Emily reached me first. “Which one is he again?” I whispered to her, looking at the approaching Hamilton.

“That’s Simon,” she responded.

“The oldest, right?”

“Yep.”

I brushed the grass off my palms and arms.

Simon handed a water bottle to Carlos, then offered the other to me. “Nice game.”

Carlos grinned. “Lucky for us, your cocky brother wouldn’t let her play on your side.”

Simon looked at me, his eyebrows raised in question. “You wanted to play on our team?”

I nodded. “Jamie said I’d be in over my head.”

Simon laughed. “That explains why he was so annoyed. I’m Simon, Jamie’s older and much less competitive brother.”

I opened the water and took a long drink. “I’m Lane.” I looked across the field and saw Jamie stalking away, his bag flung over his shoulder. “Is he okay?”

Simon followed my gaze. “Don’t worry about Jamie. He’ll simmer down eventually.”

“Yeah, and then challenge you to a rematch,” Carlos said. “He is not a man who likes to lose.”

“I feel him on that one.” I watched Jamie until he crossed the street and disappeared out of sight.

I forced my attention back to the brother standing in front of me.

“Did you play in college?” Simon asked. He crossed his arms over his chest. He wasn’t quite as broad through the shoulders as Jamie or as tall, but family genetics had still been nice to the guy.

“I played for Berkeley.”

“National champs,” Carlos added. His voice held a hint of pride that made me smile.

“Wow.” Simon nodded. “I guess that eases the sting a little.”

“You ever want to play with us again, Lane, you know where to find us,” Carlos said. “Every Saturday, we’re here.”

“Thanks, Carlos.”

He took off, waving over his shoulder. “See you, Hamilton. Bye, Lane!”

“You played a great game, Simon,” Steph said.

He looked at her and smiled. “Thanks.”

Emily cleared her throat. “Has Cooper heard anything about his mission yet?”

He shook his head. “Not yet. Soon, we think.” He turned his attention back to me. “So I guess I’ll see you around?”

I nodded. “Sure.”

“It was great to meet you, Lane. Nice job today.”

He turned and jogged toward the youngest Hamilton brother, who stood waiting at the corner of the field.

In a second, I realized three fundamental truths regarding my situation: Number one, I had made too big an issue about not joining the singles group to change my mind now, even if it did mean seeing Jamie again. Two, I really wanted to see Jamie again. And three, if that was going to happen, I needed to act. And quickly.

“Hey, Chloe, you got a pen?” The purse hanging on her shoulder looked big enough to hold an entire kindergarten classroom. Surely she had something to write with in there. “And paper too, if you’ve got it.”

She started rummaging. “I’m sure I do somewhere. What for?”

I glanced at Simon’s retreating form. “Just hurry?”