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“Mo.” Rhett shakes his head, and though he doesn’t say anything else, it’s written all over his face.
“It’s okay.” I push away from the bar. “I shouldn’t have asked.”
Leaning across the bar, he grabs my wrist. “She meant nothing to me. It was one time after you and I broke up. I was lonely and drunk.”
“The night of your parents’ fortieth wedding anniversary?”
Scrunching his brow, he tilts his head. “Yeah, how did you know?”
“Lucky guess.”
“I’m not even sure she remembers it happened,” he says, taking a swig of his beer.
Of course, she remembers it happened. How could she not? Every kiss, every touch, every promise Rhett gave is ingrained in my body. All I have to do is close my eyes, and I can remember the way his callused hands felt running up the side of my thighs, or the way the scruff on his jaw felt against my neck.
“Does it matter, Mo?”
The breath freezes in my lungs. A lie sits on the tip of my tongue. I want to tell him it doesn’t matter, that the past six years don’t matter, but they do. He matters. We matter.
“You’re an extremely attractive man. I figured there have been women in your life.”
“Now you’re not telling me what I want to know.”
Resting my elbows on the bar, I run my hands over my face. It’s now or never. I promised myself I’d tell the truth moving forward. No more lies. “You matter, Rhett. You’ve always mattered. Everything I’ve done has been with you in mind.”
“Mo.” He nearly comes across the bar, wrapping my face in his strong, warm hands. “We need to talk, baby, so bad.”
I press my hands to his. “There’s so much you don’t know, Rhett. You’re going to hate me.”
“I could never hate you.”
Never say never.
“What time do you get off?”
“Your brother is a slave driver,” I say. “I’m working until close.”
Rhett laughs. “It’s dead in here. Let me see if I can get you out early.”
“You don’t have to do that.” My words fall on deaf ears because Rhett’s already halfway across the room.
“Well,” Sean says, sliding up next to me. “Is he bagging the blonde?”
I thump him on the arm. “Do you have to be so crass?”
He holds his arm as though I actually hurt him. “Damn, you’re mean.”
“And for the record, no, he’s not.” I grab a glass out of the full crate and stack it on the shelf. “But she’s wasted, and she also happens to be his manager, so you’re going to leave her alone.”
“Damn.” Sean walks off, leaving me to empty the crate.
Once that’s done, I check on the customers at the bar and close out a couple of tabs.
“Haven’t seen it this slow on a Saturday night in a long time.” Coop leans up against the bar.
“I’ll take your word for it.” This is only my second weekend, so I can hardly make the call on what’s normal. “Hopefully we’re busier next weekend; I need the tips.”
“Rhett said you worked all day at Animal Haven before coming in tonight.”
