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He bolted upright to find Mia standing in the door of the guest room smirking, one hand on her hip.
“Oh, hey. Back already?”
“Already? It’s after noon. Guess I know why you didn’t answer my text now. For a minute, I worried you’d slipped on a glitter bottle and knocked yourself out.”
On a smirk, she scanned the room, as though checking for any actual glitter misconduct. Smirking was better than scowling, he thought as he dragged a hand down the side of his face. Ew, drool. He subtly swiped that away.
“Nope, so far, I’ve successfully resisted playing with your craft supplies. How was church?”
“Good. Sermon was on forgiveness. Scary how our pastor always seems to know what I need to hear.” Her gaze shifted to the window, narrowed, then refocused on him. “Anyway, I thought I’d see if you still wanted to meet up with Max before I get busy doing other things.”
Can I be one of those other things you’re doing?He ducked his head to hide a grin. “Yeah, that’d be awesome.”
After a quick freshening up, Alex followed Mia out to her vehicle. Man, he hoped Tipsy Barrel Bourbons would be a great fit for the last open slot in his manuscript. Then he could buy a few bottles to go, do some sampling back home, and get his write-up done and edited by the end of the week.
If, that was, he could manage to focus. It was nearly impossible to do when Mia’s vanilla and cinnamon scent was nearby.
“So, you looked up his company last night?” she asked as they climbed into her aging Equinox.
“I did. They have a surprisingly great website, full of all sorts of helpful information.”
A proud smile lit Mia’s face. “Del’s boyfriend, Isaac, designed it. That guy’s a web design genius, and it’s not even his primary job. He’s created websites for several companies in town now, including a redesign for our bookstore’s site.”
“He sounds like quite a catch.”
“We didn’t think so when he first moved to town. In fact, Del and Brooklyn dubbed him Harry the Hermit because he kept completely to himself.” Mia shook her head with a grin. “Eventually, she lured him back out into the real world. Now they’re smitten, and I couldn’t be happier for them. Oh, and Louie, of course.”
“Louie?” Alex asked, pretending he hadn’t already had this conversation with Del.
“Isaac’s bulldog. He’s a chunk, and totally adorable.”
They made it downtown in no time but had to loop around the block twice to find an open parking space, the only available one, more than a block from the Tipsy Barrel. When Alex asked if it might have been faster to walk, Mia shrugged.
“Maybe so. I didn’t expect it to be quite this busy so early in the day. But I’m more excited to see so many people over at Del’s Christmas tree lot!”
Mia pointed across the street, and sure enough, there was Del, standing by a makeshift checkout counter surrounded by beautiful, fresh evergreen wreaths.
“So,” he asked, playing dumb yet again. “Del works for Oak Barrel Farms?”
“Actually, she co-owns it with Chase Redding, one of our local firemen.”
That, he didn’t know. “Wow, good for her.”
“Yeah, they’ve done a great job of growing their business. She and Chase went in together on it after she got back from Purdue. He works with my dad at the station every third day, then at OBF on his free days. He’s over…there, see him? Helping load a tree into the back of that pickup?”
Alex leaned around her to spy a guy wearing a flannel jacket and stocking cap. Sandy blond hair peeked out from beneath its edges. “Was he disappointed? You know, her falling for Isaac instead of him?”
“Chase?” Mia opened her car door on a laugh. “Hardly. That kid was around our house more than his own growing up. Dad took him under his wing, so Chase is more like the little brother we never had. Well, to Del and me, anyway. The jury’s still out on how Hannah feels about him.”
Alex exited the vehicle and followed her down the sidewalk toward the Tipsy Barrel Pub. “Oh, I’d nearly forgotten you had another sister. Does she live near you and Del, too?”
The smile slipped from Mia’s face. “No, she left town years ago.”
Shoot, Del had warned him at the diner not to mention their youngest sister. He’d never met the girl, but vaguely recalled there being a decent age gap between them. Whatever her reason for leaving, Mia didn’t sound pleased about the decision.
Ahead of them stood their destination: a two-story building, its brick façade painted brown. A blue neon sign hung over its door, the wordsTipsyandBarrelflashing at offset intervals. As they reached it, Alex stepped ahead of her to get the door. His father had been a stickler when it came to manners—something that had served him well as a salesman on the road. Funny, how a simple act could brighten someone’s day. Even now, the gesture brought a fresh smile to Mia’s face.
Inside, it was quickly apparent that Bourbon Falls had a history tied to the railway system and to bourbon. Booths were made from old railroad ties, while the four-seater tabletops in the center of the room were carved from bourbon barrels. Several signs hung around the space, offering directions or distances from here to Bourbon, Kentucky. Behind the bar, a wide chalkboard displayed a listing of available craft beers and bourbons. It was a cozy touch, but the cooler item was what was mounted on an elevated miniature rail platform about it:
