I turned to clean out the milk pitcher and had it pulled out of my hands as Jennifer bumped up against my side.
“Boyfriend,” she said, voice hushed and tone urgent. “Boyfriend. Outside—boyfriend’s outside.”
I whirled around, butterflies erupting in my stomach when I saw Cayson reach the doors and slip inside.
Dark hair agitated as though he’d been running his hands through it.
Stormy eyes shifting toward me as though he’d known where to find me all along.
And then the corner of his mouth ticked up in a smirk, all dimples and dripping with sex, and I was pretty sure I melted into a puddle behind the counter.
“Oh my God, he’s here. He’s there. He’s looking at you,” Jennifer rambled quickly.
“Shut up,” I hissed, smacking at her hand when she grabbed my arm.
Not that she let go. She might’ve even tightened her grip when Cayson started toward us, but I no longer cared.
Because I’d needed this.
I’d been craving this.
He’d woken with me yesterday, not trusting me to drive or walk to Brewed after going off so much work and such little sleep, and made sure I was at Brewed in time for the delivery.
After working until closing again, he’d carried me straight to bed despite my numerous protests and attempts at all sorts of other things. Although, in his defense, I’d started falling asleep as soon as he set me on the bed. In my defense . . . Amber Fest prep.
As I’d drifted to sleep wrapped in his arms for the third night, there’d been another faint brush across my temple and that same whispered vow.
“I’m here.”
It didn’t matter if I was averaging out three hours a night, I was fairly certain I’d been getting the best sleep of my life wrapped up in Cayson Dixon.
“Hi,” I said when he rounded the counter. It was soft and swoony and girly and totally embarrassing, and there wasn’t an ounce of me that cared at that moment.
Because his hand was cradling my neck and his thumb was teasing my jaw, holding me so tenderly that I wasn’t sure how this could be real.
But I would gladly stay in this dream if it meant his touch and that look.
His stare shifted to the side before slowly moving back to me. “You know, anywhere else, the entire town wouldn’t have just stopped.”
That’s when I felt Jennifer’s death grip. The stares from everyone else in the café. The shop was suspended in an almost eerie quiet as if everyone was waiting for what would happen next.
Heat flamed at my cheeks even as a smile threatened at the edge of my mouth.
His thumb brushed across my bottom lip, gently tugging it free when I hadn’t even realized I’d pulled it between my teeth.
“Knees,” he murmured meaningfully.
Jennifer whimpered.
I jerked my head back and turned to face her. My wide stare letting her know that she should be anywhere else at that moment other than attached to me.
It still took a few seconds for her dopey-eyed gaze to clear and for her to scramble away.
By the time I looked at Cayson again, he was fighting a laugh.
“Don’t make my employees swoon,” I chastised and pushed against his chest, but he just grabbed my hand and pulled me closer to kiss my temple.
“How’s work?”
A groan that was full of exhaustion and relief poured from me. “Finally done with prep.”
“Yeah?” he asked as he stepped away, looking excited and proud and somehow not at all surprised. “Gotta go.”
“Wait, what—wait, you just got here.”
The general confusion and curiosity I should’ve had—meant to have—was absent.
That fear I tried so hard to hide so I wouldn’t push him away faster than he intended to go was loud and clear—if the way Cayson’s amusement immediately faded was any indication.
He studied me for a second, stare bouncing around my face before he grabbed me the way he had when he’d first arrived.
Large hand curled around my neck. Fingers tracing, pleading.
He didn’t need to say the words.
I could feel it in his touch.
See it in his eyes.
I’m here.
A faint smile pulled at his lips when he released me and gestured behind me, toward the bar. “Came to see your mom.”
“You . . .” I briefly glanced at the other half of Brewed as an entirely different kind of confusion and wonder and worry blasted through me. “What?”
His only response was a wink as he slipped away.
I stood there staring after him long after he’d disappeared.
“You have so been holding out on me,” Jennifer squealed into my ear. “Just sleeping, my butt!”
I hushed her, turning to look at the whispering townspeople as I did. “That is all,” I lied.
No one else needed to know what we were doing. The town already knew more than enough. I wanted to keep as much privacy as I could.
“But he’s here to talk to your mom.” She slanted her head and lifted her brows in disbelief. “Last time a boy came and talked to a mom, he got a ring for you.”
“Oh, gah, no. Just—no—stop,” I stammered, smacking at her as I moved to leave the countered section. “You’re about to start up the town networking system when Cayson and I aren’t technically anything.”
“Sure didn’t look like that from where I was standing,” she said with a lazy grin.
“Find something to do,” I chided as I turned away, but there was no weight behind my words.
I was caught in this horrific limbo between floating and worrying why Cayson would need to talk to my mom. Wondering why he would make it a point to talk to her when we still hadn’t had the chance to.
Okay, fine, we’d had chances.
We just . . . hadn’t.
I ignored the curious stares, the whispers, the glares from Caroline Bowman and her Desperate-To-Snag-a-Dixon crew, and hurried over to where Rae was sitting in the corner.
