Currently, it was Friday evening, and I was looking forward to my monthly book club night. Becca typically hosted out atthe homestead, but it was Chloe’s birthday, so we’d decided to celebrate a little. I’d asked Kayla to reserve us an out-of-the-way booth at Magnolia, and arrived early so she could hide a cake for me in the walk-in refrigerator. The upscale tourist bar wasn’t our usual hangout spot. In fact, I could count on one hand how many times I'd been there over the years. But I thought the change of scenery might be nice, though. And if I was being honest, I wanted to see Jack in his element.
The man in question watched Kayla disappear into the back with a decorated Japanese cheesecake in hand before moseying over my way.
“This is a surprise,” he said casually as he wiped down the bar. His forearms flexed, the tattoos shifting on his skin as he moved. My mind got a little distracted remembering how those forearms had looked as he’d braced himself over me in bed.
Ignoring the heat flooding my cheeks, I smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry. I’m not here to drink my weight in beer and cause trouble.”
Jack’s eyes sparkled.
“We’re having our book club meeting,” I offered. “And celebrating Chloe’s birthday.” I frowned, considering, then lowered my voice. “I’m sorry. Should I have cleared that with you? I didn’t mean to ambush you at work.”
He gave me a flat, irritated look.
“Right,” I backtracked. “I take back the apology.”
Satisfied, he replied, “Of course, you don’t need to clear things with me. You can come by whenever you want.”
“You’re sure?”
He stopped wiping and pinned me with another stare. “I’m sure, Clyde. You don’t owe me anything.”
My lips parted in confusion. I didn’t like the sound of that. But before I could argue or object, I heard the rowdy voices of my friends arriving.
Jack’s eyes shifted to the door behind me. “You ladies get settled. I’ll come over in a minute and get you some drinks.”
Then he walked farther down the bar, and I couldn’t pinpoint why I felt so disappointed.
With a final glance his way, I wrangled my group and led them toward our booth.
Chloe, the birthday girl, was accompanied by my sister, Mac, and our cousin Laramie—known as Larry to nearly everyone. We’d grown up with Larry. She’d been a permanent fixture for sleepovers and family vacations, along with our other cousin, Will. Mac and Larry were both outspoken and a little wild. It was no surprise that they were best friends as well as cousins. All of us were close in age and had grown up on the farm. As adults, I was the lone exception, finding work outside the family business.
Chloe had been in the same grade as Will and was married to his best friend. She’d also started working at the farm a few years ago as a bakery assistant to my aunt Maggie. Chloe was a sweetheart, and we all loved her.
The small group was trailed by the rest of our book club attendees. Becca and Candace were chatting about something, bright smiles on both their faces. Candace’s older sister, Joan, brought up the rear as she eyed her surroundings with suspicion.Probably wondering how many tourists she’d have to deal with as a result of our choice of locale.
“Hi, birthday girl,” I said, welcoming Chloe with a big hug.
She grinned, blue eyes alight. “Thank you, Bonnie. This is so great. I appreciate you setting things up. Making my day special.”
“Happy to,” I replied, meaning it.
“Classy, Bon,” Larry called, flashing a thumbs-up.
“Yeah,” Mac added. “I’m a little worried we’ll get kicked out of the fancy-schmancy leafer bar.”
“Then you’ll just have to be on your best behavior,” Becca teased as she scooted into the center of the booth. “It should be pretty easy without Brady around.”
That earned a few laughs.
Mac gave her a mischievous grin. “I make no promises.”
“He’ll probably be by later anyway,” Candace stated as she joined Becca in the circular corner booth. “He’s with Mark and Jordan and Will down at Mattie B’s. They’re our designated drivers. We are here to celebrate Chloe, possibly to excess.”
Good for them, but I would not be overindulging. Not after the last time I’d embarrassed myself here.
The six of us got settled in the booth with our bags and various gifts for Chloe, chatting and carrying on several conversations between us.
“Okay, I want to know what y’all thought of the book,” Larry announced, drawing our attention.
