Willow
willow
H e wasn’t lying—it really was trivia night. Neon lights illuminated the otherwise dark bar, and music blasted from the jukebox in the back. But it was the overwhelming chatter that made it impossible to hear what Trinity was saying.
I leaned forward, straining to hear her. The barstool rocked slightly, and my heart leapt into my throat—it had been doing it since the second I sat down, and if I wasn’t careful, I knew I’d tumble to the floor.
“Have you been here before?” Trinity shouted, leaning across the table. Her blonde hair swayed with her movements, darker at the roots and nearly white at the ends. She smiled brightly, her glossy pink lips reflecting the blue and yellow lights.
“A few times.”
Every time with Gracie.
We came to karaoke night once, but every other time it had just been to grab a couple drinks. The first time we came out was when I finished my first week at the Sugar Shack. The bar had been dead. We ate the greasy food, drank until we were tipsy, and sang along to our favorite songs until our throats were too raw to speak the next day. At the time, I didn’t know she had just left her abusive ex-boyfriend and was in desperate need to have fun. To be free.
It was the first time I felt like I’d belonged here, like I hadn’t made a total mistake leaving Ohio. She’d made me feel welcome, introducing me to everyone like we’d been lifelong friends. That was when I decided she was my best friend.
I’d never had one before, and I was glad she was my first and only.
A curvy woman with fire engine red hair appeared from thin air and threw her arm around Trinity’s shoulders as she sank onto the stool beside her. Trinity didn’t seem alarmed at all as she let out a loud, excited scream and wrapped her arms around the other woman.
“I didn’t think you were gonna make it!” she shouted, and the woman flashed her a grin.
“Like I’d miss trivia night. We have to take those fuckers down.” She jerked her thumb over her shoulder, and I followed the movement, finding a small group of men in the opposite corner glaring at us. “They’re our rivals.”
It took me a moment to realize she was speaking to me. When her words sank in, I laughed. When no one else did, I let it slowly die. “Wait, really? You have trivia rivals?”
“They’re from Blackrock Bay,” Trinity said, resting her forearms on the table. Wasn’t she hot wearing a jacket in here? I was in a dress, but felt sweat coating every inch of my skin.She had to be burning up in a hoodie and jeans.
“Here,” Ronan muttered, sliding the tray of drinks onto the table. “I am never ordering that drink again, Trin. That was so embarrassing. Morgan gave me so much shit for it.”
She cackled as she threw her head back. The sound was infectious, and I couldn’t help but laugh along with her.
“Vodka cran, extra lime.” He handed me my drink, and I smiled my thanks as he sat beside me, grabbing his bottle of beer by the neck. He took a long swig, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. “I didn’t know you were coming, or I would’ve gotten you a drink.” The redhead waved her hand dismissively.
“No problem, Ro.” Her gaze flicked to me, but she said nothing. “I ordered one before I came over here.” He grunted noncommittally, his eyes still sweeping over the bar.
“Anything exciting happen?” he asked, and she shook her head.
“We were just telling about our Blackrock Bay foes,” she said, and he groaned.
“You know my name?” I blurted, and her red glossy lips spread into a wide smile.
“Of course. You’re Ro’s new girlfriend.”
My entire body flushed with heat, and he made a choking sound, slamming his fist into the center of his chest. “She’s not my girlfriend,” he croaked, wiping his mouth with his hand.
“I mean, you’re dating, right?” Trinity asked, taking a sip of her fruity drink. I wasn’t sure what all was in it, but I think there were at least six different types of liquor and all the fruit juices available.
Ronan and I glanced at each other, and I shrugged. I didn’t know how he wanted to play this. I just needed him for a weekend; he was the one who went all in.
“Technically,” he muttered. I dropped my gaze to my drink, letting my fingers glide along the smooth, wet surface.
“Don’t sound too excited there,” the redhead laughed. “I’m Brynne, by the way.” Her hand stretched across the table, and I took it, giving it a gentle shake.
“.”
“I know,” she said teasingly, and I huffed out a breathy laugh.
I risked a look at Ronan, finding him scowling as he stared at the groups of people around the bar. Why had I agreed to come? It was obvious he didn’t want to be here—or maybe it was me he didn’t want here. Either way, he didn’t look like he was having a good time at all.
“Oh, it’s starting!” Trinity squealed, pointing at the stage. Slowly, the music faded to a dull background noise and people began quieting down.
