first time since Sean had arrived in Ribbon Ridge.
Maggie winced. “Bad luck, Sean. I picked that my first time out, too. Not that it would’ve mattered—I suck no matter what cue I use.”
On the contrary, Sean thought it was good luck, especially if it madeTori look happy, like the Tori he remembered. “I’m afraid to ask why it’s called The Humiliator.”
“For precisely why you think,” Tori said. “It humiliates anyone who uses it, regardless of their skill level.”
Sean went to put it back. “I’ll just get another one.”
“No!” Derek, Sara, Kyle, and Tori said in unison and then laughed. God, Tori laughing was about as sexy and stirring as anythinghe’d ever seen.
Get it together, Sean. There’s no future with her, even if she comes out of her self-imposed hibernation tonight.
“Once you’ve made your selection, you can’t trade it,” Sara said in utter seriousness.
“But I didn’t know that. Maybe I would’ve taken greater care.”
Kyle shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. Archer rules.”
Sean stared at all of them. “You people are vicious.”
“Utterly,”Derek said. “It took me years to figure out their secret shit, and even then things are always fluid. Rules are rules until an Archer decides to change them.”
“How impossible.” Sean shook his head but smiled. “I suppose there’s a method to determining who shoots first?”
“It’s usually age, which is often Sara,” Kyle explained. “How old are you, Sean?”
“Older than us,” Tori said. “By a few months.”
“I think it’s Maggie,” Kyle said. “Sorry, babe.”
She shrugged. “Eh, at least it gets my turn out of the way.”
Sara racked the balls. “Everyone know the rules?”
“Not really, but it doesn’t matter,” Maggie said, chalking the end of her cue. “I don’t even know what I’m doing to this stick, but since you all do it, I guess I should, too.”
“You people are cruel as well as vicious,” Sean said, shakinghis head at the Archers before he spoke to Maggie. “It’s to increase the friction so as to avoid a miscue—you don’t want the ball to slip in a way you haven’t directed.”
Maggie went and hugged Sean. “Thank you. It’s so nice to have an ally.”
Tori cleared her throat. “He’s on the other team, Maggie.”
Maggie drew back, smiling. “Oh right.” She winked at Sean, then went to break.
As perhaps expected,she fouled right out of the gate, putting the girls in the negative. Sara groaned, but Chloe assured her that she’d make it up on her turn.
Next up was Kyle, shooting for the guys. After four quick, easy drops, Sean suspected this was going to take a while. He went to where Tori was standing near the bar. He took a drink of his beer and set the glass down next to his scotch. “Are you all thisgood?”
“Pretty much. George—he’s the bartender at The Arch and Vine—used to play in a league. He made sure none of us embarrassed him.”
“Brilliant.”
“He’s pretty good at darts, too, but I know you Brits tend to want to claim that as your sport or something.”
Sean chuckled. “My dad would undoubtedly kick his ass at darts, but I guess we’ll never find out.”
Damn, he hadn’t meant to cast a darkcloud, not when the evening seemed to be going so well. He’d anticipated suffering through tonight, not enjoying himself.
“Foul!” Tori cried, laughing. “Kyle, that was a terrible shot!”
“Shut up.” He went over to his drink on a nearby table. Maggie playfully made a show of consoling him, and their good-natured, clearly romantically based teasing nurtured an ache in Sean’s gut.
“Sara, you’reup,” Dylan said. “Everyone get comfy. This is going to take a while.”
Kyle had required a rerack, but Sara made short work of what he’d left and quickly moved onto breaking another rack.
“Damn, she is good.” Sean sipped his beer.
“I’m not quite that good,” Tori said.
Sean turned toward her. “Does that
Maggie winced. “Bad luck, Sean. I picked that my first time out, too. Not that it would’ve mattered—I suck no matter what cue I use.”
On the contrary, Sean thought it was good luck, especially if it madeTori look happy, like the Tori he remembered. “I’m afraid to ask why it’s called The Humiliator.”
“For precisely why you think,” Tori said. “It humiliates anyone who uses it, regardless of their skill level.”
Sean went to put it back. “I’ll just get another one.”
“No!” Derek, Sara, Kyle, and Tori said in unison and then laughed. God, Tori laughing was about as sexy and stirring as anythinghe’d ever seen.
Get it together, Sean. There’s no future with her, even if she comes out of her self-imposed hibernation tonight.
“Once you’ve made your selection, you can’t trade it,” Sara said in utter seriousness.
“But I didn’t know that. Maybe I would’ve taken greater care.”
Kyle shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. Archer rules.”
Sean stared at all of them. “You people are vicious.”
“Utterly,”Derek said. “It took me years to figure out their secret shit, and even then things are always fluid. Rules are rules until an Archer decides to change them.”
“How impossible.” Sean shook his head but smiled. “I suppose there’s a method to determining who shoots first?”
“It’s usually age, which is often Sara,” Kyle explained. “How old are you, Sean?”
“Older than us,” Tori said. “By a few months.”
“I think it’s Maggie,” Kyle said. “Sorry, babe.”
She shrugged. “Eh, at least it gets my turn out of the way.”
Sara racked the balls. “Everyone know the rules?”
“Not really, but it doesn’t matter,” Maggie said, chalking the end of her cue. “I don’t even know what I’m doing to this stick, but since you all do it, I guess I should, too.”
“You people are cruel as well as vicious,” Sean said, shakinghis head at the Archers before he spoke to Maggie. “It’s to increase the friction so as to avoid a miscue—you don’t want the ball to slip in a way you haven’t directed.”
Maggie went and hugged Sean. “Thank you. It’s so nice to have an ally.”
Tori cleared her throat. “He’s on the other team, Maggie.”
Maggie drew back, smiling. “Oh right.” She winked at Sean, then went to break.
As perhaps expected,she fouled right out of the gate, putting the girls in the negative. Sara groaned, but Chloe assured her that she’d make it up on her turn.
Next up was Kyle, shooting for the guys. After four quick, easy drops, Sean suspected this was going to take a while. He went to where Tori was standing near the bar. He took a drink of his beer and set the glass down next to his scotch. “Are you all thisgood?”
“Pretty much. George—he’s the bartender at The Arch and Vine—used to play in a league. He made sure none of us embarrassed him.”
“Brilliant.”
“He’s pretty good at darts, too, but I know you Brits tend to want to claim that as your sport or something.”
Sean chuckled. “My dad would undoubtedly kick his ass at darts, but I guess we’ll never find out.”
Damn, he hadn’t meant to cast a darkcloud, not when the evening seemed to be going so well. He’d anticipated suffering through tonight, not enjoying himself.
“Foul!” Tori cried, laughing. “Kyle, that was a terrible shot!”
“Shut up.” He went over to his drink on a nearby table. Maggie playfully made a show of consoling him, and their good-natured, clearly romantically based teasing nurtured an ache in Sean’s gut.
“Sara, you’reup,” Dylan said. “Everyone get comfy. This is going to take a while.”
Kyle had required a rerack, but Sara made short work of what he’d left and quickly moved onto breaking another rack.
“Damn, she is good.” Sean sipped his beer.
“I’m not quite that good,” Tori said.
Sean turned toward her. “Does that
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