four years of med school and three years of residency, O’Bryen, so it’s payback.”
“Payback?” Jack slowly took a drink of his beer, his eyes narrowed over the rim of his glass as his gaze flicked from Lacey to Matt, his voice laden with threat. “Count on it.”
But Matt only grinned while Nicki pulled out a notebook and pen, poised to take notes. By the time the food arrived, she and Matt had a workable plan and schedule in place and appetites were high. Both for the food and the prospect of Matt and Nicki’s “dream wedding,” which according to Sarah, “each of them would always remember.”
Jack tore into his burger. Yeah, that was the problem. He didn’t want to remember this wedding or anything to do with. Not when it meant spending time with a woman who left him cold. He popped a couple of fries while Kelly offered him the catsup. Correction. Left his heart cold. But his body? He pounded back a hefty swig of beer while Lacey laughed with Nate and Sarah. The sight of her tan and toned in a skimpy sundress—even if it was worlds more modest than what the other girls wore—pumped heat through his veins like lava, slow and hot.
Man, I need another drink bad. He snatched his glass from the table and downed it in one long glug, caught off-guard when the room began to spin. Clutching the edge of the booth, he jerked his eyes wide open, blinking to clear the glaze from his vision. Heat crawled up the back of his neck when he saw Lacey watching him with a sad look in her eyes, like she felt sorry for him. Yeah? Well, a little late for that, Carmichael.
“So, everybody okay with that?” Nicki’s voice broke into his stupor as she scanned the table with a lift of brows. “Good, then let’s meet at church next Saturday at seven, okay?”
Jack blinked, his hearing apparently as impaired as his vision. Church? “Uh, sorry—I missed that, Nicki. What’d you say?”
“Our next planning meeting will be at Hope Church next Saturday at seven. There’s a wedding Pastor Chase thinks would be simple and inexpensive to copy, so he invited us to check it out, followed by volleyball in the gym after.”
Jack nailed Matt with a narrow gaze. “I don’t do church,” he muttered, upending his empty glass only to scowl when nothing but dregs dribbled down his throat.
“It’s a wedding, Jack.” Matt’s tone was even with a slight edge of challenge.
“Followed by volleyball in a gym,” Nicki emphasized, head dipped as if daring him to defy the man she loved.
“Might do you good, Jack, you never know.” Lacey raised her Coke in a toast that was more of a tease.
He charred her with a look. “And what would you know about ‘doing me good,’ Carmichael?”
“ Allllllll righty now ,” Nicki said with a roll of her eyes, “moving right along …”
Matt shook his head, a low chuckle rumbling from his chest. “Yeah, Lace, it might do our boy some good, but I doubt the same for the church.” He hefted his glass with a wink. “The way Lover Boy’s been burning the candle at both ends lately, the place might just go up in flames if he darkened the door.”
French-tip fingernails latched onto Jack’s arm as Kelly moved closer. “Oooo, I’m a fan of fire myself, so you can darken my door any day, Lover Boy.”
Matt leaned back in the booth, one arm loosely draped over Nicki’s shoulder as he guzzled his DP, gaze sharpening on Jack. “Now don’t go all cray on us, dude—nobody’s forcing you to go to church, but you just may have a good time, Jack. Chase has some pretty cool friends joining us for volleyball, and a couple of them are real lookers.”
“Boy, I’ll say.” Justin offered Jack a thumbs-up before he devoured a handful of fries. “I got my eye on one, I can tell you that, so you should go, Jack.”
“And they’re nice girls,” Nicki stressed, her way of letting Jack know she didn’t approve of the wilder women he’d been dating. “With good heads on their
“Payback?” Jack slowly took a drink of his beer, his eyes narrowed over the rim of his glass as his gaze flicked from Lacey to Matt, his voice laden with threat. “Count on it.”
But Matt only grinned while Nicki pulled out a notebook and pen, poised to take notes. By the time the food arrived, she and Matt had a workable plan and schedule in place and appetites were high. Both for the food and the prospect of Matt and Nicki’s “dream wedding,” which according to Sarah, “each of them would always remember.”
Jack tore into his burger. Yeah, that was the problem. He didn’t want to remember this wedding or anything to do with. Not when it meant spending time with a woman who left him cold. He popped a couple of fries while Kelly offered him the catsup. Correction. Left his heart cold. But his body? He pounded back a hefty swig of beer while Lacey laughed with Nate and Sarah. The sight of her tan and toned in a skimpy sundress—even if it was worlds more modest than what the other girls wore—pumped heat through his veins like lava, slow and hot.
Man, I need another drink bad. He snatched his glass from the table and downed it in one long glug, caught off-guard when the room began to spin. Clutching the edge of the booth, he jerked his eyes wide open, blinking to clear the glaze from his vision. Heat crawled up the back of his neck when he saw Lacey watching him with a sad look in her eyes, like she felt sorry for him. Yeah? Well, a little late for that, Carmichael.
“So, everybody okay with that?” Nicki’s voice broke into his stupor as she scanned the table with a lift of brows. “Good, then let’s meet at church next Saturday at seven, okay?”
Jack blinked, his hearing apparently as impaired as his vision. Church? “Uh, sorry—I missed that, Nicki. What’d you say?”
“Our next planning meeting will be at Hope Church next Saturday at seven. There’s a wedding Pastor Chase thinks would be simple and inexpensive to copy, so he invited us to check it out, followed by volleyball in the gym after.”
Jack nailed Matt with a narrow gaze. “I don’t do church,” he muttered, upending his empty glass only to scowl when nothing but dregs dribbled down his throat.
“It’s a wedding, Jack.” Matt’s tone was even with a slight edge of challenge.
“Followed by volleyball in a gym,” Nicki emphasized, head dipped as if daring him to defy the man she loved.
“Might do you good, Jack, you never know.” Lacey raised her Coke in a toast that was more of a tease.
He charred her with a look. “And what would you know about ‘doing me good,’ Carmichael?”
“ Allllllll righty now ,” Nicki said with a roll of her eyes, “moving right along …”
Matt shook his head, a low chuckle rumbling from his chest. “Yeah, Lace, it might do our boy some good, but I doubt the same for the church.” He hefted his glass with a wink. “The way Lover Boy’s been burning the candle at both ends lately, the place might just go up in flames if he darkened the door.”
French-tip fingernails latched onto Jack’s arm as Kelly moved closer. “Oooo, I’m a fan of fire myself, so you can darken my door any day, Lover Boy.”
Matt leaned back in the booth, one arm loosely draped over Nicki’s shoulder as he guzzled his DP, gaze sharpening on Jack. “Now don’t go all cray on us, dude—nobody’s forcing you to go to church, but you just may have a good time, Jack. Chase has some pretty cool friends joining us for volleyball, and a couple of them are real lookers.”
“Boy, I’ll say.” Justin offered Jack a thumbs-up before he devoured a handful of fries. “I got my eye on one, I can tell you that, so you should go, Jack.”
“And they’re nice girls,” Nicki stressed, her way of letting Jack know she didn’t approve of the wilder women he’d been dating. “With good heads on their
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