10

The game was on .

I would not be taking prisoners at this time.

I heard shuffling to my right and ducked in the nick of time. The wooden walls around me gave some cover, but not a lot, and for a man of my size, folding in to fit behind something was a challenge. Also, playing paintball with a former SWAT (Brandon), a former SEAL (Quinn), and a former ranger (Garrett) was challenging enough. Throw in Eli, who kept hiding extra ammo in her fake arm? Eli was going to wipe out all of us.

Aaron and Skylar were camping out in the treehouse above, sniping, which was entirely unfair and would be their downfall eventually. Camping out in paintball was never a good idea. Sho had tried the first round we played, and I noticed this time he kept his feet on the ground and his back to his boyfriend’s.

Honestly, I was surprised we got Sho to play. He was such a computer geek, it was rare for him to do something physically active. He was certainly having a blast. He had dust smeared all over him and one bright red splotch from the first round, which he wore like a badge of honor.

Peeking around the corner, I gauged my next move. We’d split into two teams, changing up from the first round, which meant I had Sho, Garrett, and Booker on my side. Teams were uneven with nine people playing, but that was fine, I didn’t mind. I spotted Sho up ahead; he was also hunkered down behind a wall and peering out. It was strange to see him in something not a hoodie, and his skin looked very pale under the T-shirt. He really had to get out in the sun more.

Okay, this might be a trap, but it looked like people were changing positions. I’d be wise to do the same.

I darted out, intent on getting across the open lane before someone took a shot at me. I nearly missed the timing by a hairsbreadth, for the next thing I knew, I felt a paintball whiz past my ear. Damn, that’d been close.

I made it to the next bunker and looked up, only to see my future niece waving cheerfully, her red hair escaping out from underneath her baseball cap. Oh, I’d get Skylar for that later. For some reason, she saw it as a challenge to get me, when really our target should be the birthday boy.

A gun went off in a quick stutter, followed by a victorious laugh and a groan of dismay.

“I’m out!” Booker called as he abruptly stood, walking toward the edge of the field. He was sans glasses, his taupe skin looking darker than usual with all his recent time out in the sun. “Dammit, Wife. Really?”

Eli cackled some more. She wasn’t even ashamed of herself.

I heard Brandon snickering too and that was about to be his downfall. I’d lost track of him, but now I knew which area he was in. Sounded like he was a little to the left of me, maybe near the fence line.

I did a Russian dance move, squatted down on haunches and extended a leg out, easing my way over while keeping my head down. I did not trust Skylar one bit. For that matter, her father wasn’t much better.

Reaching the end of my bunker, I eased an eyeball around it. I didn’t see Brandon, per se, but I could hear him shuffling around over there. He said something in a quiet rumble, and while I couldn’t pick up words, the voice confirmed it was him.

I lined up my shot and waited for him to make a move.

Wait for it…

Wait…

Seconds that felt like eons passed as sweat trickled down my neck, the sun overhead hot and high. I didn’t let it distract my focus.

Wait…

A hint of a sleeve, then a shoulder, and I pulled the trigger.

In seconds, bright blue paint hit the shoulder squarely and Brandon let out a groan. “Who the hell just shot me?”

I grinned, pulling back before I revealed where I was. Got him! Playing paintball with Brandon wasn’t complete until I’d shot him. It was a brother thing.

Grumbling, he walked off the field.

All right, my life was now complete. Ooh, wait, no. There was birthday cake waiting for us at my parents’ house. I must consume sugar, then my life would be complete.

I felt a paintball hit me squarely on my back. Dammit. I growled a few choice words before standing and looking around for who had— “Quinn, really?”

He grinned, did a little waggle of his fingers, then rolled into the tunnel for more coverage. I was amazed that between his stocky build and almost six-foot frame, he managed to fit in there.

Apparently, I had been too complacent after shooting Brandon. That was on me. Sighing, I stood and called, “I’m out!” Then I walked off the field.

“Awww,” Skylar complained. “But I wanted to shoot you.”

“Get in line.” I shot her the bird and she laughed, not at all bothered.

Brandon was outside the fence, leaning against it, cellphone to his ear. He had those long legs of his crossed at the ankle, body weight against the fence, and he’d ditched the helmet at some point, showing his very sweaty, messy black hair. He didn’t look bothered, so odds were it wasn’t a work call.

“Yup,” he said to whomever it was. “We’re almost done with this game. We can wrap it up and head over. About thirty minutes? Okay, see you soon.”

“Mack?” I guessed.

“Mom,” he corrected. “Barbecue and birthday cake are waiting for us. Seriously, Bro? You had to shoot me?”

“I couldn’t sleep well otherwise.” I somehow managed to say this with a straight face.

“Some brother you are.”

“Just wait until you see my birthday present for you. All will be forgiven.”

Brandon eyed me sidelong. “You’re not going to tell me, are you?”

“When the hell have I ever spoiled a surprise?”

“Figures.”

There was a raucous cheer and a lot of groans. Oh, sounded like the game just finished. I popped my head back around the fence to see for myself. It only took a glance because Eli was once again all smiles, gremlin that she was, and everyone else looked at her with varying levels of frustration. Those apple green eyes of hers were sparkling with laughter, and she kept patting her metal arm like it was the key to all success in life.

