22. Twenty-Two
Twenty-Two
Cash
It had been a while since I had been to The Steel, even though Lachlan and I said we would go. This was the first time I walked through the doors since the last time with Sylas. That was six—damn—maybe seven years ago. It looked exactly the same down to the hats on the rafters. Kyla ran to the corner booth, dragging Rhett behind her. Quinn gave my shoulder a pat and then headed to the bar top, to wave down the bartender. Wyatt slipped past me, steps behind Quinn—hopefully to buy the first round—and I walked smoothly to the booth and slid in after Lachlan.
The Steel smelled like cheap beer and burgers, the sound from the grill getting heavier once a waitress opened the doors, carrying the source of the smell.
“And why did you tell us at dinner?” I asked, watching as the burgers floated by me. “You could have told everyone before, and then we could have come here to eat.”
“Well, we weren’t planning on coming here.” Rhett leaned back and pulled Kyla into his side. “I had other plans.” He nuzzled his nose into her hair.
“Which can still happen.” Kyla kissed him. There was no denying what she was referring to. Her cheeks were deep red by the time she turned back to me, her eyes beginning to search the room. “Where’s Abi?”
I twisted around, looking towards the front door. She rode with Wyatt, so I was surprised to not see her after he made his way in.
“Bathroom maybe.” Lachlan looked over to the bar where Wyatt was now eyeing a group of girls, not ordering drinks. “How long is it going to take him?”
“Well, did you really trust Wyatt with drinks?” Kyla began to scootch from the booth. “I got it. Cash, whatcha’ drinkin?”
“Just whatever is on tap.”
“I’ll get you the local brew.” Kyla smiled.
“Hey Ky…” Lachlan held up his hand.
“I know, I know.” She tapped the brim of his hat, reminding him to remove it. “Coke with a shot of whiskey. Be right back.”
I stood with the goal of helping the pregnant lady with the drinks, when I was instantly stopped in my tracks.
Abi was at the bar, standing next to Kyla, the brightest sparkle in her expression. I hadn’t seen her since she had left the table after dinner. She went to change, and when I saw her last, her hair was still in the messy bun, and the tips of her boots were covered in mud, but now…
Dark leggings hugged her thighs, and brown boots reached almost to her knee. A blue button down shirt was knotted at her waist, a white tank top peeking through. Her messy bun was now in a perfect mermaid braid that hung over her left shoulder. Her blue eyes shone brighter than any other in the place, and she laughed as Kyla ordered, the sweet sound floating through the crowd even here to me.
She was radiant.
I couldn’t look away.
I was stunned, and my bones melted. Thank God the booth was right next to me because before I knew it, I was sitting back down.
“And why are you looking at my sister like that?”
Rhett’s question pulled me from my stupor.
“I’m not,” I snapped, my defenses rising. I totally was…
“Yeah, you are,” Lachlan agreed. “You have been now for weeks.”
“We’ve all caught on.” Rhett shook his head, leaning on the table.
“Caught on to what?” A softer voice rang in my ears.
And that was Abi, standing at the front of the table, her eyes locked with mine.
“Nothing,” I said, my voice heavy.
Abi lifted her chin, motioning for Lach and me to move over so she could weasel her way in next to us. She placed a shot glass in front of Lachlan and a pint in front of me. She had her drink in her hand, an Arnold Palmer she probably spiked with vodka—that was her drink, always. I swallowed as I watched her mouth touch the glass, the clear lip-gloss making her lips look even more plump and perfect in this lighting.
I cleared my throat and glanced at Rhett. He was safer, I wouldn't get all flustered looking at him, but his eyes were focused on me, his eyebrow raised almost to his hairline as he pulled Kyla in close.
“You may have to go save Quinn.” Kyla let out a small laugh. “Wyatt is working his way down the bar, and I swear he’s had eyes for her since he got back.”
With that statement pulling me from my Abi-fog, I whipped my head to the bar, relieved when I saw Quinn talking to somebody other than Wyatt. “He talks to her, he dies,” I grumbled, lifting my glass. Sure, Quinn was ‘just a client’, but she was young and didn’t need Wyatt Hartwell making moves.
“Ha,” Lachlan barked. “She’ll turn him down.”
“I love how it was his idea to come here, yet he’s not celebrating with us,” I pointed out.
“Nah,” Abi chuckled. “He just wanted a designated driver.”
“But he drove?” I raised a brow, finally taking a swig of beer.
“Most likely he’ll leave his truck here, or I’ll drive him home,” Abi remarked.
“Who wants to bet he leaves with…” Rhett leaned forward, his eyes searching around The Steel. “Her.” He pointed to a blonde that was currently giving Wyatt the look.
Furrowing my brow, I turned to Abi. “Didn’t know The Steel was a tourist spot.”
