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It had taken their high school football coach, Coach Carr, having a heart attack and needing assistance to run his farm for all of their old teammates to return. Plenty of them had stayed in town all along, like Colt—minus his short stint in the NFL—Joel and Char’s older brother Rafe. Others like Wade and Tucker, the team’s star quarterback and NFL standout—nah, that barely stung, not even a little—and Jackson, the team’s running back, had left their lives elsewhere to return to Quinn. And as was the Quinn way, once they were sucked back into town life, they stuck around. All of them were now building their lives here.
Everyone was building a life, not just treading water as he was. Happy enough, but not passionate anymore. He enjoyed his work, enjoyed being with his friends and family, definitely enjoyed the occasional hookups he had with the snow bunnies and tourists who passed through town. But lately, even that felt hollow. Quinn was too small to hold any serious prospects, at least ones he hadn’t known since childhood or who weren’t already coupled up.
Except for one particular redhead…
He pushed that thought away. Paige Wilcox wasn’t anything more than a burr in his backside. She might be as pretty as a picture with a smart mouth to go with it, but she didn’t see him as anything other than Charli’s ex. Just how everyone else in town saw him lately.
Since his divorce, he’d been riding the fling carousel anyway. He’d wanted anything but long-term material. Now he was wondering if he was ready to consider something a bit more permanent again.
Hell nah, that was just the alcohol talking.
He glanced down at his empty glass. Drained it again. Time to go home.
“I’m going to say goodbye to Mom and Dad and Hol,” Colt said, spying their little sister Hollie doing an awkward two-step with their aunt Bertha. His lips twitched. “Actually, make that save Hol from getting her feet crushed.”
Wade followed the direction of Colt’s gaze and grinned. “Poor Hol. Aunt B has wrangled a dance with just about everyone here tonight.”
“Not me.” Colt laughed as he set his glass on the bar and tossed some bills down with it. He’d kept the bartending staff busy tonight. “So, ah, I’ll probably see you out at Coach’s sometime this—” He broke off, grinned. “Stupid me. Forgot the honeymoon part.”
If Wade had been Colt, he probably would’ve made some off-color remark like, “maybe you have, but I sure haven’t,” but Wade was much more circumspect than that. He only smiled and nodded. “Yeah, we’re heading to Aruba for a week. Can’t spare much more than that, what with Charli’s jobs and with me needing to head out to LA for a bit to finalize the rest of the songs for the album. It’s helped a lot that Gray’s been able to meet me halfway in Quinn a few times, but that’s over with since his wife’s due any day. So it’s my turn to travel.”
Somehow Colt’s smile remained in place. Weddings and babies, man. They were freaking everywhere. “He’s kind of young to be married with a kid on the way, isn’t he?”
Colt had been even younger when he’d married Char. That hadn’t exactly turned out awesomely, though his age hadn’t played much of a part.
“Don’t say that to Gray.” Wade grinned. “His wife Jazz is a modern-day June Cleaver with blue hair.”
“Yeah, I’d love to see that.” Colt shook his head and pulled his brother in for a quick one-armed hug. “Happy for you, man. Have a great time in Aruba.”
“Thanks, bro. And uh…maybe you can say goodbye to Charli too, huh?” Wade cleared his throat. “It’s not my place to say, obviously, but I know it would set her a bit easier if—”
“Will do.” Colt smiled and patted his arm before aiming toward their grimacing sister.
Halfway there, he caught sight of Char tugging off her heels and tossing them in the grass. When she did a barefoot happy dance, he grinned in spite of himself. “Finally liberated, hmm?”
She glanced up and laughed guiltily, curling her toes in the grass. “I couldn’t wait anymore. Why do women inflict such torture on themselves?”
“So men fall hopelessly in love.” He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Like that brother of mine.”
She stopped hopping around in the dewy grass and tilted her head, peering at him in that perceptive way she had. “You’re okay.” She said it softly, more statement than question.
“Yeah. I am.” He really was, just a little knocked off-kilter by all the love in the air.
Tomorrow he’d be fine. Better than.
“I’m glad for you,” he added. “Truly. You’re meant for each other.”
She stepped closer and gripped his forearms, inching up on her toes to kiss his cheek. “Thank you. You’ve been amazing about all of this.”
“I love you both. That’s the important thing.” He brushed aside one of her spiral dark curls and smiled. “Besides, now I get an awesome sister-in-law, so not a bad deal all in all.”
Her lips curved. “Someday you’re going to make some woman a very fine husband, Colton Connor Bennett.”
But not you.
“Be happy.” He brushed a kiss over the top of her head and stepped back
. “And don’t forget the sunscreen. Aruba sun is brutal.”
