Chapter 26
Sabrina
For the second night in a row, Jitter and I join Emma, Laney, and Theo at Silver Horn.
The snow’s still falling. The roads are awful. But so few people are out that this place is practically empty. And since Alina and Jerry, the owners, live upstairs, it didn’t take much to convince them to open for us.
It’s a great chance for Emma to get out of hiding again.
And for me to spend time with friends in a place that Grey can’t reach.
“Is he awful?” Emma asks me as we’re diving into a charcuterie board.
“Who?”
“Your new boss.”
“Not when he’s making googly eyes at her,” Theo says.
And yes, Jitter’s sitting on Theo’s lap again despite my orders to both of them to get the dog on the floor.
“He’s complicated,” Laney supplies.
The two of them are far less lovey-dovey tonight than they’ve been any other time I’ve seen them since we got back, and I’m positive it’s for Emma’s sake.
I’m also positive she knows it.
“Complicated how?” Em asks.
Laney looks at Theo.
Theo looks at me.
My brain does a quick sort of what’s the least painful thing to tell her , and she frowns.
“Don’t sugarcoat it,” she says. “Please don’t sugarcoat it. I’m sad, not weak.”
“He’s a very nice person who wants to convert the building into a kombucha bar.”
“ No . Sabrina. Oh, no. Are you okay?”
“I’m working on finding an alternate solution for him so that we can all get what we want. No luck so far, but I did a thing that arrives tomorrow that might change his mind. I hope. Or he’ll fire me on the spot. Time will tell.”
“Has he ever been here before? To town?”
I shake my head and grab a bite of cheese.
“Tiara Falls would probably go crazy for a kombucha bar. Why not use that Bean & Nugget location?”
I squeeze my eyes shut. “Do I have to answer that?”
“Chandler fucked him over,” Theo says. “This is revenge.”
“He’s commissioning a giant fiberglass bee to hang on the side of the building,” Laney adds quietly.
I peek one eye open to watch Emma’s reaction.
And it’s not good.
Quick blinks. Looking down at her ginger ale. A heavy sigh. “I’ll talk to him.”
“You are not talking to Chandler,” Theo growls.
She sets her jaw, which isn’t like Emma at all, but it’s not wrong .
“I’ll do whatever I damn well need to get over what he did and move on.
” She slides a look at me. “I meant I’ll talk to your new boss.
He might listen to someone else who’s been screwed by the same guy.
” She winces, and her slender shoulders droop.
“Or he might think I’m just as much a part of the problem. ”
“You don’t have to—” I start, only to get cut off by my dog woofing and leaping to his feet.
Yes, while he’s still in Theo’s lap.
Theo’s eyes go wide, and he curls into himself, covering the family jewels.
Laney gasps in horror.
Emma does too.
I squeak, unable to make any other noise.
“Missed,” Theo chokes out.
“Are you sure?” Laney’s voice is high-pitched.
So is Theo’s. “Panicked. That was close. But sure.”
“ Jitter ,” I finally force out. “ Down . No barking. You know better.”
He whines and looks at the door, peering over the couch. Not hard for a dog of his size even if he were on the floor, but he has his back paws on the cushion and his front paws on the back of the couch. He’s taller than I am that way.
But my dog’s size is not a problem.
Not like what he’s staring at.
“Oh, fuck me,” I mutter.
Theo turns around.
Laney tries and mostly just oomph s around her cast.
Emma makes a strangled noise and leans closer to me. “Is that him? Is that your new boss?”
“Who gave him the password?” I hiss.
“I heard he dropped a five-hundred-dollar tip for Blossom at the pub the other night,” Laney whispers, making my shoulders bunch higher. Why didn’t I hear this before ? “I think she caved.”
“It’s me,” Zen says, peeking out from behind Grey to make eye contact with me like they know exactly what I’m whispering over here. “Nobody can resist this face. I talked the password out of your mom when she gave me a haircut this afternoon.”
They’re in suit pants, a black-and-white button-down, and a trench coat, and it’s so Zen I nearly forgive them for bringing Grey just because they look so fabulous.
Grey, on the other hand, is in dark jeans and a plain blue button-down. His dark beard is getting thick, and without the beanie he usually wears everywhere, I can tell Mom did a fabulous job with his haircut too.
Also, she and I are having a serious talk about telling me when she sees my biggest problem .
