Chapter 4
Phoenix
I’d barely walked through the brewery doors when I spotted Dominic setting up behind the bar.
Normally, mornings were quiet, just prep and inventory before the first customers trickled in from town.
Sometimes customers went through the orchard or visited my brother’s bakery before stopping into the brewery for brunch or a late lunch.
Dinners were busy too, and date night among people from the city really took off after I had a social media campaign targeting the romantic ambience of the brewery at night beneath the stars.
It showcased our extensive beer list as well, which catered to a wide array of palates from bitter, citrusy notes to the rich, roasted flavors of stouts that mimicked coffee and chocolate, to the tartness of sour beers and the crisp, clean palate of lagers.
Usually, my time was spent thinking about how I could make the brewery better and more successful, but my head wasn’t on work today.
It was on Elyna. She hadn’t looked right yesterday. Too pale, too stiff around the shoulders. Something was eating at her, and no matter how much I told myself it was none of my business, I couldn’t let it go.
“You gonna tell me what’s going on with her?” I asked Dominic, my tone sharper than I intended.
Dominic glanced up from his ledger, his brow raised. “Morning to you too, boss.”
“Don’t play dumb.” I leaned against the counter—arms crossed. “Elyna. She’s… off. Has been since yesterday. You know something?”
Dominic shook his head slowly. Yup, I wasn’t getting any information out of him. “That’s not my story to tell, Phoenix. If she wants you to know, she’ll tell you herself.”
My jaw tightened. “That’s never going to happen.” The tension between us ran too deep. I was really beginning to dislike it, but there was nothing I could do.
“Then maybe you need to earn that kind of trust,” Dominic suggested, flipping another page in his book.
Before I could fire back, Cooper strolled in, whistling off-key and carrying a box of clean glasses. He caught the tension in the room instantly and smirked. “You’re looking extra grumpy this morning, bossman.”
“Don’t start, Coop.”
“Bossman is inquiring about Elyna,” Dominic cut in. He was being annoying, but I knew it was coming from a good place. Dominic was a hard worker, loyal to his core.
Cooper grinned some more, like he was on to something.
“Stay out of it, Coop,” I muttered.
He set the box down with a thud and leaned on the bar next to me, grin widening. “Come on. You’ve been circling that girl like a hawk since she walked through the door. Admit it, you’re in over your head.”
I shot him a hard look. “You don’t understand.”
“Enlighten me.” His smirk grew wider, like he’d just won a soccer match.
“She’s got her hands full,” I reminded, my every word clipped. “She’s got a baby. She’s living with her no-good father. That man has always been trouble and that hasn’t changed.”
That shut him up. Cooper’s grin faded, and Dominic gave me a long, measured look, like he wanted to say more but didn’t.
The front door opened, cutting off the silence between us.
It was too early for customers, Dad stepped in wearing his police uniform.
My father, Pierre Thorne, was all broad shoulders, weathered face, the kind of presence that filled a room without trying.
He came by now and then to check in, usually to poke holes in how I ran the place.
“Phoenix,” he greeted, giving me a nod. “Dominic. Cooper.”
“Dad.” I straightened, trying not to sound like the kid who still wanted his approval. Dad was the director of the police force in our town. That’s what we called it in Quebec, the director which meant the police chief. “You hear anything about Chabot lately?”
Dad’s brow furrowed. “Why?”
“Just answer the question.”
Cooper cleared his throat and muttered something along the lines of, “He’s worried about Elyna.”
I wasn’t sure Dad understood him though he did eye me suspiciously, but then again Dad was always in detective mode.
Dad sighed, scratching his jaw. “Word is he’s been stirring up trouble at the Frosted Mug. Got into it with a couple of guys last night. Kammy threw him out before it got uglier.”
A curse slipped under my breath. Elyna was living with a loose cannon.
Dad gave me a pointed look. “You keep your distance, Phoenix. Chabot’s not your problem.”
But that was the thing. . .he was. Because Elyna was. I wasn’t going to admit those words out loud because I would never hear the end of it from Dad, Dominic, and Cooper. The conversation ended abruptly when the front door of the brewery swung open again.
This time it felt like the air shifted. Elyna walked in, shoulders hunched, dark circles under her eyes. She looked like she hadn’t slept at all and my chest tightened. I couldn’t stop myself. I stepped forward, blocking her path.
“What happened?” My voice came out rougher than I intended.
She froze, her eyes flicked up to mine. Defensive, guarded. “Nothing. I’m fine.”
But I’d seen enough in my life to know when someone was lying.
“Is Braden okay?” I asked.
“I never told you my son’s name,” she responded being difficult, as usual.
“Isabelle must have mentioned it. She’s been calling me to check up on you,” I confessed.
A small smile curled her lips. “That baby sister of yours is so sweet. How did you not get any of that sweetness?”
I heard Dad chuckling from behind me. Cooper too. Dominic probably thought better of it.
“Good to see you, Elyna,” Dad said, stepping forward. He gave her a hug.
“You too.” She smiled at him warmly. It seemed like she got along with all my family members except for me, and that irritated me too.
“Is everything going okay?” Dad asked her.
“You mean with Papa?” she asked Dad. “I’m guessing you heard about his outburst at the Frosted Mug last night.”
“We got a few calls,” Dad replied. “Elyna, you know you can come stay with me in the main house. Isabelle will be home in a couple of weeks, and she’d love to spend time with you and Braden.”
“That’s a really nice offer, but I can’t accept,” Elyna replied because she was stubborn to her bones. She was prideful too. I couldn’t blame her, I understood pride.
“Well, I best be going,” Dad said, giving us all a curt nod. “That offer is open ended, Elyna.” Dad meant it too. He was the kind of man who was willing to help anyone who needed it, and the main house was a big home with many empty rooms. Dad would have been glad to host them.
“Thanks.” Elyna blinked. She looked tired, her long honey hair was in a high ponytail and her gray eyes looked stormy but still so beautiful.
Dad left.
I followed her down the narrow hall. She pushed into the lounge, dropped her purse onto the counter, and let out a slow breath like she’d been holding it in since sunrise.
“You didn’t have to chase me,” she said without turning around.
“Yeah, I did.” I closed the door behind me. “You’re not fine, Elyna. You can’t expect me to believe otherwise when you look like you haven’t slept in a week.”
She whipped around, gray eyes flashing. “So what if I haven’t? It’s not your problem, Phoenix. You don’t need to fix me.”
The words hit harder than they should have. “I’m not trying to fix you,” I said evenly. “I’m just asking you to stop shutting me out.”
Her jaw tightened, and for a second, I thought she’d fire back with another wall of sarcasm. But instead, her shoulders slumped, and she leaned against the counter like she couldn’t keep standing upright on her own.
“I can handle my own life,” she whispered.
I stepped closer, taking in the fresh floral scent of her shampoo. She had a loose piece of hair that fell out of her ponytail and into her eyes, and I tucked it behind her ear. Her breath caught and my heart stammered in my chest.
She finally lifted her gaze and, for one charged moment, neither one of us looked away.
The truth was, I couldn’t look away if I wanted to.
I was sucked in by her beauty, but there was something more.
Something beneath the surface that was brewing inside me, and I couldn’t figure out what it was.
And then she shook her head and slipped past me, brushing my arm as she went. “I’ve got tables to set.”
I let her go, even though every muscle in my body screamed to follow her, to press harder, to make her see I wasn’t the enemy here.
But all of that was a challenge for another day because Elyna Chabot had built walls long before I’d ever stepped into her life, and I feared, if I tried to tear them down, they might destroy us both.