Page 22 of The Maid

"So subtle changes."

"Yes, exactly."

"I bet a steady girlfriend would blow their brains."

She chuckled. "Probably. That would definitely be a one-eighty." He took that information and processed it.

The rest of the evening went smoothly, if uneventful. They ate, they laughed and did some reminiscing. All the heaviness of the early conversation was gone, and it was as if he was having dinner with -twenty-five-year-old Addie.

Once she paid, mostly because she insisted and scowled and demanded, he took her back to her car, kissed her cheek and they parted ways.

It was midday the next day when he decided that Mission: Win Addie Back needed to move faster. So, he sent her a text.

GUN: Great networking event tonight. Bowling for Boobs.

ADDIE: WTH?

GUN: LOL. A charity event for breast cancer. Come with me?

He placed the phone on the tiny ledge on the monitor of the treadmill awaiting a response. Nothing came in for far too long. He increased the speed and went from a light jog to full out run.

Finally, as he was about to begin cooling down, his phone lit up. Addie: Okay. What time and where?

GUN: Pick you up at 7 pm. Send me your address.

ADDIE: Meet you there.

GUN: Text me your address.

ADDIE: This isn't a date.

GUN: Your address, woman?!

When she didn't respond right away, he added: GUN: Promise, not a date. Just friends.

Thirty seconds later his phone lit with an incoming text with her address.

Addie wore white, loose-fitting cotton shorts, a black and white blouse, and black Chucks. Her hair was in a cute ponytail and she had virtually no make-up on. She looked gorgeous and Gun didn't know how he'd keep his hands away from her all night.

"Who should I expect to see tonight?" Addie asked as they approached the bowling alley.

Gun went through a list of the players he knew would be there as well as some local celebrities. He opened her door and helped her out. "Word of advice, though. Don't act so stiff and salesman-ish. Get to know everyone. If it comes up, you tell them what you do, maybe schedule a meeting, but don't bore them because they'll never want to meet you with you after."

"Don't be boring. Got it," she said to herself. He chuckled as they walked in. "Wow. This doesn't look like any bowling alley I've ever been to."

"This is Miami Beach, baby. Nothing in this town is like anything you've ever seen before."

"Looks more like a bar." She took in all the lights and modern looking lanes.

"Yeah, it does. But don't think that just because it doesn’t look like a regular bowling alley people don't get competitive."

"Ha! I love a little competition."

"I remember." He laughed as he walked to the mob waiting for him. "There shouldn't be any paparazzi here today. They rented out the entire place so it's just a few chosen papers and photographers and the rest is just the donors and organizers. I like this event. Do it every year and lose every year.” He said with a smile. “But it’s one of the few charities where most of it actually goes to charity."

"Gunther, my man!" Jackson, a team member spotted him first, and after that it was mayhem. He quickly introduced Addie to everyone, and they were swiftly escorted to their lanes for the games.

It took Addie a beer and about ten minutes to get comfortable with the rest of the team and their opponents. Ten minutes after that, she began to show her true competitive nature.