Chapter 10
Scotty
The Place has smelled the same since I was a kid. Like spilled beer, fried food, and old country heartbreak. The jukebox hums low in the corner, Merle Haggard’s voice mixing in and out with the clack of pool balls and the chatter of regulars.
Tyler leans against the bar beside me, bottle in hand, while Decker lines up a shot like it’s life or death. Ranger’s already two beers ahead, grinning at me like an idiot.
“You know,” Tyler drawls, “I still can’t get over how you and Adrienne disappeared at the bonfire. Whole damn crowd there, and you two were off in your own little world by the fire. What’s it been now— a decade of this shit?”
Decker doesn’t even look up from his cue stick. “Yeah, I’ve never seen Adrienne Slade look that flushed from stargazing. What’d she see up there? Penis Erectus?” He laughs, proud of his joke.
Ranger snorts into his beer. “Guess it was a real educational evening.” That earns a round of laughter. Ranger slaps the table hard enough to rattle the cue chalk.
I shake my head, smirking, keeping my voice even. “Fuck off.”
“Come on, man. Don’t tell me nothing’s going on. You’ve been walking around with that dumb half-smile all week. One of your regulars back in your life, or did you two finally hold hands?”
Tyler grins. “Yeah, did you make it past first base yet?”
I tip my beer back, letting the cold bite drown whatever smart-ass comeback I might’ve had. “Y’all need new hobbies.”
“Maybe,” Decker says, deadpan, “but you have to admit, you are so full of shit. There’s something different with you this time.”
“Yeah? You guys want to braid our hair and talk about our feelings, or focus on playing pool?”
They laugh again, and for a minute, the noise swallows the tension in my chest. This is familiar, the teasing, the back and forth bullshit, banter.
But under it, I can feel it: the way Adrienne’s laugh still echoes in my head, the sound she made when she came apart in my arms, the way she looked at me like maybe I was more than just another mistake she’d learn from.
They can see it too… because it is different this time.
I grip the neck of my beer harder, forcing a smile I don’t feel.
Ranger leans on his cue. “You know what’s funny, though? Thought I saw Adrienne’s car the other night. Late. Parked in your drive.”
The clack of Decker’s break shot fills the silence that follows.
At first, I think he’s joking, and it’s a coincidence that Adrienne was at my place the other night, but when I look at him, I know damn well he really did see her car there.
My pulse spikes, but I keep my face blank. “You need your eyes checked.”
Tyler raises a brow. “That so?”
“Yup.” I set my bottle down. “It was probably a car I’m working on. Or hell, a stray cat. Y’all see what you want to see.”
Decker glances up, smirking. “Pretty sure a BMW’s hard to mistake for a stray cat.”
Before I can answer, a familiar voice cuts in from behind Ranger. “Well, that’s interesting.”
Shit. Axel.
He’s got a beer in one hand and a serious expression on his face.
“Didn’t mean to interrupt story time,” he says, sliding up beside me. “But did I just hear my sister was at your house… late?”
Ranger mutters, “Shit,” under his breath, suddenly fascinated by the pool table.
I take another slow drink, playing it cool even though every muscle in my body’s gone tight. “You might’ve.”
Axel tilts his head, eyes glinting. “Well, don’t let me stop you. Go on.”
Tyler clears his throat. “We were just talking about how Scotty’s been looking real… content lately.”
“Yeah,” Decker adds, tone dry. “Must be the weather.”
Axel looks from them to me, amusement flickering under the surface. “Huh. Funny. Because the last time I saw Adrienne, she was smiling the same way.”
Ranger coughs into his beer. “I’m gonna go play darts.”
The guys scatter like cowards, leaving me and Axel by the table.
I lean on my cue, forcing a smirk. “You done fishing?”
He grins. “Not yet. I’m just getting started.”
Axel plays it cool at first, like he’s just here to shoot a round and drink a beer. He grabs a cue, spins it in his hand, and leans over the table. “You know,” he says, eyes on the cue ball, “none of this really shocks me. You and Adrienne, I mean, you’ve been doing this forever.”
I lift a brow. “Doing what?”
He smirks. “Come on, man. You two have always been tight. Friends, sure, but there’s always been something underneath. She’s had a crush on you since middle school. You knew it, too. Hell, you’ve more than encouraged over the years, feeding into it.”
I huff a breath that’s not quite a laugh. “Flirting’s not a crime.”
“Depends who you’re doing it with.” He sinks a shot, the ball rolling smoothly into the corner pocket. “I just never thought you’d actually go there.”