Zen’s smile drops as their gaze shifts to Emma.
Emma tenses.
Zen’s chin wobbles. They blink quickly, then poke Grey and mutter something I can’t hear. He frowns at them.
Not a disapproving frown.
A worried frown.
Zen pokes him again and glares, and he lifts his hands in surrender, then heads to the bar.
Jitter leaps over the couch to join him.
And in the time it takes Laney to whisper, “What was that? What was all of that?”, Zen has beelined the short distance from the door to our lounging area.
They squat in front of Emma. “I want to hug you so bad. I know what it’s like to spend years trying to make people love you when they’re physically incapable of it.”
Em sucks in a breath.
And Zen scoots back. “Sorry. I just—you got fucked. I hate when people with good hearts get fucked so big, and I don’t know you, but everyone here loves you, and I like them, so you must be a good person.
I’ll quit being a weirdo. Your drinks are on us.
My uncle, I mean. He knows what it’s like to get fucked too. ”
“Emma, this is Zen,” I say softly. “They’re my new boss’s keeper, and they do a fabulous job despite the hardships of the job.”
Em holds out a hand. “It’s lovely to meet you, Zen.”
“I went viral on my campus in college when someone recorded me singing in the shower,” Zen blurts while they shake Emma’s hand.
Grey’s head whips around like he hasn’t heard this story and he’s ready to put on his Super Vengeance Man suit and go take care of whoever hurt Zen in college too.
“Simmer down,” Zen says over their shoulder, clearly knowing what’s going on behind them. “I took care of it.”
“How?” Grey asks. He pockets his wallet and approaches our group with far more wariness than Zen had.
“That’s filed under you don’t need to know ,” they reply.
“Sit,” Emma says. “Please. Join us. Are you hungry? We have plenty of food.”
Grey eyes Theo.
Theo eyes him right back.
Neither man says a word to the other as Zen slides onto the curved couch on Emma’s other side, leaving only the chair beside my end of the couch open for Grey.
Laney makes a face at me, and I do my best to telegraph they had a pissing contest over who got to have more of my attention this morning .
Pretty sure she gets the message, as she pinches her lips together in a classic Laney I will not laugh out loud at the ridiculousness of that face.
The minute Grey’s seated, Jitter lunges into his lap.
“ Jitter , get down ,” I order.
Jitter whines.
Grey pulls a treat out of his pocket, tells my dog to sit, which he does in Grey’s lap , and then gives him the treat.
Then he shrugs at me. “He’s a good boy.”
Emma slides her brown eyes in his direction, then back at me.
Why is your dog in love with the guy who wants to take over your café? is the clear question here.
And wouldn’t I like an answer to that as well.
Zen suddenly seems to realize there are more people here than just Emma.
“You’re Theo. Oh my god. Is it weird to say I loved your channel?
If it’s weird, I won’t say it. But like, you got me through a really rough patch in college when all of my friends graduated before me and I was in a bad low spot of not really loving myself. ”
“Aww, I told you that you were doing superhero work.” Laney smiles at Theo.
Grey’s jaw flexes so hard his whole beard moves. “Why didn’t I hear about these problems in college?”
Zen waves a dismissive hand. “You were in lust with Felicia, and I didn’t want to interfere with your happiness.” They look back at Theo. “I won’t mention that again either. But since people get judgmental about porn stars, I just wanted you to know you were doing good in the world.”
“Naked inspirational knitter,” he says.
“If you ever do it again, knit with your feet. Just trust me.”
Emma cracks up.
Actually cracks up with real laughter.
My eyes get hot, and it takes everything in me not to launch myself around Emma to hug Zen.
It’s so good to hear Em laugh.
“If he does that, it wasn’t my suggestion,” Zen tells Emma. “Sorry. Forgot you two were related. Speaking of related, Sabrina, I saw your cousins. They asked if I had any magical sway to convince you to take a DNA test. What’s that all about?”
On the surface, I know it’s about the triplets using peer pressure to convince Laney to take a DNA test too.
But below the surface—if Grey told Zen what I told him this morning about my grandfather, I deserve this.
That’s why I told him.
So that when his grandmother gets here tomorrow, he can choose to respond by telling the entire town my own biggest secret. My mom’s biggest secret. My grandma’s biggest secret.
I’m playing with fire.
It’s only fair to give him a weapon too.