Laptop open but eyes on me, lips quirked in a playful smirk.
As if knowing my path, she set her laptop on the table and scooted over a bit in the oversized velvet chair just in time for me to plop down so I was half in it, half on her.
My head fell against hers, and we released identical sighs.
“I mean . . . swoon,” she murmured wryly after a minute.
“Right?”
She let the quiet settle between us for a while before asking, “Are you going to tell me why he’s in the back, or are you going to make me ask?”
“He said he came to talk to my mom.”
Rae only hesitated for a moment at the mention of the woman who had abandoned her—who she only spoke to when necessary—before saying, “And you still haven’t had a chance to talk?”
Flashes of water-slicked skin, pleading touches, and body-numbing orgasms ripped through my mind.
“Starting now?”
“Starting now.”
“Nope,” I lied.
“Em . . .” She shifted in the chair so she could better look at me. “Do you know why he left or why he came back?”
“Just bits of what I’ve gathered.”
“Have you asked him?” she pressed. At my silence, her brows drew close in sorrow. “Emberly, you need to ask him. He stopped the two of you from doing anything because you both have so much weighing you down. This is his weight. And after years of everyone assuming the worst of him, he isn’t going to just offer up the truth unless you sincerely want it.”
I nodded in understanding and acknowledgment and wondered why I hadn’t made it a point to find out before then. But as soon as that thought entered my mind, I knew . . .
Because I’d been waiting for these unhindered moments with him for so long. I’d spent just as long remembering everything he’d done. Trapped in a horrific cycle of hating him and being miserably in love with him.
And because part of me worried if I found out,
I would find out what Sawyer meant the other morning when he’d said: “If your plan was to go back all along . . .”
I looked at Rae, lips parted and curiosity spinning.
“I don’t know anything,” she said dully, her eyes narrowing in disappointment. “You’re supposed to ask Cayson when you truly want to know.”
“I know, I know, I know,” I whispered shamefully.
“He and I are a lot alike, so he isn’t hard to read. I haven’t asked because I’m pretty sure he doesn’t want me to be the one to ask.”
I studied her for a moment before nodding. “I know.”
Her stare drifted and her voice lowered. “Don’t look now, but here comes Sawyer’s favorite backup plan.”
A groan of frustration sounded in my throat without even having to turn around. “Didn’t you hear?” I asked just as softly, tone all false excitement. “Mom made him manager of the bar side the day I wasn’t getting engaged.”
“Your mom.”
“My mom,” I amended softly, touching her arm for a moment.
“I mean, he’s here all the time and your best worker because he’s desperate to impress you,” she said, recovering from my slip.
I dramatically rolled my eyes.
Her body shook with silent laughter. “Maybe he’ll go for Jennifer,” she said, eyes lighting at the idea. “The two managers.”
“She’s, like, ten years older than him!”
“So? She doesn’t act like it.”
I thought about it for a second before shrugging. “Yeah, sure, whatever. Have fun playing with that one in your head.”
“Em.”
Rae’s eyes were on Brady, teeth digging into her bottom lip as she fought a smile. She was practically bouncing in the seat as she came up with a new story in her head.
I turned to look at him, smile polite and forced when I registered the look in his eyes—the want.
It’d become more blatant since the whole Emberly-isn’t-engaged fiasco.
“What’s up, Brady?”
“Wanted to talk to you about Amber Fest,” he said cautiously, eyes darting to Rae for a split second.
“All right.” I drew the words out slowly when he only continued to stand there, looking all kinds of uncomfortable, and tried to anticipate what he might need to talk about.
“I think our order might be off,” Brady finally said after casting another nervous glance in Rae’s direction.
I hesitated.
I’d been doing the orders for Amber Fest since high school. I’d perfected what to have and how much. We always had just enough of everything.
And when I’d received the order yesterday, everything had been there exactly the way I’d been planning it for months.
But I wasn’t sure if I was hesitating because it was Brady or because of my pride.
“Yeah, okay,” I finally said and wiggled my way off of the chair and Rae.
I started toward the bar only to make a sharp turn when I realized Brady was headed for the double doors behind the café’s counter.
“I have it in the back,” he said, hand gripping his neck and stare on the floor. When I looked through the open doorway leading to the opposite side of Brewed, he added, “Bar’s covered.”
“Just making sure.”
I followed him through the café’s stock room to the employee’s break area, watching his stiff movements and the way he seemed to be hunching over . . . everything that wasn’t Brady.
But he seemed content not to make small talk for the first time, so I stayed silent until we were at the table where my Amber Fest binder was laid out.
I reached for it, brows pulling close as I wondered what I could’ve gotten wrong. “All right, what did you—”
The rest of my words caught in my throat, mixing with my stunned inhale when Brady turned me and crushed his lips to mine, using my surprise to force his tongue into my mouth.
I scrambled away, shoving against his chest and smacking at the hand cradling the back of my head.
“What the fuck?” I snapped, the question both a demand and reprimand.
“Emberly—”
“No,” I bit out, stepping away from his reaching hand and bumping into the table.
“Just hear me out. Please.”
