Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Bailey
T he moment I saw Nash Bishop for the first time, I knew he was my forever. It didn’t matter that he thought of me as nothing more than a bratty little girl, the little sister of his best friend. I promised myself that day that he was going to be mine.
Did I know it was going to nearly cost me everything to make this reckless dream a reality? No. Was it worth the hell he put me through? Absolutely.
I still remember it like it was yesterday. The sky was screaming, rain pouring down from dark clouds onto Crossroads like no one had seen in years. It had been all over the local networks. “The Storm of the Century” they were calling it. All it did was rile everyone up, causing grocery store shelves to become vacant and the townsfolk to run amuck around town like headless chickens.
But not my mama. No, Magnolia King was sitting on her floral upholstered recliner sofa, knitting my sister and I sweaters for the harsh winter that was about to come down upon North Carolina.
I was sitting on the small chaise pushed up against the window in our living room, looking out toward our backyard. Over a foot of rain water had settled over the green grass, making the yard appear swampy. I looked out toward the right of our nearly two hundred acre property and saw a shadow moving about the red barn.
Palms on the windowsill, I pressed my nose up against the cold glass, my breath fogging up my reflection. I couldn’t quite make out who it was. All I could see was the individual was tall, dark-haired, built similar to my older brothers, and was wearing all black. The closer he came to the main house, I could make out his leather jacket was soaked from the rain pouring down on him.
Though it wasn’t until he reached the end of our white picket fence, which wrapped around the main house, that his face came into view. I gasped, his rugged beauty unlike anything I’d ever bore witness to. Dark eyes, tan skin, the perfect chiseled jaw on someone who looked to be my brother’s age. The way his wet hair fell over one side of his face, a teenager wasn’t supposed to look the way he did.
“Mama,” my little sister Brynn shrieked as she ran up to the window beside me. “There’s a boy in our yard.”
Mama rushed over to us, her hand flying up to her chest in utter disbelief. “Oh darling, hurry, go call your father.”
“No need, mama,” my brother Jase said as he waltzed over to the back door. He was in no hurry to let the guy in, though he also didn’t seem at all worried about him being some stranger we should be wary of.
Opening the door, Jase whistled loudly, gaining the guy's attention. I watched bewildered as he ran up to our back door, and into the house, water dripping from every inch of him and onto our newly waxed hardwood floors.
The four of us stood completely still. The loud pitter patter of the rain pouring outside was the only sound heard for over two minutes.
“Let the damn kid in, Jameson,” my father said, suddenly stepping into the room, a baffled Brynn behind him. “The water’s getting in.”
Immediately, the guy stepped fully inside, and Jase quickly closed the door behind him.
“Sorry Pops, Mama. This is my best friend, Nash Bishop. He lives on the outskirts of town but was helping me with something in the barn when the storm came barreling in. I told him to come in but the bastard’s stubborn and was planning on riding his bike back home.”
My father cleared his throat. “A Bishop,” he said and immediately the familiar eerie silence fell back over the room.
“Yes sir,” Nash, like my brother just announced, said, standing up straighter and meeting my father’s daunting glare.
My father wasn’t typically someone you should be wary of. No, Bismarck King was a family man. As mayor of Crossroads, he was the most down to earth and humble individual who cared for every single resident of his small town. As long as their last name wasn’t Bishop.
Since I could remember, we were taught to turn our heads at the sound of the name Bishop. They weren’t good people. Reckless and menacing individuals who caused nothing but trouble in our town. At the time I wasn’t sure why, nor was I old enough to know the entire story, but it wasn’t only my father and mama who’d warned us to steer clear of the Bishop clan. The whole town kept their distance from Franklin, Delia, and their brood of troublesome boys.
After all, there were four of them before their only daughter, Monroe, who was my age, was born. I wasn’t friends with her, but we weren’t necessarily enemies either. We were different, ran in opposite circles, but it didn’t mean she was a bad person. I just couldn’t see why they were to be hated.
I didn’t know it then, but I’d soon realize I’d been told to stay away from the Bishop’s for good reason.
My father cleared his throat and spoke with the same poise and self-control he carried everywhere he went. “Well then, come in, son. Mags here will get you something dry to wear.” I knew it took all of my dad’s good nature to not react in any other way at the sight of a Bishop in his living room. Though I guess it wasn’t Nash’s fault, his parents were junkies and responsible for the poison that ran through our town.
Mama’s eyes went wide in disbelief before she hurried herself with the task my pops had given her. “Yes, and I’ll get the hot water going to make you some tea.”