“What’s going on here?” I gesture to them, making a vague circling motion around their body. “You took a week to warm up to me enough to say hi, and you’re out here spilling deep dark secrets and being all you the first time you meet Theo, Laney, and Emma. What’s this about?”
They jerk their head toward Theo. “I trust his taste. I didn’t know you were friends before. You’re officially cleared now because you have the friend endorsement of a man I’ve seen naked. Ah, sorry, Laney.”
Emma snort-giggles.
Laney shrugs. “You’ve seen it, but only I get to touch it.”
Emma snort-giggles harder.
“So. Sabrina.” Zen looks at me again. “I sniff a story. Why do your cousins want you to take a DNA test?”
“They fell down the social media rabbit hole about DNA surprises and they’re looking for drama in our little town,” Laney says.
Zen squints at her. “You need DNA tests for that when you have Sabrina?”
“ Hey ,” I say.
Zen grins at me. “That was all love. I want your superpowers.”
“Did you give them caffeine?” I ask Grey. “This is truly more words than I’ve ever heard out of them.”
“They’re a big fan,” he mutters back.
“I’m merely in a good mood because good things are coming,” Zen announces.
And that one lands.
They know I’m toast tomorrow. And I think they’re genuinely excited to see their great-grandma, who should be landing in Denver in the next few hours.
Our blizzard isn’t affecting the city. It’s isolated up here in the mountains.
“All right,” Grey says. “ Now I’m concerned.”
As he should be.
Alina brings us another charcuterie board and refills all of our drinks. Laney engages Grey with questions about bees. Zen peppers Emma and Theo with questions about taxidermy animals and which of the stories they’ve heard about Theo’s antics when he was younger are true.
They all are, naturally.
And honestly?
It’s fun watching my friends adopt new friends.
Especially new friends that I like entirely more than I should.
I know this is an optical illusion. That Grey petting my dog, Zen laughing with Theo and Emma, things feeling normal, all of it is temporary.
A just for tonight thing.
Just like Hawaii was temporary.
I’m thinking I should take Jitter and go home when Emma slides a look at Grey during a lull in everyone’s conversations.
“Chandler hurt you too,” she says. “I’m sorry. I wish I could do more, but I’m sorry is all I have right now.”
Grey’s blue eyes flicker toward me, his shoulders hunching slightly. The change is enough for Jitter to quit panting happily and look at him with a soft whine.
I didn’t tell her .
I want to tell him I didn’t tell her anything he told me about why he has a beef with Chandler.
But would he believe me?
He shifts his attention back to Emma. “Not your fault.”
“He told me about you shortly after Thanksgiving. He said you were looking for investors in a business opportunity, though, not that he was selling the café to you.”
Grey flinches.
“Why did everyone believe his lying ass?” Zen asks.
“Because it’s hard to face that someone you’ve known and trusted forever is capable of hurting and manipulating and gaslighting you,” Laney says.
“Even when you should know it’s not normal or okay,” Emma whispers.
“Knock it off.” Theo leans across the low table between us to squeeze her knee. “Not your fault I didn’t tell you.”
“Yes, it is.”
He growls.
“You’ve never let someone in your life that you believed you could change if you just worked hard enough?” I ask Zen to try to answer their question. “You’ve never seen someone’s potential and wanted to help them achieve it?”
They wrinkle their nose. “Calling me out about Uncle Grey when he’s sitting right there isn’t very polite of you.”
Grey tosses a napkin at Zen, who flashes him a grin. “Okay, okay, you can be taught. You dress so much better these days than you did when I first found you. It’s a start.”
“How did you find him?” Laney asks.
“Caught him digging in my trash—no, wait, that was his dog.”
“You’re this close to walking home,” Grey says.
Zen grins. “I’ll catch a ride with Sabrina.
So, there was this family reunion one time, and Uncle Grey shows up for the first time in years , and I was like, ‘Who’s that weirdo doing experiments on the potato salad?
’ and when I heard he sometimes forgot to shower or do his laundry, I decided to adopt him. ”
I’m one hundred percent certain no one believes them, but none of my friends question their version either.
The rest of the evening is weirdly enjoyable.
Weirdly only because I know this feeling of friendship won’t last.
And eventually, it’s over.
We all pack up to head home.
And I wonder just how quickly everything will change once Grey’s grandmother arrives in town tomorrow.