A harsh laugh burst from me. “Why would I do anything for you after what just happened?” He started to speak, but I continued over him in soft warning. “I am your boss.”
His shoulders sagged. “You’re more than that—I’m more than your employee. You know that.”
“No.” The word was a crazed laugh. Frustration pulsed through me as I drove a hand into my hair. “No, I don’t.”
“I know how to make you laugh.”
“I’m always laughing,” I said a little breathlessly. “I’m laughing now because this is absurd and crossing so many lines.”
“We talk,” he continued as if I hadn’t spoken. “I’m here with you every day—I know you.”
“Why does everyone think they know me?”
“I do,” he said adamantly.
“Because we talk?” The words were soft. Grave. “I talk with all of my employees, that doesn’t mean you know me.” I turned, snatching my binder off the table and pointing it at him. “Do you have anything you want to run past me regarding Amber Fest?”
He hesitated, expression creasing like he had a million other things he wanted to say. “No.”
“Is my order correct?”
He lifted a hand before letting it fall heavily. “You know it is.”
“Then we’re done here.”
“Em, please,” he begged, grabbing me when I started past him.
I yanked my arm away and gave him a hard look. “Touch me again, and I’ll fire you.”
I stormed out into the café, thankful for once that we didn’t have a line of customers, and went to Jennifer.
“Are we okay on this side?”
Her eyes jumped over my face, clearly searching for whatever was wrong as she nodded. “Y-yeah, everything’s smooth. Breaks are done until new shifts start coming in, we’re just prepping for later.”
“All right,” I said a little too brusquely. “I think I’m gonna head out.”
“Yeah, good . . . you should,” she said slowly. When she spoke again, she leaned in and lowered her voice. “You okay, girlfriend?”
“I’m great.” I tapped the binder against my palm and forced a smile. “Just tired. Amber Fest. You know how it is.”
I called out my goodbyes and carefully avoided looking at Rae as I made my way to the bar. She would see too much, and I just wanted to get out of there and forget what had happened.
I murmured a hello to one of my other bartenders and tried to keep my expression neutral when I stopped in front of Brady. “Do y’all need anything on this side?”
“No, but, Em—”
“I’m asking about the bar,” I said sternly. “I’m asking if my employees need anything from me as their boss. Nothing more.”
His jaw worked as he studied me. “No, I made sure we were stocked before I went and got you.”
I nodded and rocked back. “Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”
I left for the back hall before he could respond.
Releasing a strangled breath once I was alone and smacking the binder against the partially-opened door to my office, already speaking as I went. “You should know I’m this close to—”
I paused in the doorway when I saw Cayson sitting at my desk, looking at me like he wanted to devour me and take the world down at the same time.
In between Rae’s new romance idea and the shitstorm that followed, I’d completely forgotten he was there.
“You’re here,” I said lamely.
The corner of his mouth twitched in amusement, but those eyes were raging seas.
“This close to what?” Mom asked from where she sat behind her desk.
“Um . . .” My head shook as if that could possibly clear it from the past five mi
nutes and how Cayson Dixon seemed to dizzy me up in the best ways. “Nothing. Not important.”
“You sure?” Doubt wove through her tone. At the confirming sound in my throat, she asked, “Couldn’t have anything to do with Brady, could it?”
I looked from her to Cayson, a curse dancing on my tongue.
“Whatever you’re this close to doing, I have a feeling I’m already there,” he rumbled, then nodded to the wall beside me.
I stepped into the room and twisted to look at the monitors that displayed our security cameras. That curse finally slipped free when I realized the table in the break area was perfectly captured.
It wasn’t that I had done anything wrong or had any reason to feel guilty. If they’d seen Brady kiss me, then they’d seen me push him away.
But I’d already had to fight for Cayson because of Kip. I didn’t want to have to fight for him again because of Brady. I didn’t want to have to continuously fight for him when I still had yet to truly experience him.
Lifting my hand, I placed my thumb and forefinger close together and whispered, “This close to firing Brady.”
“Surprised you didn’t already,” she said with a sigh. “Mr. Dixon, I appreciate the chat. Y’all go on.”
“Yes, ma’am, thank you.”
I held his stare as he stood and silently took the binder from me, setting it down with a gentle thud before grabbing my bag and taking my hand in his.
Those eyes asking and telling so many things I wanted to find out.
Just when he started walking me out of the office, I tore my attention to where my mom was watching us with all the worry in the world.
“I’m leaving for the day.”
“I know,” she said solemnly, a weak smile playing on her lips.
“What’s going on?” I asked once Cayson and I were in the hall, but he still waited until we were almost to the door before pulling me to a stop and into his arms.
“Now that you’re done preparing for Amber Fest, do you wanna spend the day with me?”
And just like that, my heart took off in a beautiful, chaotic rhythm as butterflies took flight. “What? Yes!”
Amusement danced in his eyes as his fingers traced along my jaw. “Want me to take you somewhere, or did you wanna hide away?”
I played with my bottom lip as I pretended to think.
Whiskey (Brewed Book 2) Page 27
