18. Olivia
CHAPTER 18
Olivia
“W ho are you texting?” I ask Rebecca, who’s got a smile on her face as she types on her phone.
“Liam. I guess the Naked Cowboy from New York is in town this weekend, so he was asking if we’ve seen him.”
I should have guessed by her smile that she was messaging my brother. The two of them have been in constant communication since they exchanged numbers the night before last when we had dinner with him and Bax even after I filled her in a little about my brother’s history with women.
Their sudden friendship has put me in a precarious position. I don’t want to see her hurt, and knowing my brother, that is a huge possibility, especially with her still being vulnerable after what happened with Clark.
“How do you think the talk is going to go with him and Bax?” She tucks her phone away before picking her drink back up.
“I don’t know,” I mutter, shifting in my chair. The lemon drop martini I ordered suddenly feels like lead in the pit of my stomach.
When Bax messaged me thirty minutes ago to let me know he was getting ready to meet Liam, I wanted to ask him to just wait a little longer to have the talk with my brother. But I know there is no way he’d agree to my request after the other night. He absolutely hated that he had to pretend, even for three hours, that he and I were nothing but friends.
I honestly thought at one point, when I stood next to him within touching distance, and I saw his jaw clench and his hands balled into fists, that he was just going to say fuck it and kiss me right then and there in front of Liam. Consequences be damned.
I can’t know for sure how Liam would have reacted if Bax had done what he so obviously wanted to do, but there is a high probability that the two of them would have ended up fighting—like I had seen them do when they were teenagers—ruining Rebecca’s first night in Tennessee.
And let's be honest. The little cul-de-sac we live on has seen enough excitement since I moved in. So, if there was another visit from the cops because of me, I might just be escorted out of the neighborhood by force.
“Your brother seems pretty cool. I’m sure it will be fine.” She drags me out of my thoughts, and I find a reassuring look on her face that does nothing to settle my nerves.
“I hope so.” I look at the stage when the band who had been setting up begins to play. The one thing on Rebecca’s list of things to experience in Nashville was live music on Broadway, so Bax dropped us off and said he’d pick us up whenever I called to tell him we were ready to go home.
“Let’s not think about it right now and just have fun.” She stands, downing what’s left of her drink and holding out her hand. “Come on. I want to get the full experience.”
“I’m not dancing.” I shake my head at her as the open floor of the bar begins to fill with people, most of them already drunk.
“You are. You can’t let me dance alone.” She bends, then grabs my hand and pulls me out of my seat.
“Reb—”
“Finish this.” She pushes my glass toward my lips, and I sigh.
“Fine.” I swallow the rest of my drink, then pick up my phone and put it in my purse, which is slung across my body, letting her lead me into the crowd that has continued to grow.
I don’t think I’ve danced in a bar since college. I forgot about the rush it gives you when the bass sinks into your bones. The sound of the music drowns everything out, even my worries, and before long, I get lost in the happiness I feel radiating off my best friend as she sings at the top of her lungs to country songs that I don’t even know.
When another song begins to play with a tempo much slower than the last few, Rebecca grabs my hand and pulls me from the crowd. “Let's get another drink.”
“Sure.” I follow her to the bar, and she leans over it to get the bartender’s attention—not that it takes much effort for him to notice her. Rebecca is beautiful and grabs attention anywhere she goes, with her long, curly dark hair and willowy frame. As she’s ordering us each another martini, my cell phone begins to ring, so I step back from the bar and pull it from my bag.
Dread fills the pit of my stomach when I see it’s Liam calling, but still, I slide my finger across the screen.
“Hey,” I answer, pressing my phone tight to my ear so I can hear over the sound of the music and people talking around me.
“I just left Bax,” he says in greeting, his tone angry. “What the fuck are you thinking, Olivia?”
“Li—”
“Let’s say that I ignore the fact that he’s my best friend, which is beyond fucked up,” he cuts me off. “But you do know he’s fucked half the women in town, right?”
Okay, that makes me want to puke, but still. “That’s not fair.”
“Not fair? What’s not fair is my little sister going behind my back and dating my best friend, who also happens to be my boss. What do you think is going to happen when he gets tired of you and cuts you off like every other chick he’s been with?”
“I didn’t go behind your back,” I murmur, leaving out a reply to the rest because even thinking about things between Bax and me coming to an end makes me feel more nauseated than the idea of him sleeping with a bunch of other women in the past.
“It’s not happening.”
“What?” I shake my head while looking up at Rebecca, who is holding our drinks.
“You’re going to call and tell him that it’s not happening, that it’s not going to work out between the two of you.”
“I’m not going to do that, Liam,” I tell him gently but firmly.
“Where are you?”
“Liam—”
“Where are you, Olivia?”
“You already know I’m out with Rebecca.”
“Where?” he barks.
“Why?”
“Never mind,” he mutters right before he hangs up. Dragging my cell from my ear, I shake my head and pull up Bax’s number.
“Is everything okay?” Rebecca asks, holding our drinks.
“Liam’s pissed.”
Her nose scrunches as my phone begins to ring in my hand. Seeing it’s Bax, I accept the call.
“Hey, I just got off the phone with Liam.”
