Chapter 16

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Dane slipped his hand around his wife's as they walked along the sidewalk toward Blueberry Bay's bowling alley. It was a clear winter night, and the lights of Main Street glowed warmly around them. Overhead, the stars shone with a diamond-like light, and the wind that blew against their faces was cold but smelled fragrantly of the ocean.

"Are you sure you're up for this?" he asked Alissa as they stepped up to the bowling alley doors. She'd insisted on walking with him from the parking lot instead of being dropped off at the front door, but he was starting to feel more nervous about taking extra-good care of her as the baby's arrival got closer. They lingered together on the doorstep before going inside the building. "You can always just say no to this, and we can go home if you want."

"And disappoint Johanna and Caitlin? We've all been excited about this for days! Besides, I love bowling."

"Well, of course, but that's—I'm just saying, in case you don't feel up for bowling right now."

"Why? Because I already have a bowling ball I'm carrying around?" she joked, gesturing to her belly.

He chuckled. "I just want to make sure you're taking it easy. I don't want you overexerting yourself."

"I am," she assured him. "Don't worry. I'm still feeling so much better than I was at first. I have my energy back—I feel great. Besides, I know how to take care of myself."

He nodded, smiling at her. "I'm happy to hear that, sweetheart."

"You're happy to hear that I know how to take care of myself?"

He laughed. "I'm happy to hear that you're feeling good now."

"Mm-hm." She tilted her head up for a kiss, and he closed the distance between them, his lips finding hers. Grinning at each other, they stepped inside the bowling alley.

Inside, the lights were dim, giving the place a cozy, relaxed atmosphere. Dane could hear the sound of people laughing and chatting, and the soft thunder of bowling balls making contact with the pins.

"We're a little early," Alissa said, cleaning the fog off her glasses before glancing at her watch. "I wonder if Caitlin and Johanna are—" She stopped talking and grinned when she saw her twin and her mother-in-law standing together by the shoe rental counter. "There they are! Oh, I love Johanna's sweater. That's such a lovely pink color."

He smiled at her. The way Alissa and Johanna had been getting along so well together warmed his heart. "Let's go over there and get some bowling shoes ourselves."

They approached Johanna and Caitlin, calling to them and waving. Caitlin hurried forward when she saw her twin and gave her a big hug. Johanna hugged Dane and then Alissa, and the four of them turned back to the shoe counter, chatting excitedly together.

Once they had their shoes, they walked along the lanes until they found a vacant section. They set their coats and bags down on the comfortable chairs that were placed behind the bowling lane and sat down to put on their bowling shoes.

As Dane was standing up, getting ready to go pick out a bowling ball, he heard a voice call out.

"Hey, Dane!"

He turned and saw Marsha, Willis, and Everett just settling down in the lane next to theirs. Dane's face lit up into a grin when he saw their friends—and then all at once he remembered the awkwardness there had been between Everett and Johanna. It made him wonder how the rest of their evening was about to go.

"Hey," he said, striding forward, still smiling. He shook Willis's hand, and then Everett's. "It's pretty fun that we ran into you all here."

"Well, this is lovely!" Marsha said, something flashing through her eyes. She waved eagerly at the rest of Dane's group. Dane suspected that the glint in her eyes meant that she was still hoping to matchmake Johanna and Everett. Dane was happy to see their other friends there, but he hoped that things didn't become awkward again.

Everett smiled at Dane, feeling glad that their group had run into his. He liked the young owner of The Outlet very much and was glad to be able to spend more time with him and his wife. He glanced over at Dane's group again, noting that the other woman he'd seen was Caitlin, Alissa's sister. And there was another woman—

His heart skipped a beat when he saw that it was Johanna. His first reaction was one of excitement to see her, and then he realized with a somersault in his stomach that he and Johanna were going to have to hide the fact that they were interested in each other from their friends.

If we thought it was hard keeping our relationship a secret before, he thought, tonight's going to show us a whole new level of tricky.

Johanna finished putting on her bowling shoes and stood up. She looked over at Marsha and Willis, smiling, and then she noticed Everett. For a moment, the two of them locked eyes, and he caught a spark of affection glimmering in hers.

It was as if they were silently agreeing to keep up pretenses and pretend they weren't interested in each other. They'd been spending a great deal of time together, being very careful to not let anyone know about it yet. The sneaking around had actually been pretty fun, but he wondered nervously if they'd be able to keep it up that night. Would they really be able to conceal the fact that they liked each other very much and got along very well? Or would their friends notice and realize that they were dating?

"Hi, Everett, how are you?" Alissa asked, approaching him and shaking his hand. She seemed a little wide-eyed, and he guessed that everyone there was wondering how things were going to be between him and Johanna. He thought with an internal chuckle that they were all expecting things to be strained and awkward between them.

Well, then that's how he would pretend to feel. Strained and awkward—he would give a great performance of not being interested in Johanna, and they could continue to keep their relationship a secret.

"I'm fine, Alissa, how are you?" he said, smiling at her in a friendly way.

"Great," she said. "I'm so glad we all ran into you."

He nodded and turned toward Johanna. He cleared his throat and grunted, "Hello."

"Hello," she said coolly, and she did it so convincingly that he had to repress a chuckle. Then she turned to Marsha and Willis, smiling warmly, and hurried to hug her friend.

"Well," Dane said, clearing his throat. "Since our lanes are side by side, what do you all say to playing together?"

Everett met Johanna's gaze for a brief moment. He could sense that she was excited by the way she was holding her shoulders, but her expression didn't betray any kind of emotion. Personally, he felt thrilled by the idea of getting to bowl with her, and he wondered if he was doing a good job of playing it cool or if everyone in the room could sense his enthusiasm.

"Sure," Alissa said. "I'd love that."

Marsha rested her hands on her hips. "Me too."

Everyone else agreed as well. Johanna and Everett just nodded, and then as everyone else started off to choose bowling balls, they shared a glance. He winked at her, and he saw her repress a smile.

There was a fun variety of bowling balls to choose from. Everett chose a standard black ball for himself, but the rest of the group chose brightly colored balls. Johanna picked a deep purple bowling ball, and he wanted to comment and say that the color matched her earrings, but he knew he couldn't. He'd have to say something to her later.

They returned to their spot and began to bowl. Dane insisted that Johanna be the one to go first.

"She'll teach us all how it's done," Dane said, nudging his mother.

"Oh, psh," she said, smiling. She picked up her bowling ball and headed toward the lane. There was a competitive glint in her eyes, and Everett covered his mouth with his hand, pretending to yawn, so no one would see him grin.