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I shook my head. “Thanks, but there isn’t. If the words aren’t there, the words aren’t there. I might need to come away from it for a day and see if the words hit me.”
“What about research? That’s why you’re up my ass every morning.”
I smirked.
“Not, um.” Piper pressed her hands against her cheeks. “That came out wrong.”
“Little bit, yeah.”
“Oh, God,” she moaned, bringing her hands together so that her face was covered. “I need to go to bed.”
I fought back a laugh. “I’ll go. You look tired.”
“I am.” She dropped her hands. “I’m so sorry. Let me try that again.” She ran her tongue over her lower lip, then dragged the soft, pink flesh between her teeth.
Fuck, man.
“What about research?” she said after a moment. “That’s why you’re in my kitchen every morning.”
“There we go.”
“Much better.” She laughed. “Where’s your book set? Is there a movie or TV show you can watch? What about a book?”
“You know, I haven’t set a location. I like to write what I know, so maybe I should just set it in White Peak.” I tilted my head to the side. “I mean, I wouldn’t go to New York City and write a book set on the beach.”
“They are not the same,” she mused. “Well, if you set it here, I can help you. I think my brother and the guys are going for a hike on Monday morning. Why don’t you go with them? Fresh air, you’ll get some inspiration for the area…”
“Would they mind?”
“I doubt it. We all usually have dinner on a Friday night at Bronco’s. Why don’t you join us tomorrow and I’ll introduce you to everyone? You already know Holley, Kinsley, and Saylor. And my brother, he’s obviously engaged to Kinsley.” She paused. “I think the only people not there tomorrow are Ivy and Kai, but their daughter is only one so that’s not unusual.”
Shit, I had nothing to lose. It wasn’t like I knew anyone else in the town, and if it was going to grow on me as much as it was, making friends probably wasn’t a bad idea.
“All right, yeah,” I said. “No idea where Bronco’s is, though.”
Piper grinned. “Meet me here at six. You can park around the back with my car. I’ll take you.”
***
“Holley and Ivy’s parents own this place,” Piper said as we approached Bronco’s. “So, pro tip, never bring a date here. It’s the worst.”
I smirked. “I can imagine. What kind of bar?”
“The best,” she admitted. “It’s technically a sports bar, but it’s the only one in town except for the dive bar a few miles out, so it does like live concerts, karaoke nights, little bit of everything. Unless it’s the Superbowl or something, then you just avoid it because it’s full of wannabe head coaches for whatever team is in the game.”
“So like every bar in America on Superbowl night.”
“Pretty much.”
I darted ahead of her and got the door, and she beamed at me.
“Thank you.”
She darted inside in front of me, and I let the heavy door swing closed after me. There was a gentle lull of music that was enough for an atmosphere but not so loud you couldn’t hear each other across a table. The seating was a mix of stools at the bar, booths around the edges, and a variety of wooden tables both circular and rectangle spread through the middle. There was a stage set off to the side where a young woman and an older man were setting up what looked to be a huge karaoke machine.
“Oh, no,” Piper muttered. “I didn’t know it was tonight. It’s usually Saturday.”
“Is karaoke a bad thing?” I looked around. “Where do we sit?”
“Follow me.” She led me over to an area in the corner that had been cleared. Two tables had been pushed together, and twelve chairs were in place around them.
That was a lot of people.
“We have a running reservation,” she explained. “Do you want to sit down, and I’ll get us some drinks?”
“Uh… if a stranger is sitting at your table, won’t that be weird?”
“Oh, shit, yeah. Come with me.” She motioned for me to follow her once again, but this time it was to the bar.
“Piper! You’re early,” a woman who looked similar to Holley said from behind the bar. “On your own?”
She shook her head. “Nope. Jasmine, this is Maverick. He’s new in town. Maverick, this is Jasmine, Holley’s mom.”
Jasmine wiped out a glass and gave me a warm smile. “Pleased to meet you, honey. Aren’t you the author? Holley’s been talking about you.”
“Uh, yes, ma’am. That’s me.”
“Wonderful. I’ve asked her for one of your books. Told her if she liked you that much I wanted to know why.” She winked at me.
“Well if she doesn’t get you one, let me know and I’ll make it happen.”