“Blackrock Bay is our rival because The Taphouse is right on the border of our towns. Cedar Ridge thinks the bar is our territory, Blackrock Bay thinks it’s theirs,” Ronan explained, leaning close. His shoulder pressed against mine for a fleeting moment, then it was gone like it never happened.
“Why does it matter?” I asked, pushing my brows together. He shrugged.
“No idea. But everyone treats these nights like life or death. Which is why I come every week with the girls. I have to keep an eye on things—we’ve had one too many brawls here.”
My eyes widened. “Are you serious?” I asked, and he nodded, taking a swig of his beer. The lights reflected through the amber glass, muddying the colors.
“People take their bar games very seriously.”
“Is everyone here?” the man on stage said into the mic. He glanced at the paper in his hands as a few groups around the small bar cheered, Trinity the loudest of them all. “Beaver Eaters?” He looked around as he sighed. “I said to keep the names PG, guys. Come on.”
“That’s no fun!” Trinity hollered, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify her voice.
“I should’ve known this was your team,” he grumbled, and she shook her head.
“No way! We’re Sherlock Homies!” she shouted back. I couldn’t help the laugh that escaped, and I clamped my hand over my mouth. She shot me a sly look and winked before facing forward again.
“Who are the Beaver Eaters, then?” he asked, sounding extremely tired. His blond hair was picked up in a loose man-bun at the back of his head, pieces falling messily around his face. He had to be around my age and was nearly as tall as Ronan, but much thinner.
“We are!” an older man from behind us shouted.
“Poor Tommy!” Brynne laughed. “One day he’s going to shut these game nights down.”
“He’d never do that,” Ronan said. “He pretends like it’s a nightmare, but he loves this shit.”
“Alright, and we have Ash Kickers?” Tommy said, and the Blackrock Bay crowd cheered and clapped. “Great. And our last team…The Beavers They Eat. Seriously?” He turned his attention toward a group of older women cackling in the opposite corner from Beaver Eaters.
“This is insane,” I muttered to Ronan, and he grunted his agreement.
“The Beavers They Eat are Beaver Eaters wives,” he explained, and another laugh bubbled up my throat. I had never seen anything like this before.
Tommy walked us through the rules as a waitress passed out dry erase boards to each team. Trinity snatched it up, immediately writing our team’s name along the top.
“Have you ever played trivia before?” Brynne asked, sipping her drink.
“No.” I pressed my lips into an apologetic smile. “Sorry if I make you lose.” She waved dismissively.
“We’ll win. Don’t worry.” She winked. Confidence oozed from her, and I straightened my shoulders, trying to gain just a tiny bit of what she had.
Tommy dragged a barstool up to the mic and slid onto it, clutching the paper in his hand. “Remember, you have only twenty seconds to answer,” he said, and everyone made some type of agreement sound.
For some reason, nerves twisted my stomach. I didn’t know what I was so anxious about. This was just a fun game—it meant nothing. But a part of me wanted to win.
Okay, a massive part of me wanted to win. Every fiber of my being wanted to wipe the floor with the other teams.
I took another sip of my drink, letting the cool, sweet liquid slide down my throat and settle in my belly. Resting my forearms on the table, I leaned forward as Tommy cleared his throat.
“Let’s start easy,” he said. “How many time zones are in Russia?”
I snapped my head toward Ronan. “That’s easy?” I blurted, and he chuckled.
“I take it you don’t know the answer?” Trinity asked, and I shook my head. She turned toward Ronan.
“Eleven,” he declared.
“What?” I shook my head. “How do you know that? You made that up.”
“It’s eleven.” He spoke with so much confidence, I almost believed him.
“No way,” I said. Trinity’s narrowed eyes flicked between us.
“I don’t know, big bro. She’s making me second-guess your answer.”
“Time’s up!” Tommy called. Trinity cursed under her breath as she jotted an answer down and turned toward the stage. “Let’s see your boards.” She held up the dry erase board as Ronan took a sip of his beer. “The answer is eleven.” He gave me a smug look as I gawked at him. “First point to Ash Kickers!”
Trinity groaned as she fell over the table. “What did you put?” Ronan asked.
“Four,” she grumbled.
“Should’ve listened to me.”
“I’m so sorry,” I breathed, but she waved me off as she erased the words.
“Next question,” Tommy said, and we all turned our attention toward him. “What was the first Disney movie?”
Trinity immediately began writing. “What is it?” Ronan asked.
“ Snow White ,” Trinity and I said together. He glanced at me, a silent question in his eyes.
“I like Disney movies.” I shrugged. “Sue me.”
We ended up tying with The Beavers They Eat, and Tommy gave us a tiebreaker question.
