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But I turned out to be wrong because with JT’s arms around me and the low, steady thump of his heart in my ear, I dropped to sleep in seconds… not knowing it was the last good night’s sleep I’d get for a while.
ChapterFifteen
JT
If you’d asked me Saturday morning whether I could possibly dislike any part of my weekend with Flynn, I’d have laughed out loud. How could I?
I’d woken at dawn, hard as a stone, with a sleepy, sweet Firecracker still cradled in my arms in the exact spot where he’d fallen asleep, as though neither of us had wanted to move even a millimeter apart in the night. When I’d pressed a soft kiss to his head, Flynn had woken immediately. He’d lifted his head to smile down at me, and then, without a word or a sound, we’d rolled over simultaneously so that Flynn was beneath me. We’d kissed and frotted lazily until we’d both climaxed, and Flynn’s “Good morning” had been a breathy, satisfied groan as our heart rates returned to normal.
I’d spent years wishing the man would open up to me, and he finally had. I’d wanted nothing more than to feel like he and I were on the same page for once, and we finally were.
Nothing could kill my buzz.
By the midpoint of the Tavern’s lunch rush that day, though, I was beyond exhausted and frustrated as fuck. Flynn and I were on the same page, yeah, but neither of us could figure out how to turn it or what was supposed to happen next. And instead of cuddling Flynn or brainstorming solutions—ways to spend every other week in Honeybridge, maybe, or an apartment in Portland where Flynn and I could meet when our schedules aligned—I was pinch-hitting as a server at the Tavern because Amanda had come down with the same mystery bug Castor had caught the previous night, and I couldn’t stand the idea of Flynn being even more overworked than he already was.
“JT? You good?” Dan demanded.
“Huh?” I blinked up from my thoughts. “Of course. Why?”
“Because I put the tray on the bar two minutes ago, and you’re not delivering it.” He nodded down at the bar top, where he’d placed a tray of chicken wings. “Brittany and Ciaran came for lunch, not dinner.”
I scowled, though Dan was correct. And as I grabbed the tray and walked away, I heard him mutter, “Jesus. Alden wasn’t kidding about the Wellbridge attitude.”
Fucker.
It was obvious that Dan had a thing for Flynn, and he was jealous as hell. The guy barely knew me. He couldn’t possibly know that I was worried and stressed that an invisible clock was ticking down while also feeling a little bit like an asshole with double standards because I was resentful that Flynn and I were going to be stuck working athisbusiness all day instead of enjoying the weekend… when the whole reason we only had the weekend was because I needed to get back to New York on Monday formybusiness.
I didnothave a Wellbridge attitude.
At all.
Still, I made a point of giving Brittany an overly bright smile as I set down their food. “Sorry for the delay. Enjoy!”
Wellbridge attitude? Fuck, no.
“Thanks, JT.” Brittany popped a fry in her mouth, and her eyes rolled back. “God, the food here is so damn good.”
“I’ll pass that on to Kendall,” I said in a chipper voice. “Will that be all?”
“Mmm. Actually, no.” Brittany washed down her fry with mead and smiled brightly. “I had a question. What’s it like working here?”
“Uh.” I glanced around the room for someone else who could actually answer this, but when no one immediately came into view, I shrugged. “Nice, I guess. Flynn runs a tight ship.”
She nodded. “He must if you left your New York job to work here full-time.”
The bubble of startled laughter erupted from my mouth without conscious thought. “Me? Leave New York? No.” I grinned. “Flynn and the guys are slammed preparing for a big event next weekend, and I figured I’d lend a hand while I’m home for the weekend, that’s all. My actual job is working for a consumer products group specializing in beverage distribution, so it’s not too far out of my wheelhouse, if you think about it. Helping out here has actually helped me understand my clients better.”
“Oh.” Brittany seemed bemused by my panic-babbling response. “No, that’s cool. I was just wondering if Flynn was hiring.” She shrugged. “I mean,Iwouldloveto work here.”
“Right. Of course.” I felt my cheeks go hot. “I’ll ask him.”
“Would you? Thanks! I gotta say, it’s nice to have you back in town for a little while, at least. We missed you. And I bet you missed us, too.” She gave me a happy smile as she turned back to her food.
I clutched the tray against my chest like a shield and made my way through a throng of flirty tourists and back-slapping locals to the kitchen.
Brittany was right. Ihadmissed Honeybridge. After just a couple of weeks, I’d come to realize that this town was much more than two camps at silent war. It was a diverse group of people with their own experiences and ideas. And those people—including Flynn—had been happy to make a place for me once I’d gotten my head out of my ass and stopped swanning from country club to garden party to marina like the entitled aristocrat my parents had raised me to be. Icouldbe the new JT Wellbridge in my old town. I already was.
So why were you so defensive about Brittany thinking you worked at the Tavern?