After my father and mother both scurried out of the room, neither of them saying anything about the huge elephant in the room, Jase dropped onto the couch. With his legs crossed, he grabbed the remote and started flipping through the channels until he found some football game and was watching it like he hadn’t just admitted to being best friends with the enemy, nor that said enemy was standing soaked behind him in our living room.
That had always been Jase. He was the rebel of my two older brothers. Where Camden was the responsible, reliable, and respectable oldest son, Jameson, much like I suppose Nash, was the troublesome, impulsive and reckless middle child.
My little sister Brynn scurried over to sit beside Jase while I stayed put, unable to move or do anything but stare at the unbelievably gorgeous boy in my living room.
Nash was perfect. Every part of him was carefully crafted to be immaculate. I’d never seen such beauty, not even on television or in movies. He was another kind of creature, certainly not from earth. No, human beings were too simple, and he was extraordinary. His beauty transcended through time, and the longer I watched him, the deeper I fell into an abyss of lust.
In an instant, he became my obsession.
His glacial blue eyes turned to me, and when he caught me staring, the edges of his mouth turned up slightly in a teasing way. “You gonna stand there and gawk, Angel? Or are you going to offer me your seat?”
Brynn gasped, and I might have to, only I couldn’t hear over the rapid pounding in my ears.
Angel.
A soft whimper left my lips, and I dug my fingers into my palm to keep them from shaking.
Jase scoffed, letting out a sharp chuckle while his eyes remained glued to the screen. “Quit it, Nash. Bailey’s not the kind of girl you want to be saying those things to. The girl has her head in the clouds. She’s the happily ever after type. Tell her she’s pretty and she might end up falling in love.”
A burning heat crept up my neck and my cheeks flamed as my embarrassment swept over me and I knew I was bright red in the face.
“Shut your mouth, Jase,” I shrieked, reaching for the thing closest to me, which happened to be a soft pillow cushion, and chucking it toward him.
Nash took a step toward me and I swear it looked like he was about to reach out and touch me, but he didn’t. Instead, his fingers curled and fisted at his sides. “Ain’t nothing wrong with looking, Angel. But don’t you dare fall in love. I’m not that kind of guy. Never will be.”
I was stunned speechless, not because of what he said, but of how he said it. Like it was a burden more than a choice. Looking back at it now, it’s like Nash spent every chance he had warning me what falling in love with him would do to me, but I never listened.
Somehow, I was still paying the consequences.
“ H ello? Earth to Bailey?”
The gravelly yet playful tone of his voice startles me out of my thoughts and once again I’m face-to-face with Nash fucking Bishop. Holy shit. I must be dreaming.
Nash’s mouth, much like it was in my memory, is turned up into a wicked smirk, his eyes gleaming with the familiar mischief they’d always had. He looks so different, yet deep inside, the boy I knew is still there. The friendliness of his smile when this is the least amicable reunion reminds me so much of who he was and the ache I felt when my friend disappeared, leaving me with so many unanswered questions.
Though as the busy bar fades into the background, my vision focuses on him. Nash notices and his smirk only widens, causing Penny to let out a small gasp. I’m too stunned to look away.
“Fuck,” I curse mindlessly to myself when I realize he’s not a figment of my imagination, but here in the flesh, just three feet in front of me.
“I thought I’d lost you there, B.”
Not wanting to let him see further how much his presence is affecting me, since the smirk he’s giving me proves he knows exactly what my reaction means, I brush off my unease and rely on the sharp tongue I’ve embraced since he last saw me. That ought to throw him off kilter.
“What are you doing here, Bishop?”
He lets out a sharp chuckle, and the deep and husky sound makes my skin break out in goosebumps. Hold it together, B. “We’re back to Bishop now, I see. I shouldn't have expected a warm welcome. Never was the kind of greeting this town and its folk gave me.”
Now it’s my turn to laugh. “Not like it wasn’t deserved.”
“Ouch.” He feigns hurt, clutching his chest with one hand as he runs the other through his short beard. “She bites.”
I ignore his jab, aware he’s just trying to get a rise out of me. That was always his favorite pastime only before it was nearly impossible to do.
I was a level-headed girl, even as a teenager. It was rare for something to make my skin crawl or push me to the edge of an angry outburst. But now, it’s like everything about him makes me feel a sharp pang of anger like never before. Especially staring into those goddamn perfect eyes.
