Chapter Eight
Gabe never hated Mondays. He hadn’t worked a traditional Monday through Friday job, so it was just as likely that he’d have that day off as he was to work it. It so happened that he’d had this weekend off, and after his Friday shopping date with Devlin he’d spent the last few days working in his basement or on various projects all the while trying not to be consumed with visions of Devlin.
He felt like his phone was burning a hole in his pocket since she’d grabbed it and put her number in. He’d pulled it out at least a hundred times and had placed it back in his pocket just as many, alternating between typing out witty texts like ‘hey’ and making up reasons why he’d need to call her. He even flirted with the idea of pretending to butt dial her just to hear her voice.
In fact, right now, his phone was sitting on the bar, next to a freshly washed set of highball glasses that were now air drying with unsightly water marks. Gabe stared at his phone as he wrung the unused drying towel in his hands. The glasses were eventually forgotten about when Greyson walked in and bellied up to the bar, pausing a moment as a group of customers moved to a table.
“What’ll it be?” Gabe threw a sidelong glance at Greyson, although he already knew the answer, and covertly pocketed his phone once again.
“You know, Gabe, I’ve always wondered why you didn’t go with a wild west theme in here. A saloon with rowdy chorus girls and cowboys doubling down on bets at the poker table.”
“Greyson, I’m only going to say this one more time, I’m concerned with you not working,” Gabe said, sliding a low ball of Jameson Reserve the short distance across the gleaming wood top bar.
Greyson sighed. “I know. I was thinking about asking the university if I could start this spring instead of in the summer, that way I could get ramped up before summer stock.”
“I like that idea. I know I throw shade around, but you’ll have a big project once the remodel is in full swing.”
“I thought about that too, but other than what you and I decided to work on together, I think that hiring out the rest of the work is what I’ll do.”
“You don’t want to get those smooth hands too dirty?”
“Pru likes my smooth hands.” Greyson smirked. “Besides, one of the perks of being obscenely rich is that I can afford to hire a crew.”
“What are you trying to say, big brother?”
“Hey, I offered to send the best when you were working on Mom and Dad’s house, but you said no.”
Gabe reminisced on the years it had taken him to do the work on their parent’s house himself, but every second of the renovation was worth it. If he’d completed the work any sooner, he wouldn’t have been at the store with Devlin yesterday, and he couldn’t regret that. “I loved doing it all. The house was Mom and Dad’s, I’m sure that’s the reason why. I know it took me years longer to finish it by myself, but everything was worth it.”
“And now we get to go to the family cabin. You think you’ll want to renovate that?”
“You know, I’m not sure. A caretaker looks in on it every so often, usually before and after winter, and they haven’t reported anything major wrong with the place, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t out of date. An outdated cabin can be charming, though, being rustic and all that. I guess we’ll know soon enough. So, what do you think we’ll need for the trip?”
“I’m thinking some Johnnie Walker, and maybe a couple bottles of Grey Goose, and a bottle of Macallan…”
“One, I’m talking about food and supplies, and two, that sounds suspiciously like my private collection.”
“Bro, the liquor is supplies. If we’ve got that everything else will take care of itself. Plus, I kind of figured that Pru or AB would deal with the food.”
Gabe waved his hand toward his kitchen. “Really, Grey?”
“She likes to cook, not for any other reason.”
The response was lost on Gabe, as mumbles and grumbles could be heard coming through the door. He watched as Sebastian and Annabelle came in along with a swirl of cold air. An alcove, why did I not build the door in an alcove? He added that to his mental list of renovation ideas for his plans for the expansion.
Annabelle gave a quick wave and a smile as Sebastian tried to guide Annabelle to one of the few empty booths, reaching his hand to settle at the small of her back. Annabelle smacked Sebastian’s hand away.
“Do you know what you want for lunch?” Gabe asked Greyson, who was now looking at the menu.
“Steak sandwich and fries.”
“I don’t know why I ask, or why you bother with a menu.” Gabe punched in the usual order then moved to fill two glasses of water for the newcomers.
The lunch rush was light, the weather tending to keep people inside on days like this. Gabe reached the booth and placed the water in front of the grimacing occupants.
