Whoever had put this together was a pro—it had an air of ease and fun while still being polished and dignified. Clearly well-planned and organized down to the last detail, the person behind this event was exactly who he needed for the grand opening of Wyldefire Whiskey.
Knowing his terrible luck, Sam wondered if it was Cassie's doing.
"Sam Wylde, meet Amelia Eldridge." Holly pointed between him and a small brunette who'd just entered the tent with a rack of wineglasses.
Amelia offered him a sad smile as she began arranging the plates and glasses on every table. "Sam Wylde needs no introductions in this town, Hol."
Pity. There was no mistaking it in her voice, and Sam was becoming all too familiar with it lately.
"That's what I told him." Holly laughed, apparently not noticing her friend's tone.
Sam decided to stay civil. "It's good to see you, Amelia."
"You, too," Amelia replied. "How are you doing? Tough weekend. You doing okay?"
Sam swallowed the stab of humiliation that came with every reminder of his former girlfriend's upcoming nuptials this weekend—and there were a lot of reminders. In fact, Amelia was probably the fourth person to ask him about it just today in that same "poor Sam" pity-filled tone.
Star pitcher falls in love with the lead actress of the senior play—the story wrote itself. They'd been so happy for so many years, and Sam had been certain she was his future. He was all in, but she…wasn't. Maybe she never had been.
Even though it had been several years since their dramatic split, the entire town was still obsessed with the scandalous details. Hell, it had been quite the story.
"I'll be fine," Sam informed her, his tone a bit sterner and the ease of his mood quickly dissipating. "It's not a big deal."
"Really?" Amelia seemed oblivious at his attempt to end the conversation. "Man, I'd be a wreck if the love of my life was getting married to my younger brother in the biggest ceremony this town has ever seen."
Holly's eyes grew wide as she turned from the table she was decorating and eyed the two of them. "Wow. That's…uh, well—"
"She was not the love of my life," Sam countered a bit louder than he meant, then quickly bit his tongue. He wasn't going down this road. There was no chance he could talk about Grady and Jane's upcoming wedding without completely imploding.
"Hey, Sam!" Bright pink hair bounded toward him as his younger cousin entered the tent holding up a phone. "Found you!"
"Ruby?" A senior in high school, Ruby Wylde changed her hair color weekly and wore makeup so thick that he sometimes didn't recognize her. She was definitely still trying to figure herself