Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Charlie
Ponderosa Pine Bar and Grill is having its official grand reopening.
Ethan bought it about a month after he moved home with baby Jake.
Apparently he worked there in high school before he left for college and then on to play in the NFL.
Once things settled down with being a single dad to an infant, Ethan started renovating the building and got to work.
Ethan was best friends with Olivia all through grade school, so she’s been helping him with the entire renovation and also everything to do with Jake.
His parents have also played a pivotal role in helping him with everything, and tonight is the first night we get to celebrate him opening up his new business.
He went all out at this restaurant. It looks like a ski lodge with wood fireplaces, comfortable tables, and cozy lighting. Everything looks like he spent top dollar on it, which, knowing him, I’m sure he did.
We get there a little after the party has started and it’s packed.
The whole town showed up to support him and his family.
Well, everyone but Maisie. I still haven’t figured out what the issue is.
After he got home, Maisie ran out of my party and then stopped coming around as much.
Olivia tries to keep the friendship up, but Maisie doesn’t want anything to do with Ethan; therefore, Olivia by proxy, and me by proxy-proxy.
It’s not that we were best friends to begin with, but I'm disappointed that I'm guilty by association.
Olivia, Dan, and Levi sit in a corner booth with Luke and Madelyn.
Even from a distance, it looks awkward. Levi’s normal, jovial self looks like he’s trying to hide behind Olivia.
I found out at my birthday party that Madelyn consistently tries to make Luke jealous, just to “poke the bear.” Luke never reacts and that only makes her try harder.
Poor Levi is caught in the crossfire and has no idea how to handle it.
I point toward their table and Hayes' eyes go wide. "Holy shit, she looks just like…"
"Dess?" I finish for him and he grins.
"I know, doppelg?ngers." They may look exactly alike—blonde, tall, and beautiful—but their personalities are the complete opposite. Madelyn is overly sweet and a little fake, whereas Odessa is headstrong and not afraid to share her opinion.
As we approach the table, Levi sees us first. "Ahh, if it isn't the one that got away! Returning to me, with her one that got away." He trails off in the last part, as if even he is trying to make sense of what he's saying.
Hayes looks between the two of us with a raised eyebrow.
Thank God for Olivia, piping up. "Levi, don't you dare start causing trouble already. She can't be the one who got away if she was never yours to begin with."
He waves his hand, dismissing her logic. "Semantics." Then he narrows his eyes, pretending to assess Hayes.
Hayes glances around the table, trying to figure out what the hell is going on with Levi's cryptic behavior.
Luke chuckles from behind his beer and Dan rolls his eyes. The whole interaction may have lasted five seconds of awkward silence, but finally Levi smirked and nodded his approval.
"You’ll do. I was worried she was pining over some loser."
I scoff at Levi. "Like you have any say, considering your track record with relationships."
Levi just shrugs, unfazed by my comment. "Nah, you can't have a track record if you don't have any relationships.”
Hayes chuckles and extends his hand. "Nice to meet you. Levi was it?"
Levi grins back and shakes his hand. "Yep. That's Luke and Madelyn, and I'm sure you know Dan and Liv."
I watch as Hayes tries to greet Luke and Madelyn, but Madelyn looks caught in a daze as she stares at Hayes. Luke nudges her with his elbow, snapping her out of it and she smiles coyly. "Nice to meet you too.”
Hayes clears his throat, breaking the awkward silence. "So, this place is pretty cool. Can't believe y'all are friends with Ethan Flacco."
Dan nods. "Big Vikings fan?"
Hayes shakes his head. "Nah, but a guy I worked with was. He's going to lose his shit when he finds out I'm at his restaurant."
Olivia starts smiling from her little corner and I know I'm about to be in trouble.
"Don't you even go there, Olivia Turner." I warn.
"Go where?" Hayes looks between the two of us.
Dan smiles as big as Olivia does, clearly knowing what we are both thinking. "Charlie thought we hired Ethan as a stripper for her birthday."
My face heats up to an embarrassing shade of red. Asshole.
"You thought they hired one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history to strip for you?"
"No! I didn't know who he was and I was a little drunk when he knocked on Olivia's door."
Maddy giggles. "In her defense, there was a lot of alcohol, and well, he looks like that." She says this while gesturing behind us toward the football god.
I turn to see Ethan walking to our table, and the embarrassment only intensifies.
"Hey, everyone! Thanks for coming." He looks to Hayes and extends his hand, "Ethan Flacco."
Hayes smirks, "Hayes Carrington. Heard you're the one to call if we need a stripper."
"Hayes!" I smack him in the chest, only causing him to laugh harder."
Ethan's eyes go slightly wide and then he's laughing with everyone else.
"I'll admit, no one has ever opened the door and immediately thought I was an exotic dancer before. But I took it as a compliment." Thankfully, I’ve spent enough time with Ethan that this story isn’t as embarrassing as it once was.
Deciding to just roll with it, I slide into the seat next to Levi. “Well, at least we know if this fancy restaurant doesn’t make it, you can audition for Magic Mike.”
Hayes grins and sits next to me. “This place is awesome. You did a good job here. Charlie told me y’all renovated the whole building.”
Ethan nods, his entire face lighting up. “Thanks, man. Yeah, my dad and brothers own a construction company so I used them for a lot of free labor.”