“Eli won again?” How was it the smallest person here was the hardest one to defeat? Or maybe it was because of her small size that she was harder to hit.

Skylar shook a finger at her. “There will be a revenge match.”

Not at all threatened, Eli waggled her eyebrows in return. “Bring it.”

I had a feeling paintball games were going to be a tradition for this group. There were worse ways to bond with people than shooting them, right? Right.

Brandon called out, “Air conditioning, barbecue, and cake await us! Everyone head to my parents’ house!”

The summons instantly put people into a better mood, and we all headed for our vehicles. I’d driven my truck today since Jon had the Power Wagon. I tried not to feel sad about him driving his own vehicle, but I loved that thing. I might have to sell my truck and find one for myself.

With it being a Saturday, traffic was crazy, but not crazy-crazy like it was during the week. I made it to my parents’ house without too much trouble, finding Jon and Mack already there. They’d bowed out of paintball, as it wasn’t their thing, which was fine. I also suspected Mack was up to something. He and Jon had been co-conspirators for weeks leading up to this.

As usual, with Jon over, my parents had set up everything on the back deck. It was easier for all parties involved if he wasn’t in the house.

And it was quite the setup. We had not one, but two grills going, with corn on one and all sorts of tender meat on the other. Mom had gone the extra mile on the cake, making two triple-layer cakes to accommodate all the guests, although only one of the cakes had candles. Shame, that. I would have loved to see Brandon try to blow out two groups of candles at the same time.

I’d ditched my paintball gear before coming but still had dirt and paint smudges on me, so I was careful when I greeted Jon with a kiss so I didn’t ruffle him. “Hi, babe. Now do I get to hear what you and Mack have been plotting?”

“Not yet.” He grinned, immensely pleased with himself. And Brandon hadn’t even seen the gifts yet.

I shrugged, went inside the house to wash the worst of the dirt off in the kitchen sink, then came back out to find everyone had arrived in the two minutes I’d been gone.

“Everyone here?” Mom called. “Oh good. All right, Brandon, happy birthday!”

We sang “Happy Birthday,” Brandon acting like a conductor to a grand orchestra as we did so, ending in the traditional Cheeeee hoooo ! Well, the mainlanders didn’t think it was traditional, but I had grown up doing it, so…anyway.

Brandon laughed, blew out the candles, then straightened up like a kid expecting prezzies. “Presents! I’m dying here. Mack’s been snickering and plotting behind my back for weeks.”

Mack solemnly pulled out a very large rectangular present wrapped in cartoon ghost wrapping paper. No idea where he even found that. The box was long enough for a gun, or something along those lines, so I was very curious what it was.

Tearing into it, Brandon sent paper flying everywhere, then popped open the Prime box. Only to stop abruptly, face lighting up with unfettered delight.

“This is the best super soaker ever ,” he breathed.

I leaned over his shoulder to get a better look. It was indeed a super soaker, but only in the strictest meaning of the word. I’d never seen something like it. It had a long barrel, but it wasn’t made of plastic, with dual tanks sitting on top, painted a dark grey color that was still transparent enough to see water levels. The whole thing had steampunk vibes and honestly had Booker’s fingerprints all over it.

“Booker made it custom order,” Mack announced, chest puffed out. He was pleased with himself and rightly so. “This one is guaranteed not to leak.”

“It damn well better not,” Booker muttered at the end of the table. “Brandon, I made most of it from resin, so it’s sturdy enough that if you drop it, no harm. There’s a switch so you can go back and forth between the tanks, and we had a cross engraved onto the gun itself, so whatever water you put into the gun is automatically holy water. Plus—Jon?”

Jon promptly whipped out his present from the stack and handed it over. Ah-ha, the mystery was about to be solved.

Brandon tore it open and then cackled. Looney Tunes kind of cackled. It took me a second to realize what I was seeing, then I laughed myself. Now that was genius.

Jon had customized a paintball ammo holder so that it held a dozen small tubes, but instead of paintballs, the tubes were filled with salt. Well, half of them were. The other half were empty.

Pointing at the empty ones, Brandon asked, “Water?”

“Yup. Tubes were also special made to not leak. You can insert them into the top, screw it right in next to the tanks, so you’re able to add either salt to the water or just add in more water. Should tide you over in a tough spot.”

“You guys, this is seriously the best idea ever. I’m now looking forward to our next ghostly encounter.”

The present was very well thought out and executed. Bravo to the three men for putting this all together. I didn’t know how anyone else’s presents could possibly top them, but I hoped mine would be appreciated just as much.

Other presents were given, Brandon pausing to appreciate each one, and they were good ones. My gift was two tickets to see Josh Johnson, the comedian. He’d be here in Nashville next month, and I knew Brandon really liked him. Plus it doubled as a date for him and Mack, which, with their hectic schedules, was hard to pull off.

Then we got to cut into the delicious cake, paired with ice cream, of course, and just sat and enjoyed our family and friends. All in all, it was a truly excellent day. Which made me think, maybe we should do something more like this for our wedding? More of a party and less of a traditional wedding. We’d already been so frustrated trying to lock in the traditional wedding things; perhaps a change of pace altogether would work better. A low-key event, with all our nearest and dearest, sounded like the less stressful party to plan. Right now, if we weren’t at work, we were planning a wedding, which wasn’t sustainable.

Something to talk over with Jon, for sure.