I take a long pull from my beer, let the burn settle before answering. I don’t know what he knows, but I’m not admitting to shit. Besides, it’s really not his business, now is it? “Didn’t say I did.”
He laughs once. “Yeah, and I didn’t just hear the guys talking about Adrienne’s car in your driveway.”
I don’t bother responding. The silence stretches until the jukebox changes tracks, Merle giving way to Skynyrd.
Axel straightens, resting the cue against his shoulder. “Seriously, man… is there something going on?”
I keep my voice flat. “Adrienne can handle herself. You don’t need to worry.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“I know.” I tip the bottle back, stare at the bubbles sliding down the neck. “But that’s all I’ve got for you.”
He studies me, that half-grin fading into something more serious.
We’ve known each other too long for bullshit.
We worked the same ranch jobs as teenagers, spent half our twenties drinking beers out on my porch when his parents drove him crazy.
He’s been like family. Which makes the weight in his voice cut deeper.
“I’m not trying to be an ass,” he says quietly. “You’re my friend. But she’s my sister. You know how this looks. You’ve had a reputation since before you even realized you had one. I just don’t want to have to choose sides if this goes bad.”
That lands like a fucking rock in my gut. I set the beer down and stare at the condensation ring bleeding across the table. “You’re not gonna have to.”
He arches a brow. “You sure about that?”
I meet his gaze, voice earnest. “I’d never hurt her, Axel. You know that.”
“I know you wouldn’t mean to. But meaning to and doing it are two different things.”
We stand there for a beat, neither of us saying what we’re really thinking. Him: Don’t fuck this up. Me: I already might have.
Frustrated, I grab my jacket off the chair, needing some air. He doesn’t stop me, but when I reach the door, his voice follows before I exit.
“For what it’s worth,” he says, “I’ve always trusted you. Don’t make me regret it.”
I turn just enough to meet his eyes. “Wouldn’t do that to you.”
Then I leave. The laughter and the jukebox fade behind me, replaced by the sound of my own pulse rushing through my ears and the weight sitting heavy in my chest. I’m not disloyal and I’m not a fucking liar, but right now, I have no idea what I’m doing.
I’m torn between being a good friend, a loyal friend to Axel and Aiden, and wanting their sister. I tell myself it’s all lines I can still keep straight. But by the time I hit the truck, I already know that’s a lie.
The barn is quiet in that way that instantly settles my racing pulse.
Crickets outside, swallows tucked up in the rafters, Rosa’s soft huff as she leans into the brush like she’s been waiting on me all damn night.
I work slowly, long strokes down her neck, the cedar shavings and sweet hay starting to finally slow my thoughts.
Axel’s warning on a consonant loop since I left the bar earlier.
I grit my teeth and switch arms. Rosa noses my shoulder, sensing my stress. “Yeah, girl. I know, I know.” I stroke her nose, pressing my forehead against hers for just a second before my ears perk up. Tires crunch on gravel.
I go still. I’m not expecting anyone, and it’s too late for deliveries.
“It’s okay, girl,” I reassure Rosa as I set the brush on the rail and step out of the barn. I lift my hand to shield my vision from the headlights that turn off a second later. I blink, then squint, my eyes adjusting to the darkness. And then the driver’s door opens, and Adrienne climbs out.
She looks absolutely fuckable and cute at the same time.
My heartbeat trips and stutters as I take in her outfit.
Tight jeans that she’s poured into and a Henley that hugs her just right.
It hits me low and quick how at ease she instantly puts me.
The anxiety from earlier starts to melt away the second she looks at me.
Her eyes meet mine, and she grins, closing the door with her hip. “Hey.”
I can feel myself staring, and I really don’t give a shit. “Hey, yourself.”
She walks toward me, hands in her back pockets like she’s trying to play it cool. The closer she gets, the easier I breathe. “What’re you doing here?”
“I was bored,” she says casually. “And I wanted to see you.”
I blink, a little surprised at how easily she just admitted that she wanted to see me. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.” She tips her head, studying me. “You okay?”
I nod, then shake my head, deciding to be just as honest right back. “Better now that you’re here.”
Something flickers in her eyes, and for a second, I’m not sure what to do. Do I grab her and kiss her? Is she only here for sex? But a second later, she answered for me when she bumped my arm with her shoulder. “Good. Put me to work.”
“You serious?” She shoots me a look. “I’m just saying, I know you were raised on a ranch, but it’s been a minute since you’ve had to do chores, and your nails look new.”
“Please. My dad and uncles would disown me if I forgot which end of a pitchfork does what.” She looks down at her manicure, then smiles up at me. “And yes, they are new, thanks for noticing.”