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“About 50 times on the drive over,” Sully confirmed as he adjusted the binder beneath his arm. He already regretted inviting Hue to the proceedings, but when Alanna had insisted on bringing her own counsel yesterday, Sully had felt the need to reciprocate.
“By the way…” he turned to Hue, “you didn’t have to come.”
The larger man shrugged. “The only other thing I’ve got to do today is fix a leaky toilet in one of my condos. Watching you fight over a cat is much more entertaining.” At his side, Janet, the ancient basset hound, seemed to be falling asleep while standing. Hue gently tugged the leash attached to her collar, and she jerked awake and continued following in step with him.
Sully groaned. Was this an astronomical mistake? He thought back to the slow blink he’s shared with Sheba yesterday and the way she’d eagerly pounced on her feather toy this morning. Nope. Sheba was worth fighting for.
He squared his shoulders and pushed through the door of the winery. He wasn’t surprised to find Alanna already sitting at a table, her laptop out and open. A thin vanilla folder sat next to the laptop, along with a bright pink, jewel-studded collar.
What did surprise Sully was the woman sitting next to Alanna looking about as miserable as Sully felt. Tess gave him a little wave and a sheepish smile. Alanna elbowed her, and Tess quickly tucked her hand under the table.
“Sully! Hue!” a voice roared. The winery was noticeably empty—not surprising for early Sunday afternoon—save for one blond-haired demigod.
“Cam? Did he rope you into this thing, too?” Hue asked.
Two tables down, Cam shook his head and pointed to a glass of wine sitting next to an open laptop. “Gym’s closed on Sunday, and I like working here when things are quiet. What’s going on?”
Hue grinned. “Wait till you hear this…”
“Excuse me,” Alanna said curtly, “some of us have a busy schedule. Can we get down to business?”
At the bar, Jax and a young blonde woman hurriedly set out wine bottles and glasses. Jax glanced up and gave Sully a cautious nod. Today, she wore a loose, jungle-green tank top and black cargo pants that matched her black combat boots. Sully remembered how she’d snuck them glasses of Theo’s latest blend in exchange for chips and dip. That night felt like a lifetime ago.
“Where’s our arbitrator?” Alanna called.
Jax smirked and called into a back room behind the bar, “Hey, arbitrator, your wise and all-knowing judgment is requested.”
A minute later, Theo emerged from the back wearing his usual uniform of plaid shirt and scuffed jeans. His expression was dour. “Let the record show that I DO NOT feel comfortable doing this. Is it too late to recuse myself?”
“You’re not backing out now,” Alanna told him. “Get over here.”
As Sully took his seat at the table across from Alanna and set his binder in front of him, he felt a stab of guilt for dragging Theo into his personal squabble. But the problem was, he didn’t know many people in town yet. That, and Hue had been more than happy to cash in a favor with Theo in order to watch the fireworks. Sully had also agreed to order a whole case of Theo’s sirah to sweeten the deal and assuage his own conscience.
“Ooooh, this looks interesting,” Cam said, scooting his chair over to their table and giving Janet a scratch behind her long, floppy ears. “What are we debating?”
The blonde girl from the bar bounced over. She wore bubble gum pink lipstick, large hoop earrings, and a crop top with a neckline so low the shirt was perilously close to becoming a vest.Haley,her nametag said.
“It’s a custody battle,” she whispered excitedly. “And from what I hear, it’s gotten pret-ty heated.”
Cam raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t know you had a kid, Sully.”
“I don’t,” he grumbled.
Theo reluctantly took a chair at the head of the table.
“Let’s get started,” Alanna said, pressing her lacquered fingernails into the manilla folder. Of course, she looked absolutely stunning. The sunlight played across her short blonde hair, turning it to spun gold, and her blue eyes were alight with purpose and power. Sully’s brain might know she was the enemy, but little Sully was having none of it. He felt himself swell as his mind flashed with images from their salacious night together. God, he could almost taste her in his mouth.
The door to the winery swung open and three women marched inside. Sully recognized Layla, Alanna’s sister, as well as Everly, the wonderful woman from the pet store. The third woman, tall and slim, ducked her face into a waterfall of black hair.
“Oh my,” Cam whispered under his breath, his eyes latching onto the black-haired woman. He quickly looked away and grabbed for his glass of wine.
“What’s this? You invited a peanut gallery?” Hue accused Alanna. “I, uh, object, or whatever on behalf of my…” He looked at Sully. “Are you my client?”
“Shit, have we started?” Theo wondered.
“You’re the arbitrator, Theo. You’re supposed to decide that,” Haley said. The server seemed to have no interest in returning to the bar.
“Peanut gallery? The only nut job around here is you,” Everly called to Hue as she plopped down at a neighboring table and beckoned for Jax.
