Chapter 14
“Another!” I slammed my glass down on the bar top of Three Barrell Distillery and motioned to Brady to fill er up again. Instead, the big ogre crossed his arms over his chest, causing his ridiculous muscles to push against his t-shirt.
“I think you’ve had enough.”
“I think you owe me after drowning my ass. Repeatedly.”
“It was for charity.”
“You cheated.”
Brady arched a brow, completely unfazed by my accusation. “You were stalling, and your trash talk was weak.”
I raised my finger, my arm heavier than I remembered, and jabbed it in his direction. It wobbled a bit in the air, which only made Brady laugh.
He grabbed my glass, wiped the wood down in front of me, and threw the bar rag over his shoulder. “You’ve had two of our strongest cocktails. One more and you’ll be jumping up to sing karaoke.”
“You don’t have karaoke here.”
“Exactly.”
“I’d have you know I kill at karaoke night at the winery.”
A smirk settled on Brady’s rugged face. “I’ll admit your rendition of I Will Survive was solid. Not great, but solid.”
“Well, I’m not surviving now. My life is in shambles.
The love of my life has left me, and it’s only a matter of time before she finds a real man with big muscles and a beard.
” I ran my hand over my face. “I can’t grow a beard.
Did you know that? Comes in all patchy. Unlike you, who was probably born with a five o’clock shadow.
” I glanced up at Brady, who was still holding the alcohol from me.
“Can I touch it?” I reached for his beard, and he smacked my hand away. “Next time I’ll break your fingers.”
“Just add it to the list of broken parts.” I sighed and clunked my head on the bar.
“Is he okay?” Meadow asked, then poked me.
I lifted a hand and waved her off. “Just peachy. Thanks for asking.”
“Why don’t I make you one of my specialty cocktails?” Meadow said.
I lifted my head, a big smile spreading wide across my face as I tried to focus on Meadow, but there were two of her. “Do you have a twin?” I pointed to the other Meadow.
“Jesus,” Brady mumbled before picking up his phone.
“How about that drink?” Meadow said and grabbed a shaker.
“I’d love one. Brady thinks I’m at my limit.”
I heard the sound of ice in the metal shaker, the splash of the liquid hitting the glass. Meadow pushed it over to me, and I picked it up. A tree landed in my mouth, and I sputtered it out. Mint danced across my tastebuds.
“It’s a mint sprig. It’s garnish. Most people don’t eat it,” Meadow said.
“It got in the way.”
I took a sip. The mix of lavender and lemon hit my palate, followed by a little fizz. “This is delicious!” I declared, holding the glass up with a little too much flair. Liquid splashed over the top and hit the bar.
Brady sighed and grabbed the rag from his shoulder to wipe it down.
The door opened, and Jack, Brady’s adorable pup, wandered over to greet the newcomers. He had it under control, and the bar top was looking more and more cozy. I rested my head, hugging the glass to me. The mint sprig stuck to my cheek. I peeled it off and shoved it into my pocket.
“He’s over here,” Brady said.
Two strong hands grabbed either side of me and lifted me straight off the barstool. I glanced to my right—Laurent, all sharp cheekbones and unfairly perfect hair—and to my left, Nero, who looked like he’d bench press me just to prove a point. Not saying that never happened before…
“How much has he had?”
“Is that Franc?” I tried to glance around the two human walls holding me up.
“Two cocktails.”
“Don’t forget this one!” I held up the drink I managed to keep in my hands.
“That’s a mocktail,” Meadow said.
“What?” Pure shock rang out of my voice. “You tricked me.”
“I hydrated you, and I suggest you hydrate some more.”
“I’ll take that.” Another hand reached in front of me, and I glanced over to see Rhone, who had Jack balanced effortlessly in one arm. The pup gave Rhone’s cheek a quick swipe of the tongue. Rhone plucked the glass from my hand, and I frowned.
“Is this an intervention?” I asked, looking at the men who were like my brothers and now were… I wasn’t sure. By losing Rose, did I lose my family, too? Because they weren’t my brothers. They were hers.
Laurent turned me so I was facing him directly. His blue eyes were far too pretty for someone who could hurt me. “You didn’t lose anyone, you idiot.”
“Did I say that out loud?”
“Yes,” they all said in unison.
“My inner dialogue is betraying me!”
“Dude, you’re spiraling.” Nero braced my shoulder with one hand as if I might tip over. Joke was on him; I just swayed in the other direction. Laurent’s hand jumped back up, holding me in place.
“Let me spiral in peace.” I tried to climb back on the barstool, but Laurent and Nero were freakishly strong. Franc stepped closer, and I swear he caused a full-on eclipse.
“This is from two drinks?” Franc asked his bestie behind the bar. He and Brady went way back. Farther back than even me and Rose. They had like a good twenty-plus years on us. They were like an old married couple. A slight giggle escaped my mouth.
“We are not an old married couple.” Franc sighed, running a hand over his jaw.
Did I say that out loud, too?
“Yes,” they answered, voices blending around me.
“Whoops.”
I giggled again. People always called me and Rose an old married couple.
Except we weren’t married. I didn’t believe in marriage because my dad turned into a prick after he and my mom married, and Rose didn’t deserve that.
Marriage ruined everything. It made me realize all happy bubbles were temporary, and it’s only a matter of time before they popped.
“Pop,” I said and poked at the air.
