Chapter 20
Twenty
Tweetie
I got outvoted. Of course I did, because all these couples want a chill night at Peeper’s Alley rather than to go to a club.
Which leaves me in the back room, sitting at a table and watching Decker and Tedi play darts against the reigning champs, Jade and Henry.
There are pitchers of beer on the table and glasses of wine sprinkled around. It’s casual, and no one is getting drunk.
Tedi winds her arm around Decker’s neck, hugging him to her body, and the urge to grab a bottle of whiskey and find a dark corner is greater than ever.
Ruby comes in and eyes me sitting here and not really talking, but she detours over to the smaller tables, picking up the empty cups. Decker is in her way, and she stops and glares at him. “Why are you here?”
He laughs and draws back. “I’m Decker,” he says, holding out his hand.
She just stares at his outstretched hand, then looks at me, then at Tedi before her gaze settles on Decker only. “I know who you are. That wasn’t my question.”
“He’s my boyfriend,” Tedi answers for him, leaning her head on his shoulder.
She used to do that to me all the time, and it sometimes made me feel like a childhood stuffed animal she could never part with.
“Boyfriend?” Ruby clarifies.
Tedi nods. “Do you want me to help you clean up the empties?”
“Be nice, Ruby,” Kyleigh singsongs from next to me.
Ruby can be protective. She knows who Tedi is to me. I got drunk one night and spilled my guts to her about the one who meant the most to me, who I couldn’t keep. So when Tedi showed up here, Ruby already knew who and what she was to me, so her back was already up. I almost feel sorry for Decker. Almost, but not quite.
“I take offense to that, Kyleigh.” She never looks in Kyleigh’s direction, keeping her eyes on Decker. “You’re the new guy, so you get to help me clean up. Take some glasses.”
Decker glares at Tedi, and she looks back at him somewhat sheepishly. What the fuck? I hardly ever got that look from her.
“I’ll help,” Tedi says.
“No, you won’t. He plays the hot spot well. He can surely handle a few glasses.” Ruby turns around without saying anything else.
Ruby is like a bossy grandma, and it’s just easier to do what she wants than to argue. Decker must realize that, so he picks up the empty pitchers and a few glasses, following her out.
Tedi watches him as though he’s on his way to the electric chair. What the fuck is that about? He can handle himself. She doesn’t need to baby him.
“Come and sit here,” Eloise says, patting the spot next to her at the table.
Tedi grabs her glass of beer and sits down, purposely avoiding any eye contact with me, though I know she can feel my gaze on her.
“So, tell us a little about you. You live in New York?” Eloise leans back, allowing Kyleigh into the conversation.
Soon, Jade kicks Rowan out of his seat, and the four women are all talking to one another.
This is the problem with the back room. It’s too quaint, too close of quarters, so now I have to hear about Tedi’s life as an eavesdropper rather than her telling me alone over an intimate dinner like it used to be.
Decker comes back holding a tray of shots and sets them down in front of us. He sees there’s no chair by Tedi, so he takes the open one between Conor and me.
“Is she always so pushy with the shots? She just made me do two at the bar. Said it was some ritual because I’m new?” Decker looks between the two of us.
Conor laughs. “You never know with Rubes.” He smacks Decker on the back. “She warms up eventually.”
“Well, she wants us all to take a shot.” Decker picks up the shots and passes them around. “She said this is for you, Rowan.” He puts one that was set away from the rest on the tray in front of Rowan.
“Why are we doing shots?” Henry asks. “I have a kid who’s going to wake my ass up at six tomorrow morning.”
“Just do the shot,” I say, lifting my shot glass.
All the girls pick up theirs.
“Welcome to Peeper’s, Tedi and Decker,” I say.
We all clink and down the shots. I probably love the burn a little too much. To be honest, I would love to numb my mind tonight, so when Ruby comes back through with another tray of shots, I don’t groan and complain like the others.
“Fuck, I feel like I’m at my twenty-first birthday,” Decker says, picking up his beer.
“You should feel honored. She didn’t do this to me when I joined the team.” Conor shrugs.
Tedi is making all the girls laugh with her stories, as she always does.
Wanting to crawl out of my skin, I head to the bathroom. Peeper’s isn’t busy, since it’s a weekday night, so there’s no line and no women waiting to get a glimpse of us when we leave the back room.
Ruby flags me down at a table she’s cleaning. “I have another round of shots for you guys.”
