Chapter 1116 Play Matchmaker
Ryan chuckled. "Lykke, you’re a high jumper, right?"
Lykke nodded. "Yeah."
"When I was a kid, I almost went down the athlete path too."
Lykke shot him a skeptical look. "For real?"
Ryan grinned. "No joke. When Samantha gets here, you can ask her."
Lykke raised an eyebrow. "So why didn’t you become an athlete? Family not cool with it?"
Being an athlete was no joke. Judging by Ryan’s fancy clothes, he looked like he had money. Probably pampered since birth; no way he could handle the grind of training.
"Nah, my family’s pretty chill. They’re cool with whatever I wanna do." Ryan grabbed a beer, popped it open, and took a swig. "Honestly, I had a rough start. When I was like seven or eight, a dog bit my hand and messed up my tendons. My hand was almost toast. Samantha’s mom, with her mad medical skills, fixed me up." Ryan flexed his wrist, diving into the story.
Lykke’s eyes widened in surprise.
"Later, in middle school, the gym teacher noticed I could jump like crazy and thought I had potential. He asked if I wanted to go for it. I was a teen, totally idolizing those athletes who made the country proud. So, I was all in.
After the gym teacher talked to my folks, they sent me to the track and field team for training to see if I had what it took." Ryan paused, taking another swig of beer.
Lykke leaned in, curious. "So, what happened? Something go down?"
"Yeah, something major," Ryan continued. "One time, I was out with some friends and saw a drunk guy beating up a woman on the street. My friends tried to step in but got smacked around. Seeing that, another buddy and I jumped in. The guy was strong and shoved me away. Just then, a car came by and hit me."
Ryan spoke casually, but Lykke’s heart skipped a beat.
Ryan went on, "I had multiple fractures. I survived, but my athlete dreams were over. Had to go back to school and be a regular kid."
Lykke sighed, looking at Ryan. "Man, you’ve had it rough."
"Yeah." Ryan raised his beer to her.
Lykke picked up her drink and clinked glasses with him.
Ryan said, "But since then, it’s been smooth sailing, no more accidents."
Lykke took a sip of her drink. "Keep bragging, and karma might come for you."
Ryan laughed. Lykke added, "There’s so much we don’t know about the world. Better to believe than not."
Ryan chuckled, not really buying it but still agreeing, "You’re right."
Just then, the three girls who had gone to the restroom came back.
Seeing Ryan and Lykke chatting, Elowen grabbed Samantha. "Hey, Lykke and Ryan are hitting it off."
Thalassa chimed in, "Yeah. Samantha, does Ryan have a girlfriend?"
"Nope." Samantha blinked, glancing between Ryan and Lykke.
"Think they’ve got a shot?"
"I think we should totally set them up."
"Samantha, what's Ryan like?"
"Ryan's just too good to be true!"
Over at the grill, Alfred was flipping burgers while keeping an eye on Ryan and Lykke. Seeing them all chummy, he couldn't help but grin.
The food was almost done. The guys brought over the grilled goodies, and everyone gathered around to dig in.
Samantha piped up, "Ryan, what were you and Lykke chatting about? You two looked like you were having a blast."
Ryan smirked, "Just talking about my rough childhood."
"You mean the time that dog went all Cujo on your hand?"
"Yep." Ryan looked at Samantha, his eyes softening. "I still remember the first time I saw you, all cute and doll-like. I thought, 'This is my future wife.'"
Lykke nearly choked on her drink, coughing like crazy.
Samantha quickly patted her back.
Lykke waved her hand, shooting Ryan a look. "Wait, you had a thing for Samantha?"
"Yeah." Ryan didn’t even flinch. "Back then, I didn’t know she was my cousin. I just thought she was adorable. Later, when I was in the hospital after the dog bite, Samantha gave me a drawing. I still have it. Finding out we were related was a total heartbreaker."
Samantha playfully slapped him. "There you go again. Aren't you worried your future wife will get jealous?"
When Samantha mentioned "future wife," she shot a glance at Lykke. Ryan raised an eyebrow and instinctively looked at Lykke. Everyone else followed suit.
Lykke's heart raced. "Why are you all staring at me?"
Elowen teased, "Exactly what you think."
"What do I think?"
"Do I have to spell it out?"
Lykke blushed. Ryan laughed. "Don't tease her. If you make her mad, I'll get mad at you."
Elowen grinned, "You're already defending her. Guess your heart's not broken anymore?"
Ryan glanced at Samantha. "Numbness takes away the pain. I've decided to move on and start fresh."
Everyone burst into laughter.
Ryan was a chatterbox, and with Elowen and the others being so lively, the place was buzzing with laughter and joy.
Lykke looked at Ryan's face and smiled. She wasn’t sure if he was just in the moment, but he seemed genuinely interested in her. She didn’t know what kind of guy he really was, but right now, he seemed pretty cool.
After the barbecue, they headed to the campsite. There was a clearing on the mountaintop perfect for camping. Lots of couples had already set up their tents. The group started setting up theirs too.
Elowen asked Thaddeus, "I heard there's gonna be a meteor shower tonight, in about an hour. What should we do while we wait?"
Thaddeus replied, "Play cards."
"No way, you guys are obsessed with cards. What about us girls?"
"Chat."
Elowen rolled her eyes at Thaddeus. "Say that again?"
Thaddeus laughed and pulled her into his arms for a kiss.
"Stop it." Elowen playfully dodged but couldn’t escape. The two kissed.
Couples always had their moments. Samantha felt a bit awkward and quickly looked away, only to meet Alfred's blue eyes. His gaze was full of warmth and tenderness.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