“You’ve got to be kidding me, a snowman decorating contest, hot cocoa bar, snowball toss—” The look of horror on Sebastian’s face made Gabe chuckle.
“It amazes me that these things still surprise you,” Annabelle interrupted. “In fact, all that’s followed by ice skating and a chili cook off.”
“This just keeps getting worse,” Sebastian groused.
Annabelle rolled her eyes.
“It amazes me, Winters, that you can’t seem to keep it professional. Rolling your eyes at your boss could be seen as an act of insubordination.”
Annabelle let out a belly laugh. “Please.” She looked to see Gabe next to their table. “Hello, dear.”
“Hi, AB. What can I get you?”
“I’ll have the lunch portion Chicken Alfredo, and a Jameson, please.”
“This is a working lunch, Winters,” Sebastian pointed out.
A little smile tilted Annabelle’s lips. “Make that a double, Gabe.” She turned her attention back to Sebastian who was still looking at the menu. “Also, I won’t be here to report on the Polar Plunge. I’ll be with my friends this weekend.”
“And who am I supposed to have cover that in your absence?” Sebastian asked, his head still buried in the menu.
“I don’t care who you make do it. Maybe you should write the story yourself, then you could participate, and no one will be around to witness your shrinkage.”
Gabe’s eyes widened at these words and he swung his gaze to Sebastian waiting for him to return the verbal volley. Sebastian’s head slowly rose from the menu, and he took a visible long, slow breath. He waited a beat, his eyes on Annabelle before he turned to Gabe.
“I’ll just have a whiskey for now.”
Gabe nodded and backed away from the table, walking around the bar just as Leo set Greyson’s lunch in front of him.
“Did I hear them say they were having a working lunch?” Greyson asked as Gabe poured two doubles back at the bar.
“That’s what Seb said.”
“I wonder what they’re working toward?”
“I’m sure we’ll all know once they figure it out.” He turned back into the lion’s den, saying a little prayer, having not yet acquired the same skills as Prudence and Greyson with disarming these little spats. It seemed like he walked back in on another doozy of an argument.
“I know I’m the boss and all, but even I get to take some personal time,” Sebastian was saying.
“You’re not invited,” Annabelle spat back. “Besides, you might have to do something that requires survival skills, like in a place like that and I’m not sure you’re capable of starting a fire.”
“I’ll have you know I was a Boy Scout, Winters.” He held up one of his hands in the Boy Scouts honor sign then, at her guffaw, turned his hand and lowered his two outside fingers, leaving the middle finger up.
Gabe didn’t want to intervene, so he set down their drinks and got the hell out of there, but that didn’t stop him from hearing the last of the argument.
“I can’t believe you!” Annabelle all but shouted. She stood, slipped her arms into her coat and was out of the door in a flash.
Sebastian slid from the booth, a look of defeat and exhaustion on his face as he walked over and sat next to Greyson, his glass trembling just a little in his hand as he set it down.
“I have to ask, what do you say to her, to get her so riled up?” Greyson moved over his plate of fries for Sebastian to share.
“I just told her that she had to submit a request for time off through our HR portal and I needed it before today was over or she couldn’t have the time off.”
“Why would that make her so mad? Isn’t that protocol the same pretty much anywhere?” Gabe asked.
The side of Sebastian’s mouth ticked up in a devilish smile. “We don’t have an HR portal.”
“Man, you just can’t wait to rile her up, can you?” Gabe said.
“Riling her up is so easy—you can’t blame me.”
Leo came out from the kitchen with Annabelle’s lunch.
“Just box it up, Leo. The least you can do is take this to her, Sebastian.”
“Yeah, I will.” He downed the rest of his whiskey. “Anyways, I’m in for the cabin this weekend if there’s still room.”
Greyson slapped Sebastian on his shoulder. “There’s always room for you.”
“What brought on the change of heart?” Gabe asked. “It wouldn’t have anything to do with a certain tiny reporter that’s also going?”
“Nah, man. I was going to go before I knew Winters was.” He saw the doubt on the brothers’ faces. “I’m serious. We can work on the proposal for the building purchase. But do me a favor and don’t tell Winters? I want to see the look on her face when I show up.”
“How awkward is this weekend going to get?” Gabe wondered aloud.
Sebastian turned a speculative eye to Gabe. “Is Devlin going as well?”
