Chapter 200 Kind Of Fun

Chapter 200 Kind Of Fun
\[Rika’s POV\]

“Alright,” Jeremiah says, his hands touching my shoulders so that he can help me aim right. “Now throw.”

I do as instructed, throwing the bowling ball in my hands and then I watch it roll down the lane in front of me until it manages to knock over two pins.

“What?” I gasp, shocked by how little it did. “Are you kidding me?”

“That’s just how it goes,” Jeremiah laughs as I move to the bench beside me and plop down on it.

Honestly, when Jeremiah suggested we go somewhere to blow off steam, I definitely didn’t expect that place to be the bowling alley, but I guess tossing large, heavy balls, at things could most certainly relieve stress, and I couldn’t say that I wasn’t having fun.

This was a place that I usually wouldn’t be allowed to go to given my family status and name, so it was new and refreshing for me.

To be here, doing things like those who didn’t have a lot of money was nice.

Now, I watch as Jeremiah aims, his large body straightening and then he is throwing and to my dissatisfaction, his ball knocks down everything.

“Strike!” Jeremiah announces, grinning.

Instantly, I feel my breath hitching and my heart rate increasing as I take in the man in front of me as he pumps the air victoriously. He’s handsome under normal circumstances, but when he smiled like that, damn, he was heavenly.

Stop it, Rika. I hiss, realizing that I was letting myself get swept up into him. Don’t you dare think such a thing about someone who is only spending time with you because of his family.

“Did you see that?” The man in question asks now, taking a seat beside me. “That’s how you play the game.”

“Yeah, yeah,” I sigh, standing and grabbing my ball. “I’ll definitely try to take your lead.”

I probably wouldn’t. This game was new to me and even if Jeremiah was doing his best to try to teach me how to play it properly, I was still sucking, but wasn’t that fine? I wasn’t someone who had to be good at everything. I just needed to be able to skim by and that would be enough for me.

Story of my life. I think, feeling a bit of sadness towards my upbringing.

Since I wasn’t a son and I wasn’t the oldest, nothing was ever promised to me. Instead, I was expected to bring in something for my family to prove my worth.

That was why Jeremiah and I even started talking and that was the reason that I was willing to stick around him.

Just a bit longer. I tell myself as I aim my bowl and throw. I just need to ride it out a bit longer and then he will certainly come for me.

Reminding myself this as the only thing that really helped me get through the days, at least, before Jeremiah started to keeping me company, but even that time was few and far between since he had to take care of business in his family’s company and likewise, I had to do my part in my own families business. And…I turn my gaze to Jeremiah as he watches me, noting the large cast on his leg and the scars on his handsome face…He was trapped in recovery recently.

“Pay attention to the lane, not me.” He says now, his whole demeanor calm and relaxed despite everything he was going through. “Or are you going to throw blindly?”

“Of course not,” I snap, turning my gaze to the lane once more and then aiming. “Alright,” I continue, focusing on the center pin while imagining my ball hitting it. “I’m going to get a strike this time, I can feel it.”

As I speak, I aim my ball and when I’m certain I’ve got it aimed just right, I throw. I hold my breath as I watch it roll down the lane and when it veers to the side and hits the bump guards that Jeremiah insisted we use, I watch it aim toward the middle again and then it hits.

“ALRIGHT!” I yell as all the pins fall down and then immediately regret it as a few gazes come to rest on me. “Shit, sorry.” I mutter as Jeremiah laughs. “I shouldn’t have…”

“It’s fine,” he tells me, giving me a thumbs up. “There’s nothing wrong with some enthusiasm for your first cheater strike.”

“Cheater,” I repeat, raising a brow. “What do you mean cheater?”

“You used the bump guards.” He explains. “So, does it really count as one?”

“Then remove them,” I snap, my competitive side coming out. “I’ll show you that I can get one without.”

“You sure about that?” He asks, standing and doing as instructed. “Let’s see it.”

In the end, I don’t end up showing Jeremiah my skills because honestly, I don’t have any, but even when he beats my ass, I still feel relaxed.

“That was fun,” I sigh as we head out of the bowling alley. “Who knew that bowling would be so fun?”

“Have you never done it before?”

At Jeremiah’s question, I immediately go on alert, because I for a moment, forgot that this man only knows me as the daughter of a big business tycoon.

“Well,” I say, suddenly feeling awkward. “With work and school and my lessons, I never really had the chance to do much.”

“Sounds hard.”

Jeremiah’s voice is low, even, and it doesn’t hold a hint of anything more than genuine empathy and I feel myself relaxing again.

“Is there anything else you haven’t done?”

For a moment, I don’t respond as I consider his question and when I open my mouth to respond, a car I recognize all too well rolls up on the street beside us.

“Rika,” my father’s voice booms after the window has rolled down. “Where have you been?”

“I…” I begin, looking to Jeremiah. “I was just hanging out.”

“Hanging out,” my father repeats, eyeing me. “You’re out here lolligagging when I informed you of the work that still needed completion.”

“Sorry,” I mutter, hating that this was happening in front of Jeremiah. “I’ll go and take care of it now.”

“See that you do and Jeremiah,” my father continues, focusing on the silent man beside me. “It’s good to see you.”

“Yeah,” Jeremiah responds, his voice flat. “It’s nice to see you too.”

“Then I should get going.” My father smiles either oblivious to Jeremiah’s clear dislike of the situation or not caring. “I’ve got a flight out to hawaii this evening.”