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Knox shook his head. “You heathens don’t know how to drink a good scotch. You drink it neat, with a wee bit of water to reduce the bitterness if you must. No ice. And those glasses are sub-par. You need a tulip-shaped whisky glass to enjoy the aromas.”
Ghost stopped putting ice in the glasses. “I don’t have that shit. Rocks glasses, it’ll have to do.”
He poured some amber liquid into each glass, handing Knox one of the neat glasses.
Knox held up a hand to stop us all from tasting. “First, give the glass a shoogle. Then, nose the whisky.” He dipped his nose into the glass and inhaled. “Try to think about what you’re smelling. I smell a sherried note, some dried fruit. Something like caramel.”
We all copied. I didn’t smell anything special; it smelt like whisky to me.
Knox swirled the liquid around in his glass. “Now take a taste.”
I took a sip and waited for the flavors to explode on my tongue. I grimaced. “It tastes like raisins. Did you get this bottle from Josie?”
Sid chuckled next to me. “It kind of does have a hint of raisins to it.”
“Fuck. I can’t drink this. I hate those little black demons. Even the hint of them is too much.” I dumped the rest of my drink into Sid’s glass and then stalked over to the bar to make a new drink.
Ghost walked over to stand next to Knox, throwing an arm around his shoulder. “So, tell everyone the good news.”
“I finally convinced Summer to marry my arse.” Knox was grinning ear to ear.
A collective cheer went up and then we were all congratulating him with slaps to the back and manly hugs.
Ryder sat back down. “Did Summer start planning already? Give us the details. When and where?”
Knox shifted from foot to foot like a little kid about to detonate if he didn’t let out a big secret. “The wedding is going to be in Kentucky. And we can’t dither too long, because I put a wee bairn in her.”
Sid screwed up his face. “Haven’t you been putting that in her all along?”
Knox’s brow wrinkled with confusion. “Huh?”
I was back at the bar mixing up a drink with what Ghost had available but listening to Sid. I added a splash of more vodka to my glass. “A baby, you dumbass. Summer’s pregnant.”
Understanding dawned on Sid’s face and then we all were back to congratulating Knox all over again. I could see how damn excited he was to be a father. He radiated pure happiness. He deserved all the good coming his way, but I couldn’t help but feel a little envious that I’d never gotten to experience that kind of excited anticipation with Kody.
Music started spilling out of the high-end speaker system. It didn’t take long for the other guys to start getting plastered, but I knew I was driving back home tonight, so I took it easy.
After a few hours, I slipped away from the guys and stepped outside the sliding doors to enjoy the crisp night air on the balcony. I leaned over the railing, peering at the dark outlines of the tall buildings against the night sky and the city lights twinkling in the distance. I heard the doors slide open behind me and someone step out onto the balcony with me.
It was probably Sid, wondering what the fuck I was doing out here in the cold. I turned and was surprised to see Ghost. “Hey, man.”
He was vibrating with energy. “What are you doing out here?”
I turned away from him to gaze out over the city. “Just getting some fresh air.”
“Sure you’re not hiding?” He joined me at the railing.
“From what?”
“The happiness in there?” Ghost rubbed contemplatively at his chin. “You’re the last single guy in our band, and I’m the last one without a kid. We’re the odd ones out. But maybe both of those things will change in the future.”
My mouth fell open in shock. “You guys thinking about having a kid?”
“Who knows?” He smiled faintly. “I’m thinking about selling this place. I’m never here anymore. I’m always with Remi and Grey. That’s where I need to be. Not here.”
“You trust them both?” I chanced a quick glance at his face, hoping I wasn’t pissing him off. “After everything that happened?”
“I do. And I’ve never been happier.” He turned to face me until I couldn’t hide from his scrutiny. “How about you? What’s going on with Lacey?”
