Main Street buzzes with energy as I kick back on the patio at the Grizzly Paw with my two good friends, Linc and Dawson. We nurse our locally brewed beers, celebrating our first win of the season.

Bear lounges at my feet, his eyes tracking the passing crowd.

Coming here is pretty much a ritual during baseball season. Ellie would be with us if she had shown up like she said she would, but she didn’t, and it was a major gut punch.

It’s been two damn days since we last spoke, which might not be a big deal for most people, but it’s huge for us. We never miss a day without at least checking in on each other, and if I’m being honest, it’s fucking killing me.

I considered sending her a text yesterday but held off, figuring I’d see her tonight. Except, she didn’t show, and you know what? I’m mad about it. Actually, I’m downright pissed.

She might be too, but that doesn’t mean she can just slag me off, especially when she said she’d come. And what about Bear? I got him all dressed up in this stupid jersey, and she just leaves us hanging, making him look like a fool?

Well, fine! She can go ahead and be like that. We don’t need her.

Except, she can’t be like that because Friday is quickly approaching. The day she is going to make this huge life-altering step without me, something I am not sure I can live with.

“What the hell is going on with you?” Linc asks, breaking into my turbulent thoughts. “You’ve been sulking all damn night.”

I shoot him a glare, not appreciating the call out. “Nothing’s going on with me. What’s going on with you?”

He grunts at the surly retort.

“I noticed Ellie wasn’t at the game tonight …” Dawson says, deciding to be a perceptive bastard.

“So what? We don’t always have to be together.”

That response has the two of them bursting into a fit of laughter.

Assholes.

“You’re so full of shit,” Linc counters, holding nothing back. “The two of you are always together, and if you’re not, one of you is out searching for the other like a lost puppy.”

I shake my head, denying the statement. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

His brow lifts in challenge. “No? Name one game she has missed in all the years I’ve known you. Just one.”

I can’t because she hasn’t. Until tonight.

Damn it.

“So, what happened?” Dawson asks, treading a little more carefully. “Had to be something big for her not to come.”

He has no idea …

As much as I’d love to tell them the whole story and get their take on it, I won’t betray Ellie’s trust. I feel bad enough about confiding in Ryland about it.

“Let’s just say we had a disagreement about something she wants to do,” I tell them, keeping it vague.

“What’s that, go on a date?” Linc jokes, hitting a little too close to home.

“No, dickhead. It had nothing to do with that.”

“Of course not,” Dawson interjects. “Because if she did, that wouldn’t bother you, right?”

I remain silent, refusing to voice that truth out loud. By the knowing smirk on his face, I don’t need to.

Linc seizes the moment to cut back in. “Wanna know what I think?”

“Nope,” I answer truthfully, taking a swig of beer. “But I’m sure you’re going to tell me anyway.”

He does exactly that. “I think the two of you should fuck already and be done with it.”

The suggestion has my cock instantly hardening behind my pants. I level him with another glare, hoping to conceal the reaction.

“I’m serious. Go at it like rabbits and get it out of your systems.”

“She’s my best friend, asshole.”

“Bullshit,” he snaps, pointing at me. “You don’t have best friends who look like Ellie.”

My shoulders stiffen, my body going rigid. “What the hell does that mean?”

“It means she’s hot and you damn well know it.”

His words strike a chord, igniting something dark within me. “Watch it, Linc,” I warn.

A cocky smirk spreads across his face. “Point made.”

“Yeah, and what point is that?” I ask, curious where he’s going with this.

“That you’ve always laid claim over Ellie, whether you want to admit it or not,” he says, holding nothing back. “I know it, Dawson knows it, this whole damn town knows it. Which is why no one ever asks her out.”

I look over at Dawson to see the same thought reflected in his eyes.

“Face it, man. Ellie might have been your best friend at one time, but at some point, that changed.”

Apparently. And it would seem everyone else knew it except me, and maybe Ellie.

I stare back at my two good friends, feeling dumbfounded by their revelation. “So, all these years you guys have thought this yet never bothered to say anything?”

“Why would we?” Linc shrugs casually. “We knew you would deny it, just like you’re doing now. And if that’s how you want to keep playing it, then by all means, go right ahead. But mark my words”—he tilts his beer toward me—“there’s only so long you can hold on to this claim before someone comes along and shatters it. When that happens, you’ll have no one to blame but yourself.”

Little does he know it’s already being shattered. Shaken to its core. Unless I do something about it …

That thought hits my chest like a Mack truck at full speed, giving me the final push I need to make the decision I’ve known I’d make since Ellie left my office.

Pulling out my wallet, I drop a twenty on the table and stand, clutching Bear’s leash. “I’ll catch up with you guys later.”

Linc’s mouth curves into a grin. “Tell Ellie we say hi.”