“It’s just a burger and a drink, Say. I didn’t ask you to marry me.”
I blinked when his words hit me, and realized I had turned into a statue in my seat. I swallowed hard and shifted a little bit.
“Okay. Sorry. I didn’t mean to freak out.”
“But you did. Eventually, you’re going to have to spend time with me outside of the bedroom and the courtroom, Sayer. I have a five-year-old coming to live with me really soon and that means I’m a package deal. Spending time together is going to take on a new meaning with Hyde underfoot.”
He squeezed my thigh and I tried not to panic at his revelation. He was going to put in the effort. What the hell?
I cleared my throat. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it, I guess.”
“Why does that feel like you using some kind of lawyer tactic to avoid the subject?” He sounded annoyed, but we were already in front of the little dive bar, so I didn’t bother to explain that I was indeed trying desperately to change the subject. We worked really well naked and tangled together. I wasn’t so sure how any of that translated to real life, and just like that my grip on the ledge tightened and I pulled myself a few inches up from the danger zone of love and longing.
“Let’s go inside and eat. I’m hungry, too, and I love Darcy’s BLT. We can talk about what happens next later.”
He grunted at me but came around to help me out of the Jeep nonetheless. When I was standing in front of him with his hands at my waist, I wasn’t surprised at all to see him bend his head down and kiss me—hard. He always did this when I put off a conversation that he wanted to have about the current state of our relationship. It was like a physical reminder that he was letting things slide, but only for now.
“Eventually there won’t be any more laters, Say. There will only be right now and you’re going to have to decide what you want to do with it.”
The Bar was packed and we were enveloped in noise and revelry as soon as we pushed the doors open. A large man with beautiful skin that hovered somewhere slightly beyond the golden hue of a deep tan gave Zeb a fist bump and nodded at me. He was as beautiful and fierce looking as Zeb, so I returned the nod and decided not to trip over words by saying hello. His eyes were the most unusual shade of light blue that bled into an iridescent yellowish gold on the outer rim. I’d never seen anything like them and it was hard for me not to stare every time I was around him. I’d met Dash Churchill a few times when I had stopped by the Bar for a drink with the girls, and while he was always polite he was never what I would consider friendly, even when he instructed me to call him Church in that slow and thick Mississippi drawl of his. The same could not be said for the little-redheaded flurry of sass and fun that was Dixie Carmichael. The long-standing cocktail server for the place was everyone’s best friend and didn’t hesitate to throw her arms around me and Zeb, though he had to bend down quite a bit so the petite woman could reach.
“Oh my gosh, I haven’t seen you guys in forever. It’s crazy in here tonight, so you might have a tough time finding a place to sit.” Her eyes widened.
Zeb rubbed his hand over his beard and scanned the busy bar. “What’s going on tonight?”
Dixie shrugged which sent her strawberry-colored curls dancing. “The band is one of Jet’s finds. Whenever he sends a group in they pack the house, and Asa isn’t here to tend bar because he’s trying to move into his new house, so it’s just Danny, who is pretty new, and this totally new guy Zack. They’re both okay but not as fast as Asa is. I should call Rome, but with Cora being pregnant and about to pop I’ll only do that in an emergency.”
She rattled off the list of familiar names that made up the group of men and women my brother claimed as his own. I nodded like I was following along and tapped Zeb on the shoulder. “You try and find a table. I’m gonna go wash my hands before we eat.” I needed I minute to pull myself together as well. My mask was slipping and the woman trying to peek out from behind it was starting to take over my entire life.
He nodded and moved away as I started to push through the crowd of people blocking my way to the restroom. I was brought up short by a light touch on my elbow. Dixie’s dark brown eyes gleamed up at me with all the romance and heart I was lacking.
“So you and the mountain man, huh?” The question was innocent and not all at the same time.
“I’m helping him out with some things and that led to us spending a lot of time together.” That was about as much of a lawyerly no-answer as there was when it came to the status of my relationship with the big, bearded man.
Dixie giggled, and really the only person who could get away with giggling like that as an adult and still make it look cute and sexy was this little firecracker of a woman. “He’s wanted to spend time with you for a long time and I always thought the feeling was mutual. Well, whatever it is, good for both of you. I love it when good people find each other even if they don’t seem to fit. That makes it even better in my book.”
Her gaze shifted toward the burnish-skinned bouncer and then back to me.
“Make each other happy. That’s all that matters. I have to go pick up an order and yell at the new guy to get his ass in gear. If Zeb finds a seat I’ll take a Coors Light to the table for you.”
And just like that, she scurried off, and I resumed my battle to get to the ladies’ room. I had never been to the Bar when it was so crowded, and I wasn’t sure what kind of crowd it actually was. There seemed to be a lot of young, college-aged kids milling about who I assumed were here for the band that was playing later. There was also a big group of men and women dressed similarly to me who had clearly stopped by for an after-work cocktail, and then there was a hodgepodge of other folks who looked like they had just randomly chosen any old bar to stumble into off the street.