Page 8 of The No Try Zone
I freeze, and something funny twists in my chest. An instinct. Buried deep, below anyplace I’ve ever reached. I meet her steady gaze and brandish the coin again. “Yeah?”
Pure determination stares back at me. “Flip,” she commands.
Chapter2
Sam
24 Hours Earlier
TIME SLOWS, HIS lips twitching into a grin as our eyes drop to his hand. The quarter is in position, heads facing up as it rests on his thumb.
I hold my breath.
He flips the coin, the sound unheard in the noise of the bar around us.
Heads over tails over heads over tails, again and again. A blur of motion. A simple toss. An easy wager.
Something I absolutely should not have agreed to.
And yet, there’s a part of me thatwantsthis. A part that stays locked up tight, so deep in the ocean of my heart that I never let it out. There’s something about the man beside me, his quiet assurance in himself. I’ve never had this feeling of safety and calm that’s enveloping me, just sitting next to him. It makes no sense. He’s a random Yank in a polo and khakis, and I’ll never see him again.
Which is why I shouldn’t have agreed to this. It’s reckless and stupid. It’s the exact opposite of how I live my life. Mum would have plenty to say about this situation if she were here, no doubt. Even my brother, carefree and wild as he is, wouldn’t let his night be decided by the flip of a coin.
But I have to believe that I’m here watching this coin flip for a reason. I chose Vegas on a whim, I picked this bar on instinct, and of all the people I could have sat next to, I ended up beside this man. So maybe this is it. I don’t believe in any of that ridiculous “fate” stuff, but perhaps I can let go for one night. Just one.
How bad can it be?
I meet his eyes for a split second. They’re a dark blue, made brighter by a starburst of gold around the pupil. I bet they’re arresting in the sunlight.
The coin lands in his palm. In one swift motion, he slaps it onto the top of his other hand, then reveals it.
I exhale and meet those endless eyes.
“Heads.”
Chapter3
Colin
WE STARE AT each other, saying the word together, as though we each need to speak it to believe it.
Is she as stunned as I am by this?
Better:whyis it such a big deal? It’s one drink.
As if on cue, two drinks appear and pull us out of our collective stupor, a tequila for me and a wine for her. “Cheers!” the bartender says, lifting his hands with a flourish before turning to another set of customers.
“We don’t have to do this,” I blurt.
“I want to,” she answers, her words tumbling out just as mine do. Her hand trembles as she reaches for the fresh glass of wine, and my heart squeezes.
“Seriously,” I say, extending my hand to stop her. A tingle runs up my skin as my fingers touch her arm, and I jerk away in surprise.
“You shocked me!” She laughs and rubs her forearm, flashing that wide grin at me again, the tiny gap between her teeth far more adorable than it should be.
And that’s what does it. There’s no denying this woman. So I grab my glass and hold it up, locking my gaze with hers and walking to the metaphorical cliff. The sea stretches out before me, beckoning. “Here’s to rules.”
A corner of Sam’s mouth tips up, the look as devastatingly mischievous as she’d warned. “And to breaking them.”