How the hell had Nash Bishop become the most beautiful man I’d ever seen?
Nash was gorgeous back then, but now, holy shit, the man is fucking irresistible.
He commands attention. His tall, muscular frame exudes confidence, while his broad shoulders speak of strength. His hair, wet and tousled, is short enough to showcase his chiseled features, yet long enough you can run your fingers through it and pull. His presence draws you in and his piercing gaze and strong jawline makes you swoon. Nash effortlessly combines rugged masculinity with a touch of danger. There’s no way to resist falling captive to his striking beauty, more so by the mystery that surrounds him.
Nash isn’t flawless and instead has a dark and dangerous appeal to him. There’s an undeniable allure, a magnetism that leaves you curious to uncover what lies hidden beneath his charismatic exterior. A few scars on his face give him an edge that show although the last decade has been physically good to him, he's had some hardships along the way.
The dark rugged sex appeal, along with the leather jacket and tattoos that snake around his neck and mark his knuckles, and I'm pretty sure continue underneath his clothing, prove Nash bishop is lethal.
Now a thirty-year-old man, not the twenty-year-old boy who broke my heart, Nash is surely capable of so much worse. I can’t let that happen, and that means not letting him anywhere near me.
I blink away my unruly thoughts, thoughts I should in no way be having about him, instead feign nonchalance. “Again, what are you doing here, Nash?”
His smile widens as if he can read my thoughts and knows what a complete phony I am. “Passing through town, I saw there was a new bar advertised as the best in all the Old North. I just had to drop in and check it out for myself. You see, I’ve become somewhat of a bar connoisseur.”
“I can see that,” I say, more of a jab at his new look. It’s easy to imagine Nash frequenting every bar he comes upon. “Well, it was nice seeing you again,” I lie, hoping he can’t see through the mask I’ve so foolishly thrown on. “Have a nice life, Bishop.”
The words leave me so effortlessly I almost believe them.
“Woah,” he calls out just as I try, and fail, to turn and walk away. “Where’s that southern charm and hospitality you pride yourself on, B? Magnolia King’s daughter would never turn away a thirsty and hungry young man.”
Now it’s my turn to laugh. Turning back to face him, I lean forward against the bar top, and notice his eyes immediately drop to the dip between my breasts. Yeah, opting for a sexy lace pushup bra to give the girls a boost in my top might not have been the best idea tonight, but at this moment, it’s working to my advantage.
“If you haven’t noticed, Nash, things around here have changed a bit in the past decade.”
His eyes move, looking me up and down with delight before zeroing in on the ink along my shoulder that twists like a vine across my upper arm—a rose vine with thorns and a honey bee nestled along one of the petals. It was the most intricate piece I’d gotten done thus far, but it was one I absolutely adored.
“I can see that,” he says, at a loss for words. It’s obvious he wasn't expecting me to look, well, anything like I do now. If it weren't for my blonde hair and blue eyes, I’d say I look nothing like the girl he once knew. Because I am nothing like her anymore.
“Not that you’d know given you’ve been gone all this time.”
The deep chuckle that leaves him resonates deep within me, straight to my core. Goosebumps erupt over my skin and I have to squeeze my thighs together to suppress the need coursing through me. It’s troubling that I'm this aroused by the mere sight and sound of his voice, and it makes me hate the asshole even more.
“Is that your way of saying you missed me, Angel?”
He winks, and for a moment, I’m stunned speechless. The sound of the word angel leaving his lips has me nearly collapsing from how much it hurt to have him call me that when it meant nothing more to him than a five letter word, he mindlessly threw around. Looking back at it now, it was said as an insult for my naivety and stupidity.
“Not a damn second, Bishop. It’s like you never existed.”
I know he doesn’t believe it, but for a split second, a flash of something resembling hurt passes over his expression. Or possibly regret? Though I don’t ponder on that one for too long.
Nash doesn’t look like a man who’d regret much. The glimpse of emotion is gone before I can decipher it, and even if I’d actually tried to, it’s like the man has perfected the mask he wears to hide any emotion he might feel.
Despite how my entire body is ablaze from the mere sight of him in those leather boots and jacket, his presence feels cold and distant. His expression remains solemn even through the teasing smirk he flashes my way when he catches me staring. Years of trauma and loneliness mark his skin like invisible ink tracing every scar the last ten years have left.