“It’s not,” she replied. “People from the city come here for the experience.”
I rolled my eyes and turned back to the table. Lachlan’s shot glass was empty, and he was now sipping the Coke Kyla had brought him. Kyla had water with lemon, and Abi was already half done with her Arnold Palmer. Then there was me with my beer still full, only the one sip missing, when I normally would have chugged down the first half in five minutes.
“So,” Abi began, leaning across the table to Kyla. “Names. Tell me names.”
“Well, if it’s a boy…” Rhett began.
“Nope.” Kyla put her hand over his mouth. “We’re not telling until they are born.”
“What! Everyone had a say in Stetson’s name,” Abi protested.
“You named him after your favorite hat,” Lachlan piped up.
“I did not. Besides, a Stetson was Sylas’s favorite hat. I wanted to name him something different, something Sylas’s Latina mom would approve of, but no. He wanted to go country like his dad did while naming him. Sylas isn’t exactly a traditional Hispanic name.” Abi chuckled, most likely enjoying the memory of her husband. “So we compromised. Stetson Alejandro Acosta. Martina protested once we told her the name, she wanted us to flip it. Alejandro was her father's name.”
“See.” Kyla pointed at Abi. “The way you said his mom protested. I don’t want anyone judging our names before they are born, and yes, we’ve picked them already.” With the same hand she had pointed at her sister-in-law, Kyla rested her chin on her fist, narrowing her eyes at Abi.
“Once Rhett’s tongue gets a little looser, he’ll let us know,” Lachlan said smoothly.
“In that case, come on Mr. Hartwell. Let’s go play pool.” Kyla grabbed her husband’s forearm and dragged him from the booth.
“She’s going to beat his ass.” Abi moved to the other side of the table, her gaze meeting mine in an instant.
I felt my knees shake again. I couldn’t get over how stunning she looked, how absolutely perfect. If I thought there was something going on before—those times when I almost kissed her, those times when I did touch my lips to her skin—looking at her now there was one hundred percent something going on with me and this woman. Saying it out loud to Sylas’s grave this morning just made it more solid, more true. I wanted to push Lachlan out of the booth, wrap her in my arms and kiss her senseless. I wanted to taste the lemonade on her tongue and feel her skin under my fingertips.
Yeah…everyone most definitely caught on to the looks I was giving her. There was no hiding them now as we held each other’s gazes.
Lachlan elbowed me slightly. “This is awkward as fuck. I’m going to go play darts.” His elbow hit deeper in my side, forcing me out of the booth. I stood and watched as Lachlan left. And now, Abi and I were alone.
Did the air with us get that thick that fast, or was Lachlan just being polite and letting me have a moment with her?
Abi lifted her half empty glass to me. “To Sylas?”
I clinked her glass. “To Sylas.”
“Do you think he would be happy Kyla shared the news today?” Abi asked, a slight tilt to her. “You know he loved having the attention on him.”
I nodded, “One hundred percent. I think as long as we are celebrating something, he’d be happy. He knows we love and miss him. He would be thrilled to know that we were drinking to a pregnant lady. He’d drink more just for her.” I leaned my head back, hoping to pull off the same kind of enthusiasm Sylas would have had.
She smiled. “He would have been. You’re right—that man just wanted to party for everything.”
“Stet got his enthusiasm. After helping me with Quinn’s practice, he was jumping, asking me when I could get him on the back of a bucking horse.”
“Oh God,” Abi grumbled. “He loves the rodeo. He wants to do it all.”
“Kid asked if we could watch my old rodeo videos.”
“I think seeing you in the arena the other day gave him that idea. He’s absolutely enamored with you.”
“Enamored?”
“Extremely. When you leave, the kid will lose it.”
“Enamored,” I parroted once more, the word ingraining itself in my mind. Then—stupidly, I didn’t think before I spoke. “Wanna know who I’m finding myself enamored with?”
“Let me guess, Stetson? You love him just as much as he loves you,” she asked, leaning back in the booth.
I laughed, lowered my chin, and shook my head lightly. “No, not Stetson.” I lifted my gaze. “You, Abi.”
She froze, and her lips slightly parted as she tried to find the words. So far, I had called her beautiful, almost kissed her—twice—and now I was basically telling her I was falling for her. Saying it out loud to Sylas this afternoon was only the beginning. Now that he knew, all that was left to do was let her know exactly what was on my mind. Her. Always her.
“Was that too forward?” I asked, making sure my tone was strong, confident. I had to be confident here, especially if I was really going through with this. I didn’t want to tiptoe around this anymore. I didn’t want to question how I was feeling.
Dammit, I knew how I was feeling—and all of me thought she was feeling it too.
She shook her head and moved fast, her fingers going to her drink. I narrowed my gaze and watched as she picked it up and chugged the rest of it down.
“Hey,” I said, reaching across the table to take her hand.
Her fingers floated around mine, and she inhaled, pulling her hand back to her lap. “Wanna play darts?”
She stood, leaving her empty glass on the table to join Lachlan and the dart board. I slipped from the booth, grabbing her hand again before she could get any closer to her cousin.
“No, I wanna dance.” I spun her close, stopping for a brief moment to allow myself to feel her against me, before I led her to the open area where other couples were already dancing. I saw Rhett watching us as I wrapped my arm around her waist, pulling her closer to me once more, her warmth spreading over me. To my surprise, her hand squeezed mine as her other reach up and sat softly on my shoulder. She fit against me like a glove, like she was meant to be there.
Two pieces to a puzzle.
“You don’t dance,” Abi whispered.
“I dance.” I pressed my check to her temple, thankful that a slow song started the moment I got her on the dance floor. Some female country singer rang in my ears, my senses filling with her cinnamon and maple fragrance. “I just never danced with you.”
“Well.” She hummed, raising her chin and arching her back to look at me. “You’re not missing much. I’m not a good dancer.”
“That’s alright, I’ll lead you.”
She shook with her inhale, her body stiffened. She was trying to relax into my touch, to let me take the lead, but I could see her fight response was taking over. I swallowed, and once again pulled up that courage.
“Sorry,” I mumbled.
“For?” she asked, lifting her chin.
“If I’m being too…”
“Forward?” She parroted my apology from moments ago. “You’re not,” She said simply.
“I’m not?”
“Could I be for a moment?” She raised her chin, the questioning look on her face throwing me for a complete loop.
What’s going on inside that head Abi Acosta? “Be my guest.”
“What happened between you and Carolyn? Why did she leave? Why did you…celebrate?”
I raised my eyebrows, completely off guard. There were too many reasons to go into. One—I wasn’t what she wanted; I no longer belonged to that upscale life she craved. Two—we weren’t good for each other. We never were. I settled, trying to find the same happiness that Sylas had with Abi. Three—my accident changed more than just my ability to compete in the rodeo…and, well…that reason was better left unsaid.
“That’s a complicated answer, one I’m not sure we have time for.”
“No holding back Cash. You can tell me anything.” I felt her fingers brush against the nape of my neck as her eyes bore into me.
“Anything?” I smiled. “In that case, can I be more forward?”
“How?” Abi raised a single eyebrow.
“By not holding back.”
“And what exactly are you holding back?”
“Everything.” I said softly, just loud enough for her to hear. I was holding back more than just my past with Carolyn. I didn’t want to talk about the past in this moment. I wanted to be present with Abi.
She arched her back slightly. “Everything?”
I gave her a single nod and flattened my hand against the small of her back, pulling her even closer to me.
“I’ve always thought you were beautiful, gorgeous, stunning .” I swayed us, my eyes locking with hers. “Even when you’re deep in a stable, mud on your shoes, and shit under your fingernails, you’re the most gorgeous person in the bar. No woman would amount to you. Ever. I consider myself lucky just to be dancing with you now.”
She let out a soft laugh. “Next thing I know you’re going to tell me you were jealous of Sylas.”
I took a deep breath. “I won’t lie and say I never had some feelings when it came to you.” I let out a small chuckle with my breath. “Hell, I hit on you.” Abi rolled her eyes at me, her head turning to the side. Using my thumb and forefinger, I gently brought her attention back to me. “But you and Sylas, that was love. I was never ever jealous of him. You belonged with him in every sense of the word. I was jealous of the next guy. The guy who got to comfort you when you felt alone. The guy who kissed away your fears and laughed when you were happy. The guy who spent time with you in the stables, who watched you flourish after losing so much. I was jealous of the man after Sylas.”
She stopped swaying, forcing me to still.
“There was never a man after Sylas,” she said nervously, a slight shake to her voice.
“I didn’t know that. After Carolyn…after that whole disaster…I would think of you, that maybe…I could come and show you how much I cared for you. But the thought always hit me that you were already happy with someone else.”
“I…” Abi stumbled. “I wasn’t.”
“You could have been. You could have had any guy, though none of them would have deserved you. You’re perfect Abi, in every way. I’ve known that since the first moment I saw you, and I’ve wanted to show you that. From the second I saw you again, after years…I knew those feelings I’ve carried…they’ve never gone away. But I was never going to be deserving of you. So, no.” My eyes began to search her, noticing the way her lips parted and the way her chest rose with each breath. “I was never, ever jealous of Sylas. I was jealous of that guy who was going to be next. The guy you deserved.”
“The guy I deserve,” she repeated, before she rose, and her lips crashed into mine.