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“Todd, wait!” I said, rushing after him, but he was already in his car speeding away.
I dialed Dylan as I got into my car, taking deep, slow breaths while I waited for him to answer. It was his voicemail.
“Todd just asked me if there was something going on between us, Dylan. Please call me when you get this,” I said.
Then I waited for my heartbeat to slow enough that I no longer felt faint, and I drove away, hoping that Todd didn’t do or say anything stupid while he was upset.
45
DYLAN
“You sure don’t wasteany time, do you?”
The sudden question startled me. I was knelt behind the bar installing a keg, but I stood to see Todd leaning on his hands against the other side.
“What?” I asked, confused.
But with a growing dread at the look in his eyes and the defensive way he stood.
“Is it true?” he asked. “About you and Lana? Because if it is, youdidn’t fucking tell me.”
I didn’t know what he’d heard or what he’d guessed, but I figured I’d bide myself at least a little more time.
“What about me and Lana?” I asked.
“Don’t fuck with me, Dylan. Are you and Lana together?” He glared at me, one eye narrower than the other.
There didn’t seem to be much point in denying it at that point. I didn’t want to have the conversation the day before the tasting, but it seemed like I didn’t have a choice.
“Lana and I are together, Todd, yes. But you should know that—”
“Motherfucker!” he said, causing Brent to glance over at us. “I should have known. So were you fucking her when we were together? Or did she just hop into your bed the minute we broke up?”
“Todd, it’s not like that. We weren’t together when you were dating her. But since she came back, we’ve gotten closer, and things just happened.”
I left out how we’d spent the night together before she left for New York. And I also left out how I’d been pursuing her like mad since she came back.
One step at a time.
Todd cursed and paced in a tight circle basically telling me what a terrible brother and human being I was. His rant was loud and long enough that everyone started paying attention.
Todd became aware of that and finally just called me a rotten son of a bitch before he stormed out, almost in tears he was so furious.
Perfect. Just what I needed the day before a business deal that could really put Deft Rock on the map.
I pulled out my phone to call Lana and saw that she’d left a message. I didn’t listen but called her anyway.
“Did you talk to Todd?” she asked. “He’s so upset.”
“What the hell did you say to him?” I asked, my voice sharper than I intended.
“Nothing. He asked if there wasn’t something going on between us . . .”
I heard her clear her throat as she sounded like she was fighting tears.
“I didn’t say anything, but he knew, Dylan. I think he could see it—”
“Damn it, Lana. You couldn’t hide it for another day?” The words were out before I could stop them.
