Chapter 1 #4
Nora grinned. “That’s the thing about Lark.
Everyone loves her because she’s the queen of fun and so freaking nice.
She didn’t buy the tickets for either show.
She was invited to go with friends who treated.
Everyone in town has heard her sing and knows that music is basically her life, so they include her when they have extra tickets to concerts.
She missed one shift last month because Edith Millholland had an extra ticket to some John Prine celebration at Wolf Trap.
She invited Lark because Edith loves it when she sings “Angel from Montgomery” for her.
I couldn’t exactly tell Lark she couldn’t go, since it was Edith. ”
Okay, fine. Grayson understood that. Edith was a force of nature, so if she wanted Lark to go with her, she was going. Plus, they all loved Edith too much to ever say no to the woman.
“Thought ‘Angel from Montgomery’ was a Bonnie Raitt song,” Maverick mused.
“John Prine wrote it and recorded it first,” Nora answered.
The fact they were having this conversation proved how much Lark had educated his family about music.
Lark’s repertoire was vast, covering everything from oldies to classic rock to Taylor Swift.
She was a walking encyclopedia, and there weren’t too many patron requests she couldn’t honor.
One of the reasons her performances at the winery and brewery were so popular was due to her habit of introducing every song she was about to perform with some cool fact about the singer, songwriter, or lyrics.
Another burst of loud laughter filled the room. Lark was in full swing, gesturing wildly and pouring samples with a flourish that bordered on theatrical. Several other customers had joined the three women at the bar, joining in on the tasting.
“She’ll be great at the festival,” Maverick said.
“Explain how chaos is great.” Grayson refused to give his brother an inch—even if he was right—because if he did, the asshole would take a mile.
“You’ll be a good balance for each other,” Nora added, though like his brother, she looked far too amused by the prospect of sending Grayson out into the wild with Lark McCoy.
“Doubtful,” Grayson muttered, shooting dark looks across the room. “More likely she’ll drive me insane.”
Maverick lightly tapped the table twice, drawing Grayson’s scowl away from Lark and back to him. “You need to loosen up, bro. Feels like you’ve forgotten how to have fun lately.”
Grayson wasn’t sure how to reply to that…because he was afraid his brother was right. He wasn’t sure when he’d morphed from a good-natured young man to this twenty-nine-going-on-eighty, stay-off-my-lawn grumpy bastard.
“I know how to have fun,” Grayson countered, the words feeling like a lie.
Maverick didn’t argue.
Which somehow made it worse.
Several minutes later, Lark had finished her wine tasting, so Nora waved her over. “Hey, Lark. Can I talk to you a second?”
She nodded, tossing a towel over her shoulder and excusing herself from the customers with a promise she’d be “right back.”
“Nora, I really am sorry.”
Nora waved off her apology. “Listen, let’s wipe the slate clean again. You were only a few minutes late and you’ll more than make up that time at the festival this weekend.”
Lark frowned briefly. “Festival?”
Nora crossed her arms. “You do remember that you volunteered to work the wine festival in Norfolk this weekend, right?”
It was obvious to Grayson that Lark one hundred percent had not remembered, but she lied anyway.
“Of course, I remember. It’s no problem. No problem at all,” Lark insisted, a little too forcefully.
“Great,” Nora said. “Maverick’s going to be busy with wedding stuff, so you’ll be going with Grayson.”
Lark’s poker face completely fell with that news. “Oh. Um…okay.”
Maverick snickered, because Lark clearly wasn’t any happier about the two of them working this festival together than Grayson.
“We’ll leave Saturday morning at six a.m. Sharp,” Grayson added, hoping to make it clear he wouldn’t put up with her being late.
Lark made an exaggerated face. “Six a.m.? Ouch.”
“Lark,” Nora said softly.
“I’ll be here,” she added quickly.
Grayson nodded. “Good. I’ll need some help loading the truck and then we’ll be on our way.”
Lark gave him a jaunty salute. “You got it, boss man.” With that, she turned back to the bar, asking if anyone wanted something to eat.
“This is going to be a disaster,” Grayson muttered to his brother and cousin.
Nora giggled. “I look forward to your recap on Monday.”
“You’re enjoying my pain too much, cuz,” he chastised.
“So much.” Nora grinned, giving him a wink before walking toward the staircase that led up to her office.
Grayson exhaled slowly as he and Maverick rose to return to work.
Maverick bumped shoulders with him. “You know, if you loosen up a little bit, you might actually have some fun this weekend.”
“I’m perfectly capable of having fun,” Grayson felt compelled to say, even if that skill felt far too rusty of late. “It’s just that my idea of a good time and yours differ greatly.”
Maverick’s idea of fun was partying ’til he dropped. He was happiest surrounded by a raucous crowd, loud music, and wild dancing.
Grayson, meanwhile, preferred quiet nights with just a couple of friends and easy conversation. That didn’t mean he didn’t get the concept, just that his kind of fun didn’t match up with his brother’s…or Lark’s.
Before Maverick could reply, Lark threw her head back, laughing loudly.
So…fucking…loud.
He rubbed his eyes wearily.
Yep.
A fucking disaster.