A man with manners. I can practically hear the sound of jackpot bells going off in my head. The other bats are placed under the table along with the bag of balls. As I round the table, he holds up a single white ball. "Ladies first?"
"I'm an equal opportunities kind of girl." I slide off my ridiculous sandals so that I have half a chance of matching this giant athletic man.
Kane shakes his head, and an amused smile plays at his lips. "I'm all for equal opportunities in all things."
I want to ask him what things he might be referring to, but he's already smashing the ball in my direction, and I scramble into position to get it back. We return the ball, back and forth, with more speed than I was anticipating. It would seem that Kane has played before, but I can hold my own. Years of battling with my dad while he tried his hardest to beat me and then point out how much I needed to work on my game has made me ridiculously competitive. I score the first point, and Kane nods his head as though I've hustled him. I guess I have, in a way. I grab the top of my strapless dress and hitch it up. It's not the most practical of garments, but it was Natalie's choice, and I had to let my bestie have her way when it's her big day.
"So, you're good," Kane says as he returns the ball I've served at speed. It ricochets off the edge of the table, and I catch it hard with the flat of my paddle.
"I've played a few games."
"A few thousand?"
"Maybe." I grin as I score again, the ball arching with too much topspin for Kane to get it back over the net.
"She's running rings around you," a deep voice says from behind me. I turn and find Kane's mirror image staring at us with interest. He's wearing darker slacks and a soft gray dress shirt with matching rolled-up sleeves. His dark hair is slightly longer but styled the same as his twin.
"It would seem that Connie is a table tennis champion masquerading as a maid of honor."
"Didn't your mom teach you that looks can be deceiving?"
"Yes, ma'am." He stands a little straighter, his facial expression changing just a little
Oooh…I like it when he calls me that. "Well, then." I put my hands on my hips, still clutching the bat in one and the ball in the other.
"But she also taught us to be respectful of women, first and foremost," Karter says.
"You wanted to play, and I wasn't going to say no, even if I did suspect I was going to get thrashed."
"You thought you were going to get thrashed, and yet you still agreed to play?"
"Of course," Kane says, shrugging. "Winning is nice, but it's not a necessity."
I purse my lips, finding my opponent's relaxed attitude refreshing. Most men hate losing to a woman, my dad especially. When I finally beat him at table tennis, he decided he wasn't interested in playing anymore. I beat him once in all the years of competition, and that once was the end of our rivalry.
"You want to play?" I ask Karter.
"I'm not sure I'm going to be any better than my brother," he says, but he strolls toward the table, retrieving a bat from the ground. "But maybe we should play doubles?"
Now, I've never played doubles before but I'm up for a challenge as much as the next person. Just as I'm about to ask who we can rope in to play as my partner, Holden, and Harris make their way over.
Wow. Up close, these brothers really are perfection. Holden and Harris have blue eyes, which match the shade of the water off the coast of our Thai island paradise and hair a couple of shades lighter than their brothers’.
"You in need of another player?" one of the twins asks.
"Holden, this is Connie," Kane says. So now I know that Holden is the twin with close-cropped hair, and his twin, Harris, is the one with the soft light brown curls I can imagine running my fingers through. I always wondered if Natalie found it hard to remember who is who in her relationship, but now I'm starting to realize it's easy as pie!
"I would love a partner," I say. "Can you play?"
"As well as my brothers," Holden grabs a paddle too, and Harris stands in line with the net as though he's taking on the role of a referee. For a moment, I ponder on whether this is a good idea. I've managed to get the men I've had my eyes on all day to a secluded and deserted part of the hotel, but what next? I guess we play and see what happens, but I find it difficult to imagine an effective segue from this to what I'd much rather be doing right now.