Chapter Two
“Glad to see you could make it.” Seated in their usual booth, Benjamin Wyne lifted his soda and grinned at Ryder.
He smirked. “Wiseass.”
“I ordered you the usual, so if you want something different, you’ll have to tell your dad.”
“Thanks.” He slid into the booth, across from his buddy and shook his head. “The usual’s fine.”
They’d been meeting at Gabe’s—his father’s restaurant—every Monday for lunch for several years now. Once in a while, he ordered something other than a burger and fries, but today was definitely a burger day. He needed to dig into something hearty to expel some of his pent-up aggravation.
Ben narrowed his eyes. “You lost another bid, didn’t you?”
Muttering an oath, he scrubbed a hand over his face. “Colarusso snagged the Moleski account.”
Renovating the local hardware store would’ve secured work for his second crew. Now, if he didn’t land one, or both, of the two home renovation estimates he’d submitted last week, he might have to lay them off.
“Well, I have some news that might cheer you up,” Ben said, regaining Ryder’s attention.
“Oh? Are you and my sister having another baby?”
When he’d first found out his best friend was sleeping with his youngest sister, Ryder had been less than pleased. In fact, he’d punched Ben right in the face. After all, back then, his buddy had been way too popular with the ladies. But, Lea changed all that.
Married life and parenthood suited his friend. There was a contentment about him that had never been there before. Ben smiled easily, laughed often, and adoration and pride were evident in his eyes whenever he gazed at Lea and their month-old daughter.
“No.” Smiling, Ben scratched the bridge of his nose. “Not that we don’t want more kids, we do, but we agreed to wait until Melody is a year old before we start trying again.”
Time to change the subject. Now that Ben was sleeping with his sister, talking sex was just wrong. And nauseating as hell.
“So.” He sat back in his seat and eyed his buddy. “What news do you have that’s supposed to cheer me up? You get your hands on Mets tickets?”
Ben was full-time National Guard and in supply. He had a ton of contacts.
“This is better than Mets tickets.” His buddy grinned, and the knowing look in his eyes made Ryder suddenly nervous. “Remember the friend from design school my sister brought home for New Year’s Eve five years ago? Sophia? Well, she’s back in town.”
His pulse flickered at the mention of her name. “I know.” He shrugged. “I ran into her this morning.”
Ben’s brows shot straight up. “No shit? Well, what happened? Are the sparks still there? Because, damn, man, the way the two of you hit off that week was almost as crazy as the blue streaks in her hair. I mean, hell, you two disappeared for nearly two days. Poor Brandi hardly got to spend any time with her.”
Guilt rippled through his gut. “There was too much wine and champagne flowing. We sort of lost track of time.”
Ben snorted. “That’s not all you lost, pal. As I recall, you mentioned something about the two of you’d spending most of that time naked in bed. Hell, you had a smile on your face for weeks.”
Jesus…he’d told his buddy that? Then he’d definitely had too much to drink, because he never talked about being balls deep.
But Ben was right. He and Sophia had been naked most of the time, although the bed wasn’t the only place they’d had sex. Incredible sex.
The memory had haunted him, because it had happened six months after he’d returned from Iraq without Jinan. It’d been so soon, and yet, Sophia had managed to make him forget the woman he’d loved. A blessing and a curse. One full of guilt.
“Here you go.” The waitress arrived with their food and his iced tea.
“Hi, Elle,” he said, reaching for two packets of sugar to sweeten his drink. “How’s your first week of work going?”
“And the book?” Ben asked.
She was in town doing research on a police procedural romance, and when she wasn’t going out on calls with their cop friend, Jeremy, she was here, helping his dad.
Smiling, she leaned against the booth and tipped her head.
“As for the first question, things are going great here. Your dad is a sweetheart to work for, and I’m enjoying getting to meet so many locals.
It’s a big help with my research. As for the book…
that’s not going so great.” She sighed. “Let’s just say, Officer Mercer is not at all like your father to work with. ”
His chuckle echoed Ben’s. “Yeah, Jeremy is a great cop, but outside of his job, he does tend to lack people skills.”
She snickered. “Tell me about it. I sent him a link to an article on people etiquette, but he deleted it in front of me without even opening it.”
Ben choked on his drink. “Did you really send him that link?”
“Yeah.” She smiled. “Why?”
“Damn, I would’ve loved to have seen Jeremy’s face.” Ben grinned. “I hope you’re going to bug him for a while.”
Her chuckle mixed with his. “Yes, I’m not through with him…I mean, my research.” She winked. “I still have a few weeks left, then I’m going to stick around your wonderful town while I write the book.” She turned her gaze on him. “Thanks for letting me rent your cabin. It’s perfect.”
