Seven Groomsmen from Hell (Love by Numbers 6)

“Alright, it’s all down to you two,” Kent said. “Luke, you’re a superstar, man. My money’s on you.”

“I don’t know,” Mason said. “The good doctor is the big shock of the day. Who knew med school prepared you so well for a pump fake!”

We all laughed, and then Luke stuck out his hand. “May the best man win.”

I took Luke’s hand in my own and he squeezed it until it felt like he was going to shatter my bones. His pupils were dilated like a man on drugs, and the sweat and grime on his body was radiating like an aura of strength. Suddenly, I was feeling like I’d made a mistake dangling Khloe in front of him like a well-seasoned steak; he was borderline feral.

“Good luck to you,” I responded.

Luke released my hand, and pulled a coin from his pocket and handed it to Kent. “Flip for picks.” He tilted his head at me. “You call it.”

I chuckled. He was in another world. “Fine.” Kent tossed the coin in the air and the second it left his hands I made my call. “Heads.” The coin dropped back into Kent’s palm and he flipped it to the back of his other hand. He lifted up to reveal the coin which was heads-side up. I smiled. “We’ll kick first.”

Luke shook his head. “That flex is gonna cost you, doctor.”

And he was right. With my chosen team of Kent, Brett, and Christian, we were no match for Luke, Mason, Bram, and David. They were a well-oiled machine. Even with Bram the accountant, it was as if he’d been playing football with the others his entire life. After a game like the one he played, he could stand to be drafted. It was like there were twelve of them out there. Every time I looked up, someone else was running circles around me, and I was ashamed to say, it was another total blowout. Luke was the cornerstone to it all, and as the sun started to descend towards the horizon Luke took home the third and all around victory. Call it poetic justice, but he’d earned himself the right to make the first move on Khloe.

“Yes!” Luke shouted. He pointed directly at me and stuck his tongue out. “Yes!” He started to leap around like a monkey. “I guess that’s why I’m the goddamn quarterback, boys! Football extraordinaire!” He stopped and stuck his nose in the air and screwed his face as though he was trying hard to calculate something. “How many wins was that? How many times did I lose?” He put his hands on his hips in a superhero pose. “Oh, right. Three wins for me, zero losses. Suck it!”

“You’re a tool.” Brett hissed.

Luke stuck up his middle finger. “You’re just mad that you lost.”

“That’s true,” David said, but then he turned his finger to Luke, “and you’re a tool.”

We decided to dip our feet in the water to counteract the steaming Puerto Rican heat. As we were all sitting at the edge of the water cooling off and refueling after a series of hard-fought games, Kent walked over to visit with Anna and Luke decided to get in a little bit of friendly gloating.

“If I so much as see one of you look at her before I get a chance, I’m opening up a can of whoop ass,” Luke said.

“But we’re sticking to the promise not to touch her until after the wedding, right?” Bram asked.

“We have to,” I said quickly. “Especially if we’re really going to let Luke go first, he’s the one most likely to cause problems.”

“Hey, I resent that,” Luke said. “It’s true, but I resent that.”

“He’s not gonna go for it anyway,” Brett said, with everyone’s heads flying to him in shock. “After all this time, if he hasn’t shot his shot, he ain’t gonna.”

I looked over at Luke and his head looked like it was about to burst and deflate like a cartoon. He looked back at Khloe, and then over at Brett, and I could see the gears turning. I didn’t know what he was planning, but I was instantly afraid of it. Finally, as if something had just kick started his engine, he jumped up from the edge of the beach, bolted over to Khloe, snatched her up out of her spot, and threw himself and her both into the ocean.

“Uh oh,” I said, joining all of the other guys in dropping my jaw. “That’s not good.”

12

Khloe

I didn’t even have time to react. One second, I’m laying on my towel, taking in the beautiful, Puerto Rican sun, and then next second I had been lifted from my spot and was rushing towards the water against my will. The moment seemed to slow for a moment as I tried to figure out what was going on. I could see six of the groomsmen off to one side, with their feet in the water, all staring at me with their jaws dropped. I could see Kent and Anna back by where we were laying, both also with looks of total shock on their face, and there were a few other people on the beach hooting and hollering in my direction. Finally, I looked up and saw Luke’s face, pursed and determined, as my captor and before I could even open my mouth to scream, I was totally submerged in the cool ocean, tasting as the saltwater rushed up my mouth and nose.