Chapter 27
Reed
I stand in front of the mirror, carefully tying my tie, when I hear Olivia’s door close down the hallway.
Tonight, both of us are going out—but not together. She’s become good friends with Sophie through Riley, and the three of them are hitting the town together. They’ve been planning it for a couple of days now, and I know she’s been looking forward to some good fun.
When I learned that she wasn’t going to be around tonight, I figured I could use a night out with the guys, as well. It’s been a while since we’ve all gotten to spend time together.
So I texted Cole and Declan, and we’re meeting each other for drinks in around an hour. Cole invited his neighbor, Noah, and on a whim, I texted my brother, so Shane is meeting us there as well.
I finish up my tie, then do a last check of my hair before heading out of the room. She’s standing in the foyer, texting the girls’ group chat. When she looks up at me, she smiles, and for a moment, I’m at a loss for words.
She’s fucking stunning. It knocks the wind out of me. She’s wearing a simple, matte black dress and hoop earrings, plus, of course, her trademark six-inch heels. The dress hugs her curves perfectly.
She looks up and catches me staring. A flush spreads across her cheeks, and she quickly drops her gaze back to her phone.
“Took you long enough,” she teases, a nervous flutter in her voice. “And here I thought guys got ready faster.”
I shrug, grinning. “Yeah, well…” I can’t even come up with a suitable comeback. She puts on a cute dress, and suddenly I’m too distracted to even banter properly.
This is a train wreck waiting to happen.
After a moment of floundering, I manage to get my feet back under me. “You look good.”
She arches a penciled eyebrow at me. “That’s all you’ve got? You look good?”
“What?” I protest. “It’s a simple observation. I call it like I see it.”
“Oh, please.” She rolls her eyes, but there’s a begrudging smile on her face. “You say that to all the girls, don’t you?”
“Not lately,” I murmur. To my quiet delight, her cheeks redden even more.
“Where are you headed?” she asks, rather than responding directly. I love getting her flustered like this. Even if our relationship can’t be defined, it’s still thrilling to see that kind of reaction from her.
“Gonna meet the guys at a club we haven’t been to in a while.”
“Oh,” she says. “Some kind of exclusive VIP lounge? With old leather chairs and cigars?”
I can tell she’s making fun of me a little bit, but she’s more or less right. I give her a crooked grin. “Something like that. Where are you headed?”
“Apparently, Sophie and Riley have a reservation somewhere for dinner, and then we’re gonna, and I quote, ‘see where the night takes us.’” She lifts her fingers to make air quotes around the words. “Whatever that means.”
“Sounds fun.”
“Eh.” She shrugs, but I can tell that she’s excited. And I’m glad. It’s nice to see her go out with friends instead of the stuffy parties my family has dragged her to. “Should be interesting.”
The two of us take the elevator down to the lobby together, then part ways with a staged cheek-kiss, just in case there are photographers lurking somewhere on the street.
I’m meeting the guys downtown, but not on any of the common night-life streets, so there’s no crowd of people to contend with as my driver drops me off. It’s not at all my usual scene, but I know I’d never get Shane to come clubbing with me, so I had to pick a more low-key establishment.
When I arrive, I’m hit by a wave of cigar smoke and the slightly tangy scent of good whiskey. The host of the club escorts me to a private table in a secluded back room, where Declan and Shane are already waiting for me.
Our room is an old-fashioned smoking lounge, with classic, creaking leather chairs, polished mahogany fixtures, bookshelves, and even a carved chessboard on one of the small side tables. I take the chair opposite Declan’s, settling in and breathing the smell of conditioned leather.
“Welcome to the party,” Declan says, pouring me a glass of whiskey. I take the drink, then hold out another hand for a cigar.
“Cole and Noah aren’t here yet?” I ask as Shane passes me a lighter.
“Cole texted. He had to wait for Archie’s babysitter to show up before he could head out for the night, since both he and Riley are out,” Declan explains.
A moment later, Cole appears in the door to the room, giving us a sheepish wave. Noah files in behind him, and Declan busies himself pouring each of them a glass.
“Sorry for the delay,” Cole sighs, sinking down into one of the chairs. “Today was a little hectic. Archie got into a little bit of a fight at school, and Riley and I weren’t sure we were going to come out tonight. We decided to wait until after Archie was asleep to call the sitter.”
Declan frowns. “A fight? What’s that about?”
Cole’s nephew is usually a well-behaved, sweet kid, so it’s strange for him to be getting into this kind of trouble. Cole shrugs, though, as if he’s not too worried.
