Free Play Hard (The Devil's Share Book 5) by L.P. Maxa Page A

anything lately because he’s been hiding in Costa Rica for the last three months and didn’t bother to call.”
    I put my hand on her thigh under the table, two seconds away from another panic attack. Why didn’t we think to cover this on the walk over here? We hadn’t discussed a meet cute. Why the fuck did I know what a meet cute was? I silently cursed my sister. Would Lo go along with it? Or would this veer too far into “fake girlfriend” material?
    Lo looked over at Lexi, glowing smile in place. “It’s partly my fault he hasn’t called, I’m sure. I’ve kept him…occupied since we met.” Then she looked over at me. “Surfing. We met surfing. I’d been watching him surf earlier in the day and I knew I was much better than he was.” She reached up and put her hand on the back of my neck for effect. “There was this monster wave brewing and I knew it’d be wasted on him. So I cut in line and stole his wave.”
    No one said anything, they were all just staring at us. Did they not buy it? Did Lo surf? Was she laying it on too thick? That was piss-poor preparation on my part. But I did love the fact that she’d stuck up for me with Lexi, sending her hiding comment back.
    Finally Bryan leaned forward. “And then what?”
    Lo let out a little laugh. “He followed me back to this bar on the beach everyone hung out in and accused me of stealing his wave—”
    “Which you did.”
    She grinned when I joined in on the story. “I calmly told him that he wasn’t the best surfer and that wave would have destroyed him—”
    “And then I asked her for private lessons and the rest is history.”
    Jacks leaned across the table, looking past B with his fist out. “Private lessons. Nice.”
    I rolled my eyes, but bumped him anyway.
    Landry piped in. “I want to learn to surf.”
    I chuckled then reached over and tapped her nose. “You want to learn to do everything.” She giggled and rested her head against my arm.
    “Landry, your Uncle Luke talked about you all the time.” I gave Lo’s thigh another squeeze and kissed her temple. It was obvious to her how close Landry and I were, and the fact that Lo was making her feel included in a lie she never wanted to tell, well, it made her even more of a badass.
    Landry smiled. “Did you go with him on that hike in the jungle? The one where he saw those cool frogs and that spotted-looking cat?”
    Lexi passed a baby bottle to Smith, then looked over at us. “Did y’all do a lot of backpacking while you were there?”
    I looked across the table; I was somewhat shocked that Lexi had known I’d been exchanging emails and postcards with Landry. I’d thought since she hadn’t called and texted me incessantly that she figured I had cut off all non-work-related communication with everyone. “You saw the pictures I sent Landry?” I thought I’d been completely absent from Lexi’s life for three months. I thought it had been my choice. But I was wrong.
    She smiled at me, a rank and pointed smile. “Of course I did. I know everything, Lukey.” I stifled an eye roll. I knew what that comment meant.
    Landry looked up at me. “Next time you go to the jungle, will you take me with you?”
    I winked at her. “Couldn’t stop me if you tried.”
    Her little smile turned into a frown. “I didn’t think you were ever coming home.”
    “I’m home now, love. I’m not leaving, ever again.” Landry had more abandonment issues than we’d known what to do with in the beginning. She was working through them and she was resilient. But I was an asshole. My chest suddenly felt like it was caving in. I hated myself for being another person she loved who had left her. I reminded myself that I’d had to go, that I was drowning in that house. I reached over and held my hand out to her. “Skins?”
    “Skins.” She slid her palm over mine.
    Jacks shook his head. “I’m still getting trouble for that movie, man.”
    I scoffed, “Still? Damn, B, let it go.” We’d let