Page 101 of Second Chance Saloon

“I know. But line dancing after all this tequila? Don’t mix well.”

“Here you go, Mitch.” Betty pushed the full tray toward him, glancing at Jackie. “Keep an eye on this one, all right? She seems a bit worse for wear than she normally does.”

Jackie shot her a pointed look. “I’m perfectly fine, Betty.”

It was a lie, but tonight she wasn’t going anywhere near all the drama with Weronika.

It had been months now since her first letter had arrived in summer, and more had followed like clockwork. Jackie ignored every single one of them. She had zero interest in reading what Weronika had to say. None of it mattered. But her parents and Mimi had been nagging her to read at least one of them, to check what was so important. In response, Jackie threw the latest one in the bonfire, staring at Mimi at the opposite side of the flames. She hoped she’d made her point clear. Because she wasn’t going to change her mind.

That was also the reason she hadn’t told Mitch about any of this. Knowing him, he’d be all reasonable and feeling, and somehow break through her barriers and convince her to read those damn letters. No one else shared his power of persuasion, or maybe it was the effect he had on her. She wasn’t ready to face it.

Tonight, she didn’t want to think about Weronika or how rotten she’d been feeling about keeping the letters a secret from Mitch. Tonight, they were celebrating.

She slid her hand into the back pocket of Mitch’s jeans as they weaved through Betty’s Hens toward the booth in the corner to rejoin Lyla and Nick.

“Tequila top-up!” Mitch put the tray on their table with impressively steady hands.

Lyla flashed him a smile. “Aquaman to the rescue!”

Jackie wrapped her fingers around one of the glasses. “You’re never going to drop that nickname, are you?”

Lyla’s gaze moved from Jackie to Mitch. “He told me I can call him that!”

“That’s because you would do it anyway.” Nick nuzzled Lyla’s neck. “You always do whatever you want.”

Lyla pushed him away, her lips puckering. “That’s not true! The other week I really wanted to borrow Jackie’s silver sequin dress, but I didn’t!”

Jackie frowned. “You never asked me.”

Lyla shrugged. “That’s why I didn’t borrow it.”

Mitch shook his head, draining his glass. He put it back on the table with a thud. “We should toast.”

Nick let out a long exhale, raising his glass. “What are we toasting to?”

Lyla shuffled closer to him, cupping both of his cheeks and dragging his face to hers. “The fact that we’re actually together and worked through all of our shit.”

Nick smirked and kissed her, pushing her down to an almost horizontal position in the booth.

Jackie smiled at them, her cheeks flushed from both the excess tequila and Mitch’s closeness. His thigh was right next to hers; she could feel the sparks flowing through the fabric. Her hand reached underneath the table, following the zipper of his jeans that stretched over his dick.

“What are you up to, love?” he drawled, his eyes pinning hers.

Her eyebrows jogged up, feigning innocence. “Absolutely nothing.” But she didn’t take her hand away, moving it up and down in circular motions.

Mitch inhaled sharply, his gaze still burning into her face. “Jackie.”

The warning in his voice only stirred her desire.

“Mitch,” she countered, moving so close to him that her breast brushed his ribs. “What if we toast and then disappear into the bathroom?”

He bit back a smile. “You’re impossible.”

She put a finger to his lips. “But you love me.”

“Like a mad man.” He kissed her finger and enveloped her hand with his, moving it down to his lap. “I know what you’re doing. You’re not getting out of line dancing with Lyla.”

“What, Jackie! We’re going to shake our butts off to ‘Footloose’ and I won’t hear otherwise!” Lyla shrieked, lifting herself up. She smoothed her blonde hair and sat straighter. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes shone.