Gabe’s heart skittered at the thought of spending the weekend in complete seclusion with Devlin. And four other people. But…Devlin.
Leo came back out with the to go box and handed it to Sebastian then took one look at Gabe’s face. “Were you guys talking about Devlin again?”
“Leo, you’re fired.” Gabe wasn’t sure if he was joking or not.
“Hey, man, no harm no foul.” Leo looked to the other two men. “You were though, weren’t you?”
Gabe pushed Leo back toward the kitchen then motioned for Sebastian to go. “No lunch for you, but that’ll get cold if you don’t get it to AB soon.”
Sebastian put on his coat and walked to the door, snagging a fork on the way. “It won’t have time to get cold if I eat it all on the way back.” A cheeky smile crossed his face as he pushed out of the door.
“I think we should bring more whiskey,” Greyson stated.
“All of the whiskey,” Gabe agreed.
A regular in the corner held up a glass, indicating a refill was needed. Gabe poured a beer and motioned to Greyson that he’d be right back. Greyson nodded, his mouth full of a bite of steak sandwich. It gave Gabe a few much needed moments to consider the possibility of Devlin being at the cabin this weekend. It had been just a day since they’d gone shopping and he’d hoped he’d have a break from his senses being inundated by her until at least after the proposal to town council was due.
“Never mix business with pleasure,” Greyson prophesized as Gabe got back to the bar.
“How on earth do you know what I’m thinking about?”
“You get this dreamy expression, like you’re having a waking daydream.”
“I do not get dreamy.”
“Well, no wonder Leo knows when you’ve got Devlin on your mind.”
“I hadn’t seen her in so long and it seems like we’re together all the time now. I didn’t get to ask you. Did you know that Pru set me up?”
“She make you take the fall for the bank heist? You know, that was a plot in my movie—”
“Be serious, Grey. Did you know she was going to send Devlin in her place when we went shopping the other morning?”
“I one hundred percent did,” Greyson said, without a hint of remorse. “She told me after you talked that she was going to somehow get Devlin there, that way you’d have to see each other.”
“Why are you two meddling in my personal life? If I want to see Devlin I will.” Gabe pushed aside the contentment he’d felt being with Devlin yesterday, more annoyed now that Greyson and Prudence thought they had the right to interfere like this.
“I don’t think Pru saw it as meddling. She knows both of you will be in the wedding party and she just wants to make sure things are the least amount of awkward.”
A flash of Devlin in a flowy white dress pinged through Gabe’s mind once again.
“I think we’re going to have to worry about Sebastian and Annabelle more than anything,” Gabe pointed out. “Those two can’t be in the same room without combusting. I can see either of them sabotaging the other while they’re walking down the aisle, oblivious to the havoc they’d be wreaking.”
“I’ll take care of that, don’t you worry. No one is going to ruin that day for Prudence. I won’t sit around and let it happen, I’ll act. You know what they say about idle hands?” Greyson asked.
They said in unison, “They’re the devil’s playground—”
Gabe continued, “And I’m ready to climb all over you. From The Night You Didn’t Want to Die , I know.”
“My third Ben Stone movie. A classic. I’m glad you have my lines memorized. It means a lot to me.”
“You repeat them so often I can’t help it.”
“Just so you know, Prudence invited Devlin to the cabin. When I told her I was going to help you with your proposal—”
“Sebastian is going to help me.” Gabe tried to ignore the flutter in his stomach now that he knew for sure Devlin would be there.
“Whatever. We’re going to help you. But when she heard that, she decided her and AB would help Devlin with her proposal this weekend. She would’ve invited her, anyway, though.”
“Now that Sebastian is coming with, it’ll be a working weekend for all of us, it sounds like.”
Greyson grimaced. “I’ll have to plan another time to take Pru, just the two of us, before winter is over.”
“Does Devlin know I’m going also?” Gabe asked casually.
“I’d assume that they had a very similar conversation to the one we’re having right now.”
“Minus the Ben Stone quotes, I hope.”
“Nah, there’s a Ben Stone quote for any situation. Pru does me proud.”
All right. He knew she’d be there for sure, and he wasn’t…disappointed by the fact. It sounded like they’d be together but separate, each working on their own proposal.