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But, this evening, I’m too damn tired to care about the blank walls and boring décor of my house. It was a long day, and I spent a portion of it subcontracting out a couple of jobs so nothing gets lost in the shuffle or falls behind deadline.
The truth is, fitting June’s project into my schedule was a pain in the ass, not that she’ll ever know that. I’ll help her—at cost—without a fucking word about the inconvenience because it’sJune.
She may give me a hard time and glare at me more than she’s ever smiled at me, but at the end of the day, there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for her. So, if she wants to live in that tiny church by Christmas, that’s what will happen, come hell or high water.
My phone pings with a text, and I’m a little surprised to see that it’s from Tanner. Since he and Sarah have been together again, I hear from him less, which is completely expected and normal.
Tanner:Hey, feel like a beer and pizza?
I snort.
Me: Do birds fly? Meet in 20?
Tanner: See you there.
After settingthe almost-full beer back in the fridge, I change into clean clothes, grab my keys, and head out for dinner with a friend. Lighthouse Pizza is our favorite haunt in town, and I could go for a pie tonight.
The drive is short, and when I walk inside the restaurant, Tanner is already seated at a high-top table, a beer in his hand, and there is one waiting for me.
“Hey.” We do the handshake/hug thing, and then I sit across from him and sip the beer. “What’s the occasion?”
“Sarah, Luna, and June are at the chapel. June wants opinions on something or other. Wolfe should be here soon.”
“Cool. How are things at the gallery?”
Tanner owns Whalers Gallery, an art studio in town. He’s always been interested in art, even when we were kids, so when he studied art in college, it wasn’t a surprise. Whalers Gallery is a fantastic place, and a popular one for the tourists.
“They’re great. The summer season wasreallygood. I can report that tourism is alive and well in Huckleberry Bay.”
“Excellent.” We clink beers just as Wolfe walks over and takes a seat.
“No beer for me?”
“You said you may be awhile, and I didn’t want it to get warm,” Tanner replies.
“Yeah, we were working on a bitch of a transmission.” Wolfe blows out a breath and waves to the bartender, who waves back, already knowing Wolfe’s order. “I left it to Zeke and got the hell out of there,” he continues.
“That’s what business partners are for,” I reply with a grin. “I think I’m about to take on a partner and a few employees. I can’t keep up with my workload alone anymore.”
“You haven’t looked great,” Tanner says, and I glare at him. He holds up his hands as if in surrender. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean that to sound like a jerk, but you’ve
been working too damn much, and it shows. You look tired and grouchy as fuck.”
I’m tired because I work too hard.
I’m grouchy because June won’t give me the time of the goddamn day, and I crave her in a way I’ve never craved anything or anyone before.
That absolutely isnotsomething I’m going to admit to anyone, not even my two best friends.
“It was a busy-as-hell summer,” is all I say, and the other two nod in understanding. All three of us own businesses in Huckleberry Bay. Wolfe has the garage, which is newly rebuilt and equipped to fix anything that a vehicle could need repaired. He also owns a sweet-as-fuck personal garage where he works on and restores muscle cars.
That place is a gearhead’s wet dream.
“But I won’t complain about having work because, for a while there, new construction was hard to find. So, I’ll hire more people and pick and choose the projects I want to personally take on.”
“Good call.” Tanner nods and then smiles when the bartender and owner of Lighthouse Pizza comes to the table with Wolfe’s beer.
“You fellas ready to order?” Harvey asks after slapping me on the back. “You want your usual large pie?”
