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Brick chuckled and winked with his good eye. The other one was unfortunately black and blue and half swollen shut. Then he squeezed her side. “Call your people. Make the appointment.”
“My people?” Oh, he was hilarious.
“You got us in with the nail appointment pretty quickly.”
“Yes, well, you’re right. I’ll call my people.” Jezebelle dug for her phone, still chuckling at his silliness. Of course, she didn’t splurge like this very often, getting her hair done, nails painted, body pampered all the time. But when she did, she went to the best place in the city that did it all. One-stop shop for all your needs when it came to looking beautiful. She happened to make friends there and managed to weasel her way in on short notice all the time. Two weeks ago, Freddie had given her a cut and highlights with only a day’s notice. Best stylist there was. Let’s see if only a few hours’ notice could be done.
“Is that for three people?” Her lips curled into a saucy smile.
Brick pressed his lips to hers, lingering longer than she anticipated, making her wish they were alone and she could do wicked things to him. “Sure, why not. I had a pedicure the other day. Why not a spa day as well.”
“Oh, you are going to need to meet my husband and talk him into doing things like this. I’m so jealous right now.” Sophia shook her head in disbelief and tapped the counter. “Let’s have a drink before we go. What’s good here?”
Brick hopped up on the bar, swiveled his legs, and jumped to the other side. “Everything’s good here. Best bar in town.”
Sophia gave him her best haughty look, the one Jezebelle always thought she was expressing how better she was than everyone else. Now, she saw it as approval. A look telling him she liked his confidence in his bar, in himself. A look that said he was good enough for her.
“Surprise me.”
Jezebelle and Sophia took a seat. She was mesmerized as she watched Brick grab different ingredients, adding them to a metal cup, shaking vigorously. The muscles in his arms bulging and flexing. The sexy grin he threw her way told her he was purposely putting on a show. She didn’t mind, and by the stifled giggles coming from her sister, she didn’t mind either. She could watch Brick all day long behind the bar making signature drinks like a pro. He strained the drink into a fancy looking martini glass, then added Prosecco and garnished it with mint leaves.
He made two, even though she hadn’t asked for one. She rarely went out of her comfort zone when it came to drinking, enjoying her Tequila Sunrises way too much. But, for him, she’d try it.
Sophia took a sip first, her eyes lighting up with pleasure.
“Mmm. What is it? I’m a fan.”
“It’s called an Old Cuban. A refreshing drink for a beautiful afternoon. A little bit of lime juice, syrup, rum, and a few other ingredients. Nothing to it.”
“Call your people, sis,” Sophia said, arching her brow as she took another drink. “We have a fun day ahead of us.”
Jezebelle made a quick phone call, managing to get them in for a two o’clock appointment. That gave them plenty of time to enjoy a few pre-spa drinks and grab a bite to eat.
“How about some appetizers?” she inquired as she put her phone away.
“I got this.” Brick walked away toward the other end of the bar where he chatted with Antonio and then rejoined them.
“So,” Sophia leaned closer, her lips curling with devious intent, “I am dying to know how you got that poor black eye. I need details.”
One thing that had never changed with her sister was her joy for gossip. That would never change.
Brick made eye contact with her. She shrugged, letting him know it was up to him how much he wanted to tell her sister. She had no fears anymore that her sister would do her mother’s bidding, so what did it matter if her sister knew the evil deeds her mother was trying to commit.
Brick popped open the beer sitting on the counter, the one she had seen him put against his eye a few times, and took a sip.
“Well, your mother isn’t too fond of me. She’s trying to buy my brother’s portion of the bar we own together, I imagine to make my life difficult. My brother and I aren’t on speaking terms at the moment due to an argument a few years back. I visited my old man this morning to find out some truths that I should’ve seen a long time ago.” Brick rolled the beer bottle over his eye, pausing, then took another sip. “This is how that convo turned out.”
“That explains Mother’s call at breakfast,” Sophia said, although she didn’t look at Jezebelle.
Jezebelle shrugged again, hating the look Brick tossed her way. What could she say to make things sound better than they were? “She was excited about an investment going her way. She didn’t specify.”
“Would your brother really sell?”
Jezebelle was dying to know that as well. She was thankful Sophia asked first. She fiddled with the ring, forcing herself to stop when Brick glanced at the gesture.
“I don’t know. But if he does, he does. No one scares me into doing anything I don’t want to do.” He set his beer on the bar, then wrapped a hand around her neck and pulled her closer. His lips were soft, yet the slight pressure told her the energy he was using to hold back his fury. “Not when I have this beautiful woman in my life. I won’t walk away without a fight. Because I love you.”
Her fingers tightened on the fragile glass. She had better get a hold of herself before it shattered in her hands.