“They’re just getting to that age where they’ve figured out how to be mean to each other,” he says with a small laugh.
“Another kid called him a crybaby and they got into a fight. The teachers didn’t seem too worried.
No one was hurt, and apparently they made up right afterwards, so no harm, no foul. ”
“Is Archie okay?” I ask.
“Yeah, he’s fine. He was just sad, and he’s never been in trouble with a teacher before, so he needed a little extra attention tonight.”
“Makes sense.”
“That’s a milestone,” Noah adds, lighting his cigar. “First ever argument.”
We all chuckle at that.
“So other than that whole situation, how’s the little man?” I take a sip of my whiskey, savoring it on my tongue. Declan always chooses the best ones.
“He’s doing great.” Cole smiles proudly. “He’s learning to read. Can you believe that?”
Declan shakes his head, breathing out slowly. “Sometimes I think my shareholders can’t even read.”
After another round of laughter, Cole turns to me. “Okay, enough about the kiddo. I gotta hear an update from you.”
Even though I know exactly what he’s talking about, I feign ignorance, swirling the ice in my glass. “Update about what? Things are pretty chill on my end.”
“Uh, bullshit,” Declan scoffs.
“Come on,” Cole says cajolingly. “You knew this was gonna come up eventually.”
“Hey, Shane’s here, too,” Declan adds. “If you won’t tell us what’s going on with your whole engagement situation, then we can just ask him.”
Shane lets out a small, almost inaudible sigh.
“I don’t even know what you’re asking me,” I say.
“Like hell you don’t.” Cole rolls his eyes. “Just so you know, I actually went over to the grocery store and bought a copy of the fucking Inquirer just for the two-page spread about your engagement. It’s on my coffee table right now. I’m considering getting it framed.”
“Oh, you’d better not,” I mutter, shooting him a glare. Of course, that’s tantamount to encouragement. Now he’s definitely hanging it on his wall.
“Are you nervous about getting married?” Declan teases, a glint in his eye.
“Nah.” I lean back in the chair, folding my hands behind my head. If the guys are gonna give me a hard time—which I figured they would—the best thing to do is take it in stride.
“Why not? You’re settling down,” Cole says, his voice dripping with irony. “She’s making an honest man out of you. That’s a big change from the Reed we’ve always known and tolerated.”
Even Shane, who’s been almost silent since I arrived, can’t help but smirk at that.
“Never thought we’d see the day,” he says quietly. “Reed Eastwood, finally ending his playboy ways. Next thing you know, you’re gonna ditch that penthouse for something more down-to-earth.”
“Not on your life,” I say, flashing him a tight grin.
Cole chuckles. “But seriously,” he says. “Are you nervous?”
I think about it for a few seconds. I’ve never really considered the question. It occurs to me that, no, I’m not nervous. Not even a little bit.
“Nah.” I shrug. “Of course not.”
Even as I say it, some part of me wonders why that is. I mean, it’s pretty obvious on the surface—it’s a sham wedding. It’s not actually going to happen, so there’s nothing to anticipate.
But I can’t help but wonder—would I be nervous if it was real? If these preparations were all genuine, all leading up to some grand event that would shape my future so thoroughly…?
No. I don’t think I would be.
I don’t think I could ever be.
“How have you been, by the way?” Declan asks, shifting to face Shane. “It’s been a while since we’ve seen you.”
Declan and Cole know Shane, but only because he’s my brother. They haven’t gotten the chance to spend much time with him, mostly because he and I haven’t hung out a lot as adults.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you,” Noah adds. He reaches a hand out to shake Shane’s. “Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” Shane says, nodding at him. “Yeah, I haven’t really gone out much recently. His usual scene—” he gestures over at me—”isn’t really my scene.”
“His usual scene is nobody’s scene,” Cole grouses.
“It’s nice that we get to see more of you, what with the wedding events and all,” Declan says to Shane. “We need someone around who can take Reed down a peg.”
“Oh, that’s true,” Cole says, brightening. “Hey—you got any embarrassing stories about Reed? Anything from when you guys were kids?”
“Oh, about a million and a half.” Shane pauses to sip his whiskey, smiling to himself, then continues, “He just can’t stop embarrassing himself, to be honest.”
Making fun of me is one of Declan and Cole’s favorite pastimes, so I never interrupt them once they get going. I just sit back and smile; it’s pretty rare that anyone actually gets under my skin.
Shane starts counting on his fingers like he’s sorting through stories in his head. “I could tell you guys about the time he fell off our uncle’s boat. Or the time he thought he could change a flat tire on his own when he was sixteen. Or the time he got caught in my father’s office with—”