Chapter 4 #2
A massive rectangular building had been added and had one side with small circular tables and the stage, with the other side offering larger dining tables and booths.
A wide bar ran the length of the entire space in the back.
Scuffed hardwood floors and simple wooden tables completed the low-key décor.
They served damn good pub fare and had excellent beer, produced through an offshoot of the family’s business, the Lost Deer Winery & Brewery.
“You grab a table, I’ll grab us a pitcher of the house draft,” I said, leaning toward Jackson so he could hear me.
At his nod, I veered toward the bar in the back. I scanned the area, expecting to find Delilah Carter. Delilah was an old friend and the regular bartender here. She was nowhere to be found, so when Abe, who filled in occasionally, leaned his elbows on the glossy wooden bar, I asked, “No, Delilah?”
Abe grinned. “Nah, man. Remy’s sister, Shay, hooked Delilah up with a free ski trip to Alaska. So, she took off. That girl deserves a vacation like nobody’s business. Don’t tell me you have a thing for her,” he said, a sly look entering his gaze.
I threw my head back with a laugh. “Nah. She’s just a friend and I wondered where she was.”
“Seeing as she works all the damn time, everyone’s wondering where she is. Anyway, what can I get for you?”
“I’ll take a pitcher of the house draft and four glasses,” I said, figuring at least two more people would want some beer.
Within a few minutes, I was taking a swallow of my beer and leaning back in my seat at the booth Jackson had commandeered in the far corner. “Let’s hope not too many people show up,” I said, glancing at him.
“I know. All the tables were taken. First come, first serve. The rest can fend for themselves,” Jackson teased.
A waitress paused by the table. “Are you boys eating now, or waiting?”
“We’re starving, and we’re not waiting,” Jackson said bluntly.
I grinned. We ordered burgers and fries and settled in. Before our food arrived, I heard Dani’s voice. It was incredible I could hear her over the voices carrying on around us and the music in the background. But then, that was the effect Dani Love had on me.
For the last few years, I’d respected the boundary she’d drawn between us. A boundary reinforced with snipes, glares, icy stares if I pushed too hard, and distance, plenty of cold distance. After our kiss and the vulnerability I saw seeping through, there was no way in hell I could go back to that.
Turning, I saw her approaching with Shay and Valentina, and Lucas strolling in behind them.
Shay had her own kind of beauty—that honey blonde hair, sweet curvy body, and flashing green eyes.
She did nothing for me. Not that I was trying to look, because I respected my friends, but it was more of an objective experiment to test myself.
Next, I let my eyes slide to Valentina. She was the kind of woman who turned heads.
Her deep-red hair was like a flame in the crowded room, making it difficult not to notice her.
She had her curls pulled up in a ponytail that cascaded down her back.
With freckled skin and wide blue eyes, she was the kind of woman who brought men to their knees.
Not me. Hell no. All I had was appreciation.
A damn good thing for that. I was quite certain Lucas would kick any man’s ass who looked too long and hard at Valentina. He was so whipped over her.
The moment my eyes landed on Dani, it was like lightning struck me, electrifying every cell in my body.
Dani, with her brown curls and pretty green eyes.
She had a girl-next-door beauty to her. Now, she did a hell of a lot more than nothing to me.
On the short side, she laughed at something Lucas said right before they reached our table.
I wanted her to smile at me like that—not that she was smiling at Lucas in a romantic way. But there was an openness to her, and none of the history that crowded between us was in her eyes.
I’d felt so damn lost when she broke up with me back in high school. I never knew why. I figured I had to just let it go. But now, I was determined to find out what happened and banish whatever it was that caused her pain.
She hadn’t even noticed I was there when she slid her hips onto the bench seat and started scooting over. Her curls bounced when she turned toward me, her eyes widening slightly. For a beat, she froze.
Much to my satisfaction, Valentina said, “Scoot, scoot, Dani.”
Dani didn’t have much choice, not without making it obvious she didn’t want to sit beside me. Dani scooted closer and Valentina sat down beside her, with Shay sitting opposite Dani and Lucas directly across from Valentina.
These booths were really designed for four people. Six made it crowded. But I wasn’t about to complain about the fact that I could feel Dani’s warm heat pressing against mine by virtue of us being crammed in here.
Shay pressed a kiss to Jackson’s cheek before looking over at me. “Hey, Wade, I hear y’all had a fun call today.”
“Do tell,” Lucas said as he reached across the table and curled his hand around Valentina’s. Like I said, he was whipped.
“Oh, it was definitely one of the more fun ones we’ve had in a while. Only reason we were there was because Sarah got shoved off the porch by Doreen. Well, sort of,” I explained.
“That was after Lyle tried to hide Sarah out there because they were, uh, busy in the bedroom in the sex swing. Doreen wised to where Sarah was, and all three of them got into it on the porch. Sarah fell when the railing broke,” Jackson added helpfully.
“It’s freezing out today,” Valentina said, her blue eyes widening as she leaned over to look at me.
Jackson chuckled. “Damn straight. By the end of it all, Doreen and Sarah were duking it out with Lyle. They were on the same team by that point. We had to help break up the fight and wait for backup so the police could arrest all three of them.”
Shay grinned and Dani giggled beside me, the sound spinning around my heart. As if she realized what I meant by my comment last night, her eyes swung up to mine, a faint pink blush staining her cheeks.
“Here’s your food, guys,” our waitress said, breaking through the moment.
The waitress took orders for the rest of the table, and conversation moved on.
There was nothing unusual about this night.
Since I’d been back in Stolen Hearts Valley, working at the lodge with Dani, I’d spent many a night with her and friends, chatting casually and keeping my distance.
I only kept my distance because it was crystal clear that was what she wanted.
I managed my frustration with that situation by teasing her every chance I got.
Tonight was different. Although I didn’t let it show and managed to keep up my end of the conversation whenever it was lobbed in my direction, half of my attention was always on Dani.
It didn’t help matters one bit to have her scent—sugar and vanilla—winding around me, or to know her soft, lush curves were only inches away.
I had to resist the urge to slide my arm around her shoulder.
I didn’t. I knew that would be pushing it too far.