No amount of time or practice could hide the depth of the scars he’s gathered since the last time I laid eyes on him. He was always mischievous and carried forth an air of danger, but was also playful and kind with me whenever we were together. We were friends, at least I allowed myself to believe we were, but friends never looked at each other the way we did. Friends never betrayed one another and left without saying goodbye, which leads me to believe our friendship was one-sided and meant more to me than it ever had him.
“Bailey,” Penny murmurs, suddenly reminding me Nash and I are not alone in the bar and instead have every single patron, except old Earl who’s gone back to his bickering, meticulously watching us like we’re their form of entertainment for the night. By this time tomorrow, all of Crossroads will be privy to the conversation Nash and I are currently having.
“Can I get y’all some popcorn for the show too?” I shout, my sarcasm heavy and cold as I let my rage get the best of me. The look I get from a group of women closest to us is unmatched. I can only hope the dim lighting of the bar hides the red tint on my cheeks of embarrassment for how I’ve allowed myself to get so riled up by Nash I’m now insulting my customers.
I’m not rude, at least never to my customers or any individuals who didn’t betray me, and I’ve spent a decade hating. That’s just the feeling Nash incites within me. His mere presence is infuriating, especially the way he continues to watch me like I’ve grown another head and am not the same person he’s always known.
Mind you, I may look different, but that’s what time does to a person. Time might heal, but it also alters one's state of mind.
The band dives back into a rendition of Whiskey Glasses , as every patron’s gaze leaves us and suddenly the bar is once again alive with noise and chatter. No doubt every conversation is surely about us, though at least they’re no longer staring at me like I’m some circus clown.
I chance a look at Penny, who looks smitten as she stares at Nash. “Hi Nash,” she coos, her cheeks flaming pink the longer she stares.
“Penelope Taylor,” Nash says, his voice slick and sultry. Goddamnit, does he have to sound like everything coming out of his mouth is sexual? “It’s good to see you.”
I’m dumbstruck by the fact these two know each other, then remember Penny grew up in Crossroads before moving away. I can’t help being annoyed by the way she twirls a strand of her hair and gives him a shy smile.
I let out a scoff as I turn back to Penny, slightly more enraged than I should be. “Pen, like I said, write it off as miscellaneous cleaning expenses, and I’ll talk to Jase when he gets in tomorrow.”
My voice comes out sharper than I’d planned, but she gets the idea when she startles and her gaze leaves Nash. He chuckles behind me and I curse to myself for being so goddamn obvious. This man is unnerving, and it’s really annoying me.
Penny stutters as she speaks. “B, Jase won’t be back for a few days. I thought he’d told you?”
That’s newsworthy. No, my brother did not tell me he’ll be gone for a few days. “He asked me to come in for him tonight cause he needed the night off but never said anything about being gone for a few days.” I’m supposed to have tomorrow night off.
Penny’s nervousness comes back in full force. “I’m sorry, B. I thought you knew. He said something about going down to Raleigh for a few days to meet with some new buyer.”
“Thanks, Penny. I’ll give him a call. I’m sure he just forgot to mention it.” She nods and heads back into the office we share down the long corridor to the right of us.
I close my eyes and pray that Nash gets a hint and is no longer standing behind me, though when he says my name, my entire body reacts.
“It’s good to see you, Bailey King.”
My heart skips a beat as my name leaves his lips. The stupid little girl who harbored a major crush on him suddenly appears after I’ve spent the last decade trying to bury her far beneath the surface. How is it he still has that pull with me? And why is he here torturing me when he knew exactly how I felt about him and left anyway?
“Wish I could say the same, Bishop.”
Once again he feigns he’s wounded, his playful demeanor back as he taunts me. “What happened to you, B?” he asks, leaning in closer. I’m hit with a whiff of his scent and have to stop myself from closing my eyes to indulge in how good it feels to have him close to me. “Where’s the sweet Southern Belle who never swore or broke the rules? Cause the woman I’m staring at right now,” he groans, playfully licking his lips as his gaze travels down my body and back up. “She’s definitely not the same one.”
Reminded of how much what he did influenced the changes I made, I put back into place the walls he nearly tore down with the sweetness in his tone and reinforce them with the pain his betrayal caused.
“Time, Nash. Ten years of it,” I say, and immediately his smile drops. “It broke the stupid girl's spirit and showed her the harsh reality of the world. She took off her rose-colored lenses and started seeing life for what it was. You say you don’t recognize the girl you knew, but I’ve spent more time being her than anyone else. You just weren’t here to see it.”
I leave him with that, not bothering to serve him up a drink or waste any more of my time and energy trying to kick him out. No, it's not worth the trouble or rumors that would surely spread through town and get back to my mama.
