You’re a lady?” She slapped his arm and he stole a deep kiss from her. In no time she was in his lap and they were making out.

Keiran and I were shedding our gear when Buddy came out of the arena with a disturbed look on his face. “Buddy?” I asked concerned.

“There are just some things a brother should never see.” He shook his head and walked past us and into the main lobby.

“Come on. I want to feed you,” Keiran said and took my hand.

“But we have to wait for Dash and Willow.” He ignored me and continued pulling me into the dining area. Buddy was already seated at a large booth so we slid in with him.

“Buddy, what did you see?” Instead of answering me he looked at Keiran and then back at me and shook his head.

“I’d rather not relive that thank you very much.”

“Hey, did you order already?” Dash asked as he sat down and pulled Willow in after him. I stared at Willow, willing her to look at me but she avoided my gaze and looked down at her hands so I kicked her under the table.

“Oww!” She finally looked at me and I gave her a pointed look, which she ignored.

“Dude, what the fuck?” Buddy asked Dash.

He grinned at him. “You’ll thank me later, youngin.”

“But that’s my sister! Besides…I’ve been dancing that dance since I was thirteen.”

“Ewww, Buddy!”

He cut his eye at her. “Do you really want to go there after what I just saw?” Her cheeks colored and she looked back down.

“Keiran let me out. I have to pee,” I huffed when he didn’t budge. When he finally moved I raced to the bathroom. I didn’t realize I’d been holding it but when the excitement of the game died I felt the need to pee. I used the bathroom and looked in the mirror. For some reason, I found myself freeing my hair from the band and letting it fall around my shoulders and down my back.

For fuck sake! When did I start caring about how my hair looked? I left the bathroom, annoyed with myself. Next I would be wearing five-inch pumps to school. I once again thought about Anya and Trevor’s disappearance. I have to get Keiran to talk.

“You should be more careful of the company you keep.”

“Mr. Martin?” He was standing near the back exit. What was he doing here?

“Yes, dear.”

“Sorry. I didn’t think this would be your type of place.”

“There is a lot you don’t know about me, young lady.”

Whoa. Because that didn’t sound creepy… “Well, it was nice seeing you,” I replied feeling awkward and creeped out.

He quickly approached me with his hand reached out as if he would grab me. “Before you go –

“Come here, Lake.” Dash appeared behind me and was standing near the men’s bathroom. The look he gave Mr. Martin was chilling. I walked over to him and he grabbed my hand. I was secretly grateful for his sudden appearance. I didn’t like the vibes I was getting from him.

“I was only talking to her, young man.”

“Yeah? Well you’re done talking.”

The hard look that appeared on Mr. Martin’s face scared me. I’d never seen him be anything other than charming and polite. But as soon as the look appeared it was gone again. He gave us a polite smile and excused himself, leaving out the back door.

“Who was that guy?” Dash asked while frowning at the door Mr. Martin disappeared through.

“Mr. Martin. He comes by my job – excuse me – my old job, a lot. Why?”

“I’ve never seen him before.”

I shrugged his suspicion off. “Six Forks isn’t all that small.”

“Still, you should stay away from him.”

“He’s harmless, Dash. Charlie thinks he has a crush on me. He’s actually very polite and a gentleman,” I argued.

“Would you rather hear this from me or Keiran?” He raised an eyebrow and looked down at me.

“Good point,” I grumbled then thought better of it. “Despite what you or anyone else thinks. Keiran isn’t my father. I had a father and he left.”

“Keiran wants to control you but he also wants to keep you safe. I can understand that need.”

“You know…you may have a shot again if you stop trying to manipulate her.”

“Oh yeah? How?” He raised an eyebrow and looked at me skeptically.

“Be the guy she fell in love with.”

* * *

A couple of hours later, Keiran was parking his car in my driveway and I finally admitted I had a fun night. My aunt would be pissed if she found out I stayed out this late on a Monday night. I leaned over to kiss him goodnight and couldn’t deny how natural it felt but when he leaned away from me and shut off his engine, the feeling faded away fast.