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He rested his arms on the counter. “Wayne’s a good guy, no doubt about it, but I don’t see any chemistry between the two of you. He doesn’t light you up, and I don’t think he’s made you any happier than you already were.” He leaned towards me. “Hailee, when you’re with the right man, he’ll make you smile more than you ever have. You’ll feel more than you ever have. Hell, you might even argue more than you ever have with a guy. The point is, there’ll be passion. I don’t see that with Wayne.”
“Have you been talking to my grandmother? She told me today that there’s no fire between the two of us.”
He grinned again as he straightened. “Always did love Jean. That woman knows her shit. She coming to watch you sing tonight?”
“No, it’s Monday.” At his frown, I added, “Monday nights are reserved for Law and Order reruns.”
Doug’s attention shifted for a moment as he looked past me. Lifting his chin, he spoke to someone standing behind me. “Hey, man, the usual?”
“Yeah.” The guy’s deep voice filtered through the air as he moved to stand next to me.
“Tatum here tonight?” Doug asked as he poured two beers.
I turned to look up at the guy. Jesus, he was built. And hot. I had to work hard to keep my tongue in my mouth.
He shook his head. “Not yet, but she’s on her way.”
“Billy got her working hard?”
The guy’s jaw clenched, and I got the distinct impression from the way his lips pressed together that whoever Billy was, this man didn’t much like him. “When doesn’t he?”
Doug nodded. “Yeah, it seems that way lately. She hasn’t been here as much, that’s for sure.”
A redheaded woman interrupted us. “Nitro, where’s Tatum? I thought she’d be here by now.”
“I thought she was coming with you.”
“Nope, she rang to say she’d meet me here, and because I’m late, I assumed she’d be here already.” She checked her watch. “Fuck, Billy must have dumped more work on her. I swear I’m gonna have words with that man. It’s not fair how much shit he’s got her doing these days.”
Nitro took the drinks Doug passed him. “Yeah, well if he doesn’t pull his head in soon, I’ll be having words with him. And I don’t give a fuck if Tatum doesn’t like what I have to say.”
“Oh, fuck,” the woman muttered as Nitro left. Her eyes met Doug’s. “The last thing any of us need is Nitro having words with Billy.”
“I can’t imagine anyone wanting to have words with Nitro,” Doug said. “You want your usual, Monroe?”
Before I could stop it, my mouth opened and out gushed, “Oh, I love that name!”
Monroe’s gaze met mine and she smiled, and when she smiled, she radiated the kind of warmth anyone would want to be next to. Her whole face lit up and I couldn’t help but be drawn to the beauty she wore like a second skin. She was all gorgeous curves, stunning long red hair, flawless skin made up perfectly, and sparkling eyes. If I was the kind of woman to feel jealousy, I’d feel it with this woman.
“Thank you, honey,” she said. “What’s your name?”
“Hailee.”
“I love that, too.” Her gaze zeroed in on my cocktail when I drank some more of it. “Oooh, what is that? I need one of those.” She looked up at Doug. “You’ve been holding out on me.”
He chuckled. “Babe, I haven’t been holding out. You’ve just been set on drinking Jägerbombs lately.”
She pouted, her red lipstick catching my eye. I wondered if she was a make-up artist. Or maybe a hairdresser. Both her hair and make-up were amazing, so I figured she could be either. Clicking her fingers at him, she said, “Start me off with a Jägerbomb and then make me whatever that cocktail is.” She settled on a stool next to me as she issued her request.
He arched a brow and she added, “Please,” with a grin. Then—“Wait,”—glancing at me, she asked, “Do you want a Jäger with me?”
“Sure, I could do with one tonight. Or two.”
Her grin spread further across her face. “Awesome. Two please, Doug.”
My phone sounded with a text as he started on our drinks.
Dylan: You good?