The day Nash left, it was like everyone in Crossroads, except me, was better for it. Mama and my daddy were relieved he was no longer around to influence Jase and get him into trouble. Not to mention after they found out how I felt about him, given the months I spent crying myself to sleep after his departure, they were relieved he left before he could taint their precious daughter.
Little did they know, he already had.
It took me six months to give up on begging my brother to tell me where he’d gone. Jase seemed angry with him, and couldn't care less where he’d disappeared to. It was odd, but deep down, I knew it was my fault. Something must have happened that night after Nash admitted it was a mistake and stalked out of his room like I’d just killed his puppy.
I ran out of there faster than I thought possible and for months remained too distraught to pay any attention to the rumors circulating around town after he left.
Some said he’d gotten arrested. Others claimed he ran off with a band of outlaws, while few blamed it on the rivalry between his father and mine.
That last theory was almost proved correct after, little by little, the Bishops nearly all left Crossroads, with only Monty and Monroe staying behind. Franklin Bishop, the patriarch of the Bishop Clan, was a recluse who kept to himself and never left his property, while Monty was the one and only Bishop the town could stand being around. Maybe it was because he was a decent guy and was always around to lend a helping hand where needed.
As for Monroe, after her mother Delia left, I think the town just felt sorry for her. Though, I’m slightly afraid how her pregnancy, once the rumors circulate, will affect that reputation. Not that it matters or any of us care about it. We love Monroe, but she’s the kind of girl to let something like that bring her down.
I decide now’s the time to head back into the kitchen and check on Parker to make sure everything’s set for the dinner rush we’re about to have when my phone rings. Without looking down, I already know it’s going to be Billie. News travels fast in this town and I don't doubt she’s already heard that Nash walked into my bar.
“ Hello ,” I answer in greeting.
“ Bailey King, please tell me what they say is true? You know I hate to gossip ,” I laugh at the absurdity of my best friend, who is the number one gossip queen, at least maybe second behind Abilene down at the convenience store. “ But I just couldn’t sit still once Abilene told me she saw Nash Bishop stop in at the shop earlier today .”
Well, that proves my point.
“ I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about, Bills. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll call you later when I’m not working. ”
Billie shrieks, the sound so loud I have to pull the phone away from my ear to not burst an eardrum. “ Don’t you dare hang up on me, woman! Not without confirming Nash Bishop is, in fact, back from the dead .”
Laughter echoes in the small hallway I’ve walked into. “ Quit the dramatics Billie. He wasn’t dead. Just because no one in Crossroads had heard from him, doesn’t mean we didn’t know he was alive .”
After all, Monroe is Nash’s little sister. Although she has spoken little to him since he left and has seen him as many times as I have in the last ten years, she’s kept in touch with Beau and Theo, who seemed to be the only ones who’ve regularly seen him.
“ Well, there was that time in college when, for like two months, Monroe thought something horrible had happened to him. Remember? Beau made a comment about how last he’d heard he was in California during that crazy wildfire that lasted nearly three weeks till they finally could put it out? ”
The woman isn’t only the queen of the gossip mill, but she has a memory that would give the most distinguished historians a run for their money. “I’m hanging up now, Billie. Sunday dinner rush is about to start and apparently my dear brother and co-owner decided to take the next few days off without consulting me.”
“ Wait, I thought you had tomorrow off? ”
“ Yeah, so did I. Though Penny said Jase told her he’d be gone for a few days. I’m about to call him and give him hell for not telling me anything about his trip, and hopefully get Leo to come in tomorrow and run the inventory, or I’ll be working again. ”
At least with the bar closed, I’ll only need someone to come in and do some organizing and restocking, and help Penny with inventory.
“ That brother of yours needs to own up to some of the responsibility this business requires from him. Your mama spoiled the boy for too long, turning him into a man who, at thirty, has a lot left until he reaches maturity. ”
“ Research shows a man’s brain isn’t fully developed until thirty-two so, I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt for another year or two before I call it. ”
Feeling like I’m being watched, I chance a glance over my shoulder toward the bar where I left Nash, and find his eyes glued to me. He’s got a beer in his hands now, one Kellie probably gave him once I walked away, and has made himself way too comfortable on one of the bar stools.
Noticing he has no intention of leaving, I hang up the phone with Billie and head back into the kitchen.
Hopefully, after tonight, I never have to look Nash Bishop in the eyes again.