Laurent’s grip tightened as he and Nero steered me toward the door.
The outside heat hit me like a punch in the face. I couldn’t wait for fall. Sadness washed over me, chilling my heated skin. Fall was our favorite season. Apple picking, pumpkin picking, Halloween… no more couple costumes.
Who was going to be the egg to my bacon? The cookie to my milk? The Taylor Swift to my Travis Kelce? Not that I could fill out the shoulder pads.
I plopped into the backseat of Franc’s SUV and rested my head on the cool leather.
Nero slid in on one side, Rhone on the other.
Rhone only had two inches on Nero, but his long legs barely fit.
He angled his knees awkwardly and nudged my shoulder.
“For what it’s worth. You couldn’t be a prick if you tried. ”
Shit, I must’ve said that out loud too. My lips parted, but before words could come out, I dove over Rhone, flung the door open, and threw up the only things I’d put in my stomach today—coffee and cocktails.
***
Sunlight assaulted my eyelids like some kind of torture.
I squeezed my eyes tighter as if they could magically get sucked into the sockets and plunge into darkness.
It was a weak attempt. I grabbed for the comforter, fully prepared to burrito myself until further notice, but the material felt wrong.
I pried one eye open and glanced at the plain blue comforter. “Where the hell am I?” I rolled, immediately regretting that decision and every life choice that brought me to this very moment. My hand rested on my head as if it could push the throbbing away.
My hand swung around, searching for my phone. Something smacked my knuckles and flew across the room. With a moan, I forced both eyelids open and sat up. Pain exploded in my temples, my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth, and that damn sun deserved to be arrested for assault.
“Rise and shine!” Ben’s voice boomed into the room.
“Are you using a megaphone?” I groaned.
“No, but I could have that arranged.”
“Please don’t.” I dragged the unfamiliar comforter over my head as if it could shield me from his unnecessary enthusiasm.
“You look like you’re hurting.”
“In more ways than one,” I admitted.
Footsteps moved closer; the sound of a plastic bottle echoed around me. So that’s what I knocked over. The smell of strong coffee hit my nostrils, and I mustered the strength to emerge from my blanket fort. “Is that what I think it is?”
“Black. Hot. And strong enough to resurrect the dead.”
“You’re my favorite person in the world right now.” I took the mug into my hands as if it were a prized possession and inhaled the roasted goodness.
“You said that same line to a mint sprig you pulled out of your pocket last night.”
Flashes of the night before bounced around in my mind, and I winced.
“Did I karaoke?”
“Does screaming Total Eclipse of the Heart while the Grassos carried your ass into my place count?”
I sighed into my coffee. “Did I wake the neighbors?”
“Odette popped her head out. Steve asked if we needed him to throw you over his shoulder.”
“He’s freakishly strong,” I admitted.
“And you’re freakishly heavy when you’re drunk, but the five of us managed without Steve’s help.”
Ben leaned against the doorframe, arms folded over a fitted tee, dark blond stubble shadowing his jaw, and green eyes studying me.
“Hope you didn’t hurt your ribs.” The poor guy had the ever-living shit kicked out of him by his dad’s goons only a few months ago. And I thought my dad was a prick.
“My ribs are fine.” He rolled one shoulder as if he were testing it. “Though you did fall headfirst into them at one point.”
“Sorry about that.”
“No worries.” A corner of his mouth lifted for a second before fading.
I pinched the bridge of my nose, hoping to ease the pounding. “The whole town is going to be talking about this by lunch.”
“By lunch?” Ben laughed. “Try breakfast.” He looked at his watch and adjusted it. “And considering it’s already nine, I’m sure it’s pretty much full steam ahead.”
“Nine o’clock?” I downed the coffee and jumped up from the bed, instantly regretting that foolish decision. A novice marching band started practicing in my head, all off-key and out of sync. “I’m late for work. I’m never late.”
“Considering you were with a majority of the company last night, they all assumed you’d be late, if you showed up at all.”
I ran a hand over my face, letting the memories of the night and every night since Rose left me sink in. “I keep fucking up.”
“You’re being too hard on yourself.”
“Am I? How would you feel if Sherry left you because you couldn’t give her the one thing she wanted?”
Ben’s expression sobered. “I’d be wrecked.”
He didn’t say it with pity. Just straightforward and honest. I appreciated that.
“What would you do?”
“I’d fight like hell to be the man she needed me to be.”
I sank back into the bed. “And if you tried that, and it still wasn’t enough?”
“Then I didn’t try hard enough.”
“You’re suspiciously philosophical for a guy who once showed up to work in two different sneakers.”
“My girl comes first.” Yeah. The bastard had insinuated he was tied up in Sherry that morning and ran off when he realized how late he was.
In the process, he grabbed the wrong sneaker.
“Look, I'm sure you’ve gotten all the unsolicited advice you can handle, so I’m not here to give you more.
But I will say, as someone who had a shitty dad too.
Once I made the decision to stop letting him control how I live my life, life became much happier for me. Just something to think about.”
“Sure as hell sounds like advice to me.”
“Call it what you want, but it’s the truth.” Ben rested his hand on the doorframe. “Do me a favor. Next time you want to scream-sing, can you do something a little cooler like Bohemian Rhapsody?”
“Total Eclipse of the Heart is a banger.”
He tapped the wall, and with a laugh, he left me with the lyrics of Bohemian Rhapsody on repeat in my mind.