5. Give Him a Chance – Everett
Chapter five
Give Him a Chance – Everett
That idiot. He could have totally fucked up the tap, and replacing it was the last thing I needed.
Hell, I was practically paying clients to take my beer in the first place, and part of that deal was supplying and maintaining the equipment for my brew.
I could have wrung that guy’s irritating neck.
Anyone would be mad about someone fucking with their career.
I had to succeed, and if I didn't stop bleeding money, I'd be living in the brewery—or worse.
Going back to party planning. That thought made me shiver.
“Everett, hey. Thanks for fixing the tap.” Nate clapped my shoulder. Was he trying to calm me down? Nope. Not happening.
“Don’t let that gremlin touch my stuff.”
“Gremlin? Oh, you mean Cameron?”
“Whatever his name is.” I pointed to the front of the bar where I knew he was still perched on a bar stool like a damn gargoyle.
“If he broke the system, it wouldn’t be covered under insurance.
” I had no clue whether that was true, and I didn’t want to find out either.
“Just keep your patrons on the right side of the bar.”
“Well, Cameron isn’t your ordinary customer. He’s like family. Everyone knows and loves him. Really, he’s a good guy. His family has been in the area forever. You could do worse.”
Worse than what? “I’m not looking for a boyfriend. I’m not even looking for a date.” That was the last thing I needed. Hook-ups were off the table. And why would he be pushing this gremlin toward me anyway?
Nate shrugged. “You can always use a friend. And Cameron is as good as it gets. Let me give you his number, because even though you took his head off back there, he’ll still be around if you ever need anything.”
His words stopped me short. He was only trying to help, and honestly, it wasn’t him I was mad at but the tap messing up.
And who couldn't use more friends? It was only that when Nate called me to come out to look at it my irritability kicked into overdrive in true Everett fashion. Probably wasn’t fair to take it out on this Cameron dude. “Well…”
“Give me your phone.” He reached his hand out and wiggled his fingers.
Reluctantly, I opened my phone and handed it over. After he typed it in, he handed it back. “Uh, thanks?” Was I actually thankful? Jury was still out on that one.
“Trust me on this. Call him.” He smirked at me like he knew something I didn’t.
“Had no idea you were a matchmaker too, Nate. A bar with rooms to rent isn’t enough for you?”
“And the campground.” He winked at me, but I knew he didn’t mean anything by it. He was totally involved with Kit.
“Whatever.” I shoved my hair out of my face. I needed cut, but I didn't have the money or the time for that. “It’s working now. Call me if anything else happens.”
“Sure. Thanks again. It's really getting popular." At least that was something good to take out of this situation. "Have a good evening.”
I waved and headed out the back door, but I heard him yelling at me to call Cameron as I went.
Should I trust him on this one? I’d never had great luck with guys, especially in the recent past, and I totally didn’t trust my own gut.
Maybe I should listen to someone else for a change, but I would probably regret it if I did.
I went through about a million excuses for why I did not need to call Cameron Telliyard, but they really all sounded hollow.
Hell, I was aggravated with everything, including myself.
In the end, I caved and typed out a text.
And erased it. Typed something else, but it sounded stupid, so I deleted that too.
Tucking my phone into my pocket, I went home, plugged my cell into the charger, and took a long hot shower before getting in bed. I still had to get up early.
The next day started out like any other.
Up, dressed, grab a granola bar and some fruit along with my coffee, and out the door I went.
I didn’t think about anything but getting to the brewery until I was there, sitting behind the desk in my office.
I started pulling up my spreadsheets when an errant thought hit me.
Cameron Telliyard
All those excuses, including my awkwardness, felt cold and lonely as I stared out the window and into the brewery floor.
Large silver fermentation vats stretched from one end to the other, each in various stages.
Those cold tanks were the only thing consistent in my life, and they did not keep me warm at night.
Well, shit. What the hell did I have to lose?
At a minimum, I could get a break from the brewery and some companionship.
At best… well, did I hope I could get laid?
He was a good-looking man, rough and bigger than me, which hit all my buttons. Plus, it had been a few months.
But I’d been lured in by good-looking guys before and nothing beneficial had come from it. One broke my heart, and the other just pissed me off. And I was already pissy with this Cameron dude.
So no. I refocused and got back to work.