“Are you okay?” he asks, concern clear in his tone.
“I’m fine.” I sigh. “Are you okay?”
“I’m good. I knew what to expect. I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”
“I’m just annoyed.” I take a sip of the martini Rebecca hands to me when her phone starts to ring.
“Just try to enjoy your night, baby.”
“I’ll try.” I watch Rebecca answer the call and hear her tell whoever she’s talking to what bar we are at.
“Is that Liam?” I ask her, and when she nods, I let out a quiet groan.
“What happened?” Bax asks.
“Liam called Rebecca, and she told him where we are. I’m guessing we have about thirty minutes before he shows up here.”
“Are you still at the bar I dropped you two off at?”
“Yeah,” I reply.
“I’m on my way.”
“I don’t know if that’s?—”
“I’m on my way. See you soon.” He hangs up, and I let out a frustrated breath.
“Sorry,” Rebecca says quietly, putting her phone back in her bag. “I didn’t even think when he asked where we are.”
“It’s fine.” I take a sip of my drink. “Bax is also on his way.”
“Are they going to be okay around each other?”
“I have no idea, but I’m pretty sure I’m going to need another drink after this one.” I hold my glass up between us.
“Drink up, girl. I’ve got you.”
We both take a seat at the bar and finish our drinks. I don’t order another, but instead, I get a water. I’m already tipsy and will do myself no favors if I’m drunk when Bax and Liam arrive.
Less than thirty minutes later, Bax shows up, and I spot him before he sees me since I’ve been keeping a close eye on the door. I watch him scan the room, looking every bit like he belongs in Nashville. He’s wearing a gray thermal under a plaid flannel, the sleeves of both pushed up his forearms, showing off his tattoos, washed-out blue jeans, and boots on his feet, with a ball cap on.
When his eyes collide with mine across the room, my stomach fills with butterflies. Even though we’ve spent a little time together since Rebecca came into town, that time has been limited, with both of us working yesterday and him wanting me to have quality time with my friend.
He closes the distance between us, and as soon as he’s close, I slide off my stool, and he wraps me in his arms, pressing his lips to the top of my head. My entire being relaxes, and all the anxiety I was feeling melts away as I sink into his embrace.
“You okay?” he asks, touching his fingers to my chin and forcing my gaze up to his.
“Yeah, he hasn’t shown up, so maybe he’s not coming.”
“He’ll be here,” he mutters, leaning down and touching his mouth to mine and his tongue to my bottom lip. When he pulls back, my lashes flutter open, and I find his eyes on my mouth. “You taste sweet. What are you drinking?”
“Lemon drop martinis.” I feel his thumb brush across my bottom lip, and my insides twist into a tight knot.
“You two are sickeningly cute,” Rebecca says behind me, breaking into the moment, and I watch Bax’s lips turn up ever so slightly before I spin to smile at her.
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be. I love this for you.” She waves a hand between Bax and me, and then her eyes go past me and fill with concern.
I don’t even have to look to know that Liam has arrived. I feel the energy shift and get heavy with tension while the man still holding me lets me go, only to wrap his arm around my back and grasp my hip tightly as he turns us.
When I lock eyes with my brother, who is looking between Bax and me, and see how angry he is, I move to put myself between the two of them. But I don’t get very far before I’m pulled back, and Bax’s big, wide shoulders are all I can see.
“You better lock your shit down before you come any closer,” Bax bites out, moving his hand to keep me from stepping around him again, effectively blocking me in with the barstool on the opposite side of us.
“I want to talk to my sister,” Liam snaps while I try to move around Bax once again.
“Not when you’re pissed and not here,” Bax returns as Rebecca slides off her stool and moves in front of him so I can’t see her.
“I’m not going to hurt her,” Liam says, sounding offended.
“How about we go outside and take a walk?” I hear Rebecca suggest.
I can’t hear what Liam says or see his response, but a moment later, Bax’s body seems to deflate, and he reaches back for me and pulls me around to his side. I look over to where Liam was standing, seeing he’s no longer there, but I catch a glimpse of him as he heads toward the door of the bar.
“I’m going to go with your brother.”
I look over at Rebecca, who is grabbing her bag from the bar counter, and start to shake my head.
“He just needs to cool down. I’ll call you and see where you guys are in a bit,” she assures.
“Reb—”
“It’s fine.” She stops in front of me and gives me a quick hug. “I’ll call you.”
Before I can say anything else, she turns on her heels and walks away from Bax and me, disappearing into the crowd that is now standing near the door to the bar.
Great . I let out a breath. So much for keeping her and my brother apart.
I look up at Bax and find his jaw still hard, so I ask him, “You know Liam would never hurt me, right?”
“I know, but this isn’t the place for him to confront you. If he wants to talk, he can do it tomorrow after he’s had a chance to cool down. Right now, he’s still pissed at me, and I don’t want him taking that out on you.”
“I think he’s equally pissed at both of us,” I murmur as his eyes wander over my face.
“Maybe.” His expression gentles. “The good news is the worst part is over. Now, we just have to deal with the aftermath and wait for things to settle.”
“I hope that doesn’t take very long.” I sigh, leaning into him, and he accepts my weight with ease.