“I agree. Ethan, this place is exactly what Three Sisters needed. You outdid yourself.” Dan raised his glass for a toast.
Olivia’s eyes go a little misty but she holds up her glass too. “We’re so glad you’re back.”
Ethan’s face turns three shades of red but he grins back. “Happy to be home.”
Our server comes over and we both order a drink and some food. When she excuses herself to go put the order in, Luke and Levi both start grilling Hayes. Slightly surprising, considering Dan is usually the one who’s always in Lieutenant mode.
Levi starts off, “You planning on stayin’ here for a while?”
I reach down and place my hand on Hayes thigh, hoping I can give some reassurance.
Hayes takes all the questions with ease. “As long as Charlie will let me. I’m a handful of terms away from finishing my bachelor's degree—business management. I have a meeting with OSU Cascades to see what will transfer from what I was doing online while overseas.”
Luke nods his head. “You sure you’re not looking for a job at the department? Someone with your skills and history could be an asset.”
Hayes chuckles. “Thought about it, but I’m leaning more toward the desk route right now. I missed out on a lot of stuff—birthdays and holidays. I don’t want to be in a position for that again.”
I squeezed his thigh while grinning at him.
We’ve had a lot of in depth talks about our future over the last few months.
We both agreed we want to try to have normal, nine-to-five jobs that we aren’t risking our lives in.
I think Hayes needs to get a little normalcy back in his life so that he can heal.
He’s downplayed all the traumatic events he had while he was deployed but I’m afraid those will resurface in unhealthy ways.
All of the guys nodded and lifted their beers to him for that.
None of them are immune to the hardships that being a first responder has.
They’ve all had to put their work first and their families second at points in their careers.
Olivia picked up her water and took a small sip, avoiding eye contact.
I already know the heartbreaking thought that she’s thinking—even if Dan had the option, he wouldn’t change his career.
Luke and Madelyn call it an early night after about an hour.
There seemed to be a little tension lingering in the air, but Madelyn ignored it and Luke shut down.
I offhandedly asked Olivia if it had anything to do with Hayes and me showing up, but she assured me they were like that before we even got there.
Levi flirted his way through the bar, being Ethan's wingman even though Ethan wanted nothing to do with him. It was actually pretty entertaining to watch Ethan awkwardly avoid any advances toward him. He's been so focused on Jake and the bar that I doubt he's dated since he's been back.
Olivia and Dan danced for most of the night. He looks at her like she's God's gift to earth and she smiles right back at him. I know she has been pretty candid with me about their struggles in the past, but seeing them tonight, it's clear that they have a strong connection.
When they decided to call it a night, we did too. It was fun being out with everyone, but all I wanted to do was go home and be cozy with my man.
My phone rings early—too early for a Monday morning, 6 a.m. early.
“It’s your mom.”
Hayes looks at me with sleepy eyes and says with a yawn, “My mom?”
I don’t even answer his rhetorical question.
“Hey, everything okay?” It’s 9 a.m. eastern time, but Connie normally waits a few hours before calling because she knows that.
“Hi, sweetheart. Hayes with you?” Her tone already sounds off and I sit up in bed, putting it on speakerphone.
“He’s here; you’re on speaker phone.”
She lets out a deep breath. “I got a call from Detective Paul. Carter’s being released for good behavior next week. It’s been about two-and-a half years. He’ll be on probation, but I wanted you to know the second I did.”
Hayes' entire body shifts from relaxed to predatory mode. His eyes go dark as his body tenses. I can almost see the wheels turning in his mind. I have no doubt that if we weren’t across the country, Carter would be mysteriously missing by now.
I gripped his forearm with pleading eyes. I can’t lose Hayes again. If he goes searching for Carter, things will get bad.
“Thanks for letting us know. I’ll call Detective Paul and see if there’s anything we should do.
” Hayes told me a few weeks ago that they suspected Carter already knew where I was.
All that hard work was for nothing. Thankfully, now that Hayes is here, the news doesn't hit me as hard as I thought it would.
“Ok, sweet girl. I pray every day that he learns from this and is reformed.”
Hayes scoffs, knowing full well the chances of that are slim. His brows furrowed together as he stared at the phone in my hand. "Mom, you going to be okay? I can have someone come stay with you.”
“I’ll be fine. Don’t you worry about me. All my neighbors look out for each other and keep a good watch.”
I can see the worry in Hayes already, but he acquiesces.
We catch up for a few more minutes and then hang up.
Hayes falls back onto his pillow, closing his eyes. The noticeable jaw ticking is the only thing I can see moving on him.
“Do you want to go stay with your mom?” I ask, more worried about how he's feeling than myself at this point.
“And leave you? Absolutely not.”
“I’m safe here. Between Dan, Luke, and Levi—”
“No.” His tone leaves no room for argument, but that’s never stopped me before.
“Hayes, I can tell you’re worried about your mom.”
His eyes fly open, and he sits up, placing his hand on my jawline.
“No. My mom has more security than you do and I have some friends that can stay with her if he decides to show up. I’m not leaving you again. I can’t leave you again.” The way his voice breaks tugs at every single one of my heart strings.
“Ok, I don’t want you to go either.”
“Good.” His shoulders sag and I kiss him. A long, slow kiss that evolves into something much, much more.