I stop and cross my arms, staring at her. “What are you doing, Ruby?”
She shrugs. “Did you know she had a boyfriend?”
I shake my head.
She sets the glasses back on the table. “You’ve been dodging me. Haven’t seen you since she showed up here.” Sliding a chair out to sit down, she eyes the chair across from her.
“Sorry, Ruby, you haven’t given me enough alcohol to sit here and pour my heart out again.”
“Okay. Don’t forget to get the tray on your way back in then.” She stands, picks up the glasses, and walks away.
I go to the bathroom, and on my way back to the room, I grab the tray of shots off the bar.
Henry sighs when he sees the tray in my hands. “Fuck this. We’re out.”
Jade joins him, grabbing her purse. “We’re leaving, but let’s plan the shopping trip maybe Friday night. I’ll get a babysitter.” She hugs Tedi. “You don’t mind, Decker, do you? Us stealing your girl on a Friday night?”
“You can have her Saturday too.” Decker’s eyes are a little glazed over, and I’m pretty sure he’s on his way to being drunk.
“Stop joking, Decker,” Tedi practically growls, and Conor eyes me. “Friday sounds great.”
“We’re out too,” Rowan stands.
“Don’t let him bully Boardwalk away from you,” Conor says, and I laugh. Decker looks confused.
“Snatch up the railroads and utilities,” I say, and Conor laughs harder.
“Fuck you both.” Rowan flips us off.
Kyleigh puts on her jacket before hugging Eloise and Tedi goodbye.
They’ve really welcomed Tedi into their friend group. It was probably a mistake to ask them to come out tonight. I should have kept Tedi away from my friends. Did I learn nothing in Florida?
“I have to use the restroom.” Decker gets up, wobbling for a second before he straightens.
“Want me to take you?” Tedi asks. “Jeez, how much have you had?”
“Why don’t you ask the bartender who’s been feeding me drinks all night for whatever reason?”
“It’s okay to possibly offend people and say no, Decker.” Tedi rises from her chair, but he puts his hand in the air.
“I’m good.”
She sits back down, and we all watch Decker leave.
Eloise gives Conor a look, then he’s sliding his chair out from the table. “I’m beat. See you tomorrow. Tedi, it was nice spending time with the one who…” Eloise cuts him a look. “You. It was nice spending time with you.”
Eloise whispers something in Tedi’s ear, and Tedi waves off whatever she said. “I’ve got to get Decker home. I think he’s had too much anyway.”
Conor nods at Tedi before he and Eloise leave the room, shutting the door behind them.
Now, it’s just the two of us. I either do this now or never.
I swallow hard. “I’m sorry for my comment I made at the restaurant.”
She meets my gaze, and I see the tension lining her body. “Nothing you said was untrue. Fucking a baseball player was on my list.”
I pick up the last lonely shot on the table and down it. “I assume you can get him home?” I stand and grab my coat.
“I’ll be fine.”
I nod and push through the chairs toward the door. My hand clenches around the metal doorknob.
Just leave. There’s nothing else you need to say. This is for the best. The more she hates you, the easier this will all be.
“Thank you,” she says so quietly that I wouldn’t even hear her if other people were in the room. “I’m sorry too.”
I turn around and our gazes meet. How did we ever get here?
“I don’t want this,” I admit, waving a finger between us.
“Me either, but…”
I nod because she doesn’t have to say anything else. I get it. I understand exactly what she’s thinking.
“We can do this, can’t we?” I ask.
She shrugs. “We were never just friends.”
I huff. She’s right, we never were. “Maybe that’s what we were meant to be?”
A painful expression crosses her face, and I regret my words. If I had to do it all over again, I’d change a lot of things, but never allowing myself to have her as more than a friend in my life is not one of them.
“I’ll try harder,” I say.
“Me too.”
The door opens, and I step out of the way before it hits me. Decker comes in looking white as a ghost.
“I’m leaving. Are you coming or not?” he asks Tedi.
She stands quickly, grabbing her coat. “Yeah, let me get you home, babe.”
My insides clench with the pet name.
She walks by me, giving me a soft smile.
“You sure you got it?” I’m ready to help her, though leaving her at his place would kill me.
“Yeah. We’re good.”
Decker gives me a nod and a wave before they leave.
I pick up all the empty glasses and take them to the bar, continuing to dodge Ruby, before heading up to my place to try to get Tedi out of my head and not think about her and Decker sharing a bed tonight.