“How many stones remain at Stonehenge?”
“That is an insane question,” Brynne said, and I nodded my agreement.
“It can’t be that many,” Ronan said.
“What, like fifteen?” Trinity asked, glancing over her shoulder at Tommy. “Come on, we have like five seconds left.”
“Forty,” Ronan blurted. “Put forty.” The urgency in his voice made excitement shoot through my body at lightning speed, and I laughed softly, leaning closer to him. His warmth, his scent, his energy, was addicting.
Under the table, his thigh pressed against mine, and my heart jumped into my throat. I tried not to make it obvious that I was freaking out—but I was.
“Oh, no one got that correct,” Tommy muttered. “The right answer is eighty-three.”
“Do over!” Trinity cried, punching her fist into the air. “Do over!”
“No do overs,” he sighed.
She cupped her hands around her mouth again. “Boo! Boo!”
“No booing,” Tommy snapped, pointing at her. “I’ll throw you out again.”
She made a face as she turned back toward us, rolling her eyes. “What a dickwad. Who asks a question like that?”
“I mean, it is trivia night,” Brynne said. “I’d say that was a trivia question.”
“It was a cheater question,” Trinity shot back. Brynne laughed as she got to her feet.
“I’m getting another round. You want a drink?” She pointed at my mostly empty glass, and I nodded.
“Please. If you don’t mind. I’ll pay you back.”
“Don’t worry about it. What about you two?” She waved her finger between Trinity and Ronan, and they both nodded. She made her way to the bar, her round hips swaying. Tattoos swirled down one of her arms, her bright red hair bouncing with every step.
She was probably the coolest person I’d ever met.
“Ready?” Tommy asked, and everyone clapped and cheered. “What is the only food that’ll never go bad?”
“Honey,” I said before the question was even done. Trinity stared at me for a moment. “It’s honey. Trust.”
She glanced at Ronan, but he just shrugged. “ Trust ,” he repeated, his lips twitching. His leg bounced under the table, the rough fabric of his jeans rubbing my skin raw. I slid my hand onto his thigh, and his entire body stiffened, but he stopped moving.
Red crept up his neck from under the collar of his shirt. I hadn’t realized how tight it was until now. It clung to his body, showing off every dip of muscle.
Slowly, I let my hand slip off his thigh and back onto the table just as Brynne returned with our next round of drinks. I shot back the rest of my drink before grabbing my replacement and taking a long pull. Ronan mimicked my movements, his gulps loud as he downed his beer.
She looked between us, but said nothing as she sat, a grin playing at her lips. But she didn’t need to say a word for us to know exactly what she was thinking.
Trinity held up the sign, and Tommy gave us the point. “How did you know that?” she asked, leaning heavily against the table.
“Gracie taught me.” I shrugged.
“That makes sense. Gracie knows her honey,” Trinity muttered to herself, her hair bouncing as she nodded.
Ronan subtly shifted, his body moving closer to mine. My heart was in my throat as I tried not to focus on the warm, masculine scent swirling around me. His hand disappeared under the table, and my eyes clashed with Brynne’s. She smirked, but turned toward the stage, listening to the next question.
His fingers toyed with the hem of my dress, and my mouth went completely dry. I stared straight ahead as my face flushed. If he noticed, he didn’t make it obvious. Instead, he tortured me further by sliding his hand onto my knee.
“Is this okay?” he whispered. All I could do was nod, but he leaned even closer. “I need words, shortcake.”
My breath hitched, my throat nearly too tight to speak. “Yes,” I rasped before clearing my throat. “It’s okay.” His thumb stroked along my skin, and I absently wondered if I remembered to shave my legs this morning.
As discreetly as I could, I dropped my hand to my calf, running my fingertips along my skin. A relieved breath whooshed out at the smoothness, and I flashed him a smile, shifting my leg closer to him. His grip turned possessive as he wrapped his fingers around my knee, holding it flush against his thigh.
I was completely unable to listen to the next few questions, but thankfully, Brynne and Trinity didn’t seem to notice. They shouted at Ash Kickers until their faces were red and their voices were raspy. And all the while, Ronan’s hand never left my leg.
“Oh my god, what’s the answer?” Trinity groaned.
“I feel like we should know this,” Brynne said.
“What?” I breathed, drawing both of their attention.
“The unicorn is the national animal of what country?” Trinity repeated the question, and I perked up.
“Oh, easy. Scotland,” I chirped, and Brynne snapped her fingers.
“See! We totally knew that.” She tapped the board. “Write it down. Hurry.”
