Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 101051 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 505(@200wpm)___ 404(@250wpm)___ 337(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101051 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 505(@200wpm)___ 404(@250wpm)___ 337(@300wpm)
The stools on either side of Nic are occupied, so I slide between her and the girl beside her and lean against the bar.
Nic’s eyes widen, as if she’s surprised I came over here despite the fact that I’ve spent the better part of the last fifteen minutes staring at her. “Um, hi?” she says.
I rub the back of my neck. Hell, I guess I am rusty. I could have sworn she was just waiting for me to make my move. “You doing okay?” I clear my throat—full-throttle awkward now—and catch Jake watching me with a smirk on the opposite side of the bar. He turns away, but not before I see his chest shaking with laughter. He busies himself filling orders and cleaning up behind the bar, all while staying within earshot. That fucker is witnessing my complete and utter lack of game.
“I thought you were having a meeting over there,” Nic says. “What happened? The guy with all the papers looked pretty serious.”
I shrug. “Family business. Nothing exciting.” I look at her water and the empty shot glass beside it. “What are you drinking? Can I get you another?”
“Tequila. But . . .” She shakes her head and lowers her voice. “I don’t think the bartender chick likes me.”
“Ava,” I call, waving to Jake’s bartender and best friend. I point to Nic’s empty shot glass. “Thanks.”
Ava rolls her eyes but reaches for a clean shot glass.
“Do you know everyone around here?” Nic asks as Ava turns away.
“Pretty much. That’s how a town like this functions. Everyone knows everyone. And their business.”
She draws in a shaky breath. “Sounds familiar. They know your business and talk about it like it’s their own personal soap opera.” She wrinkles her nose. “That sounded bitter and dramatic.”
I chuckle. “You said you’re new to town. Are you visiting or moving in?”
“Visiting. I think.” She worries her bottom lip between her teeth. “I thought it was temporary, but now that I’m here, I’m thinking why not stay forever? I’m certainly not in any rush to go back where I came from.”
I take a sip of my coffee. “Why’s that?”
She flashes a grin that’s so wide it should take over her whole face, but it doesn’t. That sadness is back at the corners of her eyes. “I need a fresh start.”
“A fresh start? How old are you?” Please be older than I think.
“Twenty-four.”
I’m simultaneously relieved and disappointed. At least at twenty-four she’s not some college kid, but she’s still nine years younger than me. I suppose she’s old enough, but I’ve lived a lifetime in the nine years between us—all the best and worst years that made me who I am today. But instead of finding a way to politely excuse myself, I study her and sip my coffee. “What makes a twenty-four-year-old think she needs a fresh start?”
She shrugs. “I like the idea of living somewhere where people don’t know my business, and why not here? Big water, nice people—what’s not to like?”
“Nice people, huh?” Cynicism colors my words.
“Y’all seem nice.” She lifts her eyes to meet mine. “Aren’t you?”
“It’s just like any other place. Some people are genuine and kind. Some are assholes.”
“Sounds about right.” She tilts her head to the side. “Which are you?”
“Oh, I’m definitely an asshole.”
“Yeah, right.” She laughs as if this is the funniest joke she’s ever heard, but I was being absolutely serious. “Thanks for what you did earlier. With John. That conversation was getting all kinds of awkward.”
“It was nothing. John’s a prick. He doesn’t understand that women don’t exist to get him off.”
“Yeah.” Something flashes over her face that tells me guys like John are a fact of life she’s uncomfortably familiar with. “Still embarrassing to find myself in that position.”
“Give yourself some credit. John’s pretty slimy, and a lot of girls don’t realize that until, well, later than they’d like.”
“Unless you’re there to save the day.” She smiles. “I don’t normally do the damsel-in-distress thing. I don’t want you thinking I’m helpless or anything.”
“I knew you could handle him. Actually, it was more a favor to John’s balls than it was to you.”
Her laugh comes out so sharply that she sort of giggle-snorts. It’s pretty fucking adorable. Just like the rest of her. “Yeah, that’s definitely the direction we were headed. A knee to the balls usually gets the message across.”
“You have to do that a lot?”
“No!” She shakes her head and laughs. “Not at all! I’m a pacifist.”
Ava comes back with Nic’s tequila. She plops it in front of Nic and scowls at me. “If she pukes on your shoes, don’t come crying to me.”
I frown and reassess Nic. “How drunk are you?”
“I’m working on forget everything drunk. Not there yet, unfortunately.” She reaches into her purse. “Let me settle up.”
I look at Ava and shake my head. “I’ll take care of her tab.”