Page 46 of Locke

She shakes her head.“Nope.Only interested in Crosby—”

“To marry?”Birdie exclaims with excitement, sitting up so fast her wine sloshes.

Juno blushes.“Far too soon to tell, but if I do feel that way, you’ll be the first to know and then you can push your brother to give me a ring.”

“Deal,” Birdie says, and the women tap their glasses.

“You’ll play the game, won’t you, Birdie?”Molly asks with a very tipsy and beseeching flutter of her eyelashes.

“Sure,” Birdie says.“I mean… I’m just a player’s sister.I have impunity on these things.”She looks up in contemplation.“Let’s see… even though I’m firmly against marriage, if I were so inclined, I’d marry Patrick Rowe because he’s rich and can support my shopping habit.”

“Shallow,” Juno says under her breath, but intentionally loud enough we all hear it.

We laugh and Birdie doesn’t look at all shamed.A coy smile breaks out.“I’m going back to my earlier observation that Locke is the hottest guy on the team, so he’s the one I’d fuck.”

My hand tightens on my glass and the smile that was there threatens to slide, but I force it to stay in place.

“And…” She looks up again.“I’d have to Kill Arch and happily do that over and over again.”

“Oh, stop,” Juno says with a playful push.“You love him.”

“Like a gnat that won’t leave me alone,” she replies, although I hear the affection in it.

“So you’re friends with him?”Molly asks.

“No, Crosby and Arch are best friends and so he’s like an annoying little brother to me,” Birdie clarifies.“And if it wasn’t for that almost brother-like connection, he’d probably be my pick for the hottest guy on the team.”

Now that gets my attention.“Really?”I drawl, totally intrigued.

“Oh yeah,” Birdie says, nodding effusively and slopping more wine.“He pushes all my buttons, but again… annoying little brother thing, so that makes him unfuckable.”

“Oka-a-a-y,” Juno drawls low.“That’s enough wine for you.”

“What?”Birdie asks, completely unabashed.“It’s the truth and you know I’d even say that to his face.”

Juno laughs, shaking her head.“Oh, yeah… I know you would.”

Interesting.I’m pretty good at reading people and I have determined that Birdie doesn’t have any interest in Locke at all.She thinks he’s hot, but it’s Arch Hewitt who has her eye.I don’t buy that pesky little brother bullshit at all.

“You’d never go for it with him?”I ask.

Birdie’s eyes meet mine, and I see the denial in them.“No, I wouldn’t, and it doesn’t have a thing to do with him being almost like a brother to me, if I’m being honest.It’s that he’s too nice.”She takes a sip of wine.“He’s the type who falls in love for real when he falls.He’ll be someone’s whole world one day.”A small smile graces her lips.“And he deserves that.”

Molly, because she’s Molly, smoothly redirects.“What’s the plan for the rest of the season?Are you here through the whole thing, Birdie?”

“Through January at least,” Birdie says.“Possibly longer depending on what comes up.There’s a platform project in the North Sea that might have my name on it in the spring.”

“North Sea,” Juno says.“That’s not the Gulf.”

“No,” Birdie agrees.“It’s colder.Rougher conditions.Better money.I’ll miss you girls, though.”

“I’m really glad we did this,” Juno says, lifting her glass in a toast.

“Same,” Birdie says, and we all raise our glasses before taking a sip.

Molly reaches over and squeezes my hand once.

I look out at the dark trees lining the edge of the yard and think about sitting here with women I truly adore, a thousand miles from my old life.