“Lies,” she tells me but doesn’t say anything else. She just pulls my hand, and we walk out of the house. I drive my car there, and when we get there, the parking lot is full, which is normal for a Saturday night. This bar is the best thing in five counties, which means people rush here on the weekend. I tuck my phone in my back pocket as we walk to the door. The sound of music is already coming out. “We are going to fuck shit up,” she says, pulling open the door. I throw my head back and laugh. As soon as I step foot in the building, my body already senses him. When I look through the crowd of people, I spot him behind the bar. He smiles at the woman in front of him as he hands her a beer. I stop in my tracks and Jenna looks in the direction and says exactly what I’m thinking. “Holy shit.”
Chapter Sixteen
Ethan
I can feel eyes on me, and when I look up from the bar, I see her. My body tenses. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve been knocked back on my ass, and this one right here is on there. She’s so fucking gorgeous, and I stare at her not even thinking of the hundred people who are around us. I stare at her, hoping she can hear my thoughts. It’s you. It’s always been only you. It will always be you. “Tell me, Ethan.” The girl in front of me says my name, and I look at her. “How long are you staying for?” I don’t even know who this woman is, but from the times people say hello to her, she must be a regular here.
“I have no plans of leaving,” I say. Pulling the rag tossed over my shoulder, I wipe the bar in front of her before moving down the bar to grab a couple more orders.
“I didn’t think you could do it.” I hear the guy from beside me. I met him a couple of hours ago when I came in. His name is Scott, and he’s been working here for the past five years. “When your mom said you would come in and help, I was shocked and, not going to lie, annoyed.”
I pour two shots of tequila and a draft beer, handing it to the waitress who takes off. “I have been working here my whole life.” I look over at him. “I would beg my mother to let me come here when I was fourteen.” Wiping down the bar again, I walk over to the sink to rinse it off. “She would always tell me no, but then Beau would miss her like crazy, and he would sneak me in.”
Scott laughs as he points at a guy waiting in line. “He’s still lovesick over her.” He laughs. “When she works two nights in a row, he comes in and doesn’t move from that stool over there.” He points at the random stool that he has always kept there. “He also gets up and covers her when she bends over. It’s hysterical.”
I shake my head and smile at the two girls at the end of the bar waiting to be served. “What can I get you?” I ask them but look away into the crowd to see if I see her. She stands now beside the same group of guys I spent the afternoon training with.
“I’ll take two Bud Lights with lime,” the blonde says to me.
“And I’ll take your number,” the brunette next to her says, laughing. “Or you can take mine.”
I shake my head and turn around to get the two bottles of beer, twisting off the caps and putting it down. “Twelve fifty,” I say. “And thanks for the offer.”
She grabs the beer and hands me a napkin. “Just in case you change your mind.” She turns around and walks away, and nothing inside me moves. Not one single part of me is alive. I grab the napkin and toss it in the garbage.
“That’s brutal,” the blonde from before says.
I shrug my shoulders. “It is what it is,” I say. “Can I get you anything else?”
“I guess your boots under my bed is out of the question?” She winks at me.
“Unless you knock me out cold and take them off my feet,” I say halfway down the bar.
“Well, then.” She puts money down on the bar. “Have a good night, Ethan. Glad to have you back.”
“Who is that?” I ask Scott, who fills me in on the woman who moved here four years ago. She and Mom are friendly, which is how she knew about me. “She’s a cougar.” He motions with his head toward the group of cowboys that train at the arena. She slides up to one of them, and they don’t stand a chance at it. His eyes go cross-eyed when she whispers in his ear. I put my hands on the bar, and I just shake my head and laugh.
“Hey there,” I say to Brett when he walks up to the bar. “Fancy seeing you here.”
When I went into the arena this morning, I didn’t expect the old boys to be there, but apparently, it’s a Saturday thing. He just looked at me and didn’t say a word. It was only after a couple of hours that he finally spoke to me. “What you did was fucked up.” He didn’t even start out with small talk.
“I’m aware,” I told him. He and I were always friendly when we saw each other, and we saw each other more than we wanted to. With Jenna and Emily being best friends, it was hard to avoid it.
“It wasn’t good.” He didn’t have to tell me