He thought so, too. “No problem.”
Even though he now lived in a bigger one near the lake, he couldn’t part with the single bedroom cabin.
It’d been his first purchase and solo renovation when he was twenty.
That was the reason he held onto it, not because of memories of an amazing New Year’s Eve in the hot tub with a certain visiting city girl.
No, those memories, and the guilt of his enjoyment, were the reasons he’d moved out.
“Well, I’d better get back to work.” She straightened. “More orders are up. Let me know if you two need anything else.”
He nodded. “Will do.”
Grinning, Ben cut into his open-faced meatloaf sandwich. “Man, I can’t wait for drill this weekend.”
“You’re going to harass Jeremy, aren’t you?” he asked, spreading mayo on his burger before adding ketchup to his fries.
“Damn straight.” Ben nodded. “Too bad you didn’t re-up when your contract ran out this spring. You could’ve joined in.”
A smile tugged his lips. “Almost wish I had.”
His buddy lifted a brow. “I can pull some strings and get you back in.”
“No thanks,” he said, lifting his burger. “I put in enough years. Besides, it’s a young man’s game. I’m nearing my mid-thirties.”
“Hey, I’m the same age as you, pal.”
He snickered. “Yeah, but you’re full-time. It’s your career. Mine is construction, and it’s time I gave it my sole focus.”
“You’re right,” Ben agreed. “But you sure are going to miss out on some fun this weekend. Unless you plan to invite Sophia to your bigger, better hot tub…”
Swallowing a curse, he eye-rolled his buddy. “You’re an ass.”
“Your sister happens to like my ass.”
“Christ.” He set his burger down in disgust. “What’d I tell you about that?”
The asshole laughed. “Sorry, can’t resist. You make it so damn easy.”
“Yeah, easy this.” He flipped the idiot off, which only made him laugh harder.
Ethan walked in the door and immediately shook his head. “My brother’s being his normal, annoying self, I see.”
Ryder nodded as the oldest Wyne brother approached.
“He’s family, I have to put up with him,” Ethan teased. “You, on the other hand, can avoid the abuse.”
He shrugged. “Guess I’m just a masochist.”
But in truth, Ben was a great friend. He’d had his back in battle, and on the home front.
Hell, ever since kindergarten. His buddy had been there for him and his family when Ryder’s mother had died in a car accident when he was eighteen.
The poor guy had actually seen it in one of the visions he sometimes got.
Ben had also been there for him when Jinan had chosen to fulfill a family duty and marry someone else.
No, Ben might be an idiot at times, but he was a solid friend.
“You have to be a masochist to put mayo on your burger.” The guy’s face wrinkled in disgust.
He dipped a fry in the leftover mayo, and holding Ben’s gaze, he popped it into his mouth.
“Ah, seriously?” Gagging, his buddy pushed his half eaten lunch aside. “Now who’s being annoying?”
He turned to Ethan and grinned. “Care for some meatloaf?”
“Don’t mind if I do.”
Ryder moved over to make room for him, then laughed when Ben snatched his plate back.
“Not so fast. I can still eat while disgusted,” his buddy claimed.
Ethan smirked. “Nothing comes between my brother and his food. Hell, you’ll probably still eat when you’re dead.”
Ben nodded. “True.”
Their laughter echoed through the restaurant, and Ryder was grateful to them for lightening his mood. No sense in letting Colarusso Construction ruin his lunch. They may have won the Moleski account, but he was determined they wouldn’t win the next one.
“So…” Ben quirked a brow at his brother. “Were you present when Ryder was reunited with Sophia?”
Ethan’s head snapped in his direction, disappointment creasing his brow. “No. I was unaware they’d met. Damn. I wanted to see it. Were the sparks still there?”
“I asked him the same thing, but he hasn’t yet answered me,” Ben said, gaze boring deep. “My guess is it’s a big, fat yes, and he’s in denial.”
He reeled back. “Denial my ass.”
“Yes, denial,” Ben insisted. “Ever since Jinan, you’ve shut down, man. Frozen out any woman who tried to get close.”
“It’s true,” Ethan said, snatching a fry from his plate.
Anger nipped at his shoulder blades. “Bullshit.” He leaned forward and tapped the table with his finger. “Just because I’d rather focus on my business instead of women right now, doesn’t mean I’m in denial.” He sat back and smirked. “You’re just butt-hurt because you didn’t have a front row seat.”
“Well, that’s about to change,” Ethan said. “Because Phoebe and Sophia are meeting me for lunch. And…look, here they are now.”
Before he could respond, or push the older Wyne idiot from the seat so he could get out, the door opened and in walked trouble.