The marker flew across the board as she wrote the word, then she spun around, holding it proudly over her head. “Get fucked, Blackrock Bay!” she shouted, and Ronan sighed.
“Here we go,” he muttered, slipping his hand off my leg. He stood, towering over nearly everyone in the bar.
“Watch it, Caldwell!” one of the Blackrock Bay guys shouted back, leaping to his feet.
“Sit down, Barlowe,” Ronan said, his voice deeper than I’d ever heard. It did something stupid to my insides—tightened my lower stomach and made my thighs press tightly together. Where was he hiding that voice? It screamed authority— stop it.
I had to stop it. Just because he’d been touching me, and I’d been liking it—a lot —didn’t mean anything. We had to get comfortable with each other or everyone would know we were big liars.
“Tell her to keep her mouth shut,” the man, Barlowe, shouted back, tossing his hand toward Trinity.
“Teenie Weenie Deanie,” Brynne and Trinity sang, tipping their heads back and forth mockingly. Barlowe—Dean?—took a step forward, his face reddening. His thick black beard hid most of his expression, but his irritation was clear.
Ronan mimicked the other man’s movements, stepping around his sister to get closer to him. They stared at each other, ignoring Tommy on the mic trying to get everyone to calm down and take their seats.
Neon highlighted Ronan’s strong muscles along his shoulders and back as he stood at his full height. I didn’t know exactly how tall he was, but he was climbable. Totally climbable.
“You have a little drool on your chin,” Brynne whispered. I reached up, mindlessly wiping at my face. She and Trinity laughed, and embarrassment flooded through me.
“Sorry,” I said, but they shook their heads.
“Don’t be sorry,” Brynne said. “Check your man out, girl. Lord knows everyone else is.”
“Not me.” Trinity mock-gagged, and Brynne rolled her eyes.
“You don’t count. For one, he’s your brother. And two, you don’t check anyone out.” Her smile turned wicked as she muttered, “Except Dean Barlowe.”
Trinity gasped, pressing her hand against her chest. “You take that back. I’d never check Teenie Weenie Deanie out.”
“Wait. That’s Dean Barlowe?” I asked, jerking my chin at the man arguing with Tommy and Ronan by the stage. “You like him?”
“Good god, no,” she said, shaking her head. Brynne rolled her eyes as she finished her drink.
“Keep telling yourself that, babe.”
“I don’t,” she protested. “He’s so—look at him!” I glanced his way again, and I had to admit, other than taking his trivia incredibly seriously, he was attractive. A little taller than Ronan, but impossibly wider. His arms were like tree trunks, and his chest was massive. He looked more like a lumberjack than a guy who played bar trivia.
“Honey, we are looking at him,” Brynne laughed. “And he’s looking at you.”
Trinity’s head whipped toward the stage, and Brynne cackled when she turned back to scowl at us. “I do not like him,” Trinity repeated. “He’s my arch nemesis.”
“Your hot arch nemesis,” Brynne teased. “Come on, you know you’d ride that horse home.”
“Horse?” I laughed, and she grinned.
“A guy that big? You know he’s hung like a damn horse.”
I couldn’t help the belly laugh that erupted from my throat. Ronan’s attention turned my way, and when our eyes met, his face softened a fraction, but it immediately hardened when Dean said something to him. He looked back at the other man, the veins in his neck straining as he hissed something back.
If he ever talked to me that intensely, I’d wither into nothing. But Dean didn’t seem deterred. If anything, he just got more annoyed.
Finally, the group of men broke up, and Ronan headed back toward our table as Dean went back to his.
“Tell your sister to stop antagonizing Blackrock Bay,” he said loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Maybe Blackrock Bay should start winning. Then I won’t have to antagonize you,” she shot back. “Get good, Teenie Weenie!”
He opened his mouth, but another man clapped him on the shoulder, jerking him into his seat. Ronan stood for another moment, glaring at Dean before he sat beside me, his warmth immediately enveloping me once more.
“We’re taking a small break.” Tommy sighed, rubbing his forehead. “Be back in ten minutes for round two.”
“Bathroom time!” Brynne said, jumping to her feet. Trinity shot up, but they both stared at me like they were waiting for something.
“I think you’re supposed to go with them,” Ronan said.
“Oh,” I breathed. “Right.”
I slid from my wobbly barstool, the alcohol hitting me all at once. My foot tangled in the bottom rung, and the world around me blurred as I soared through the air. Hard ground stopped my fall, and humiliation filled every inch of me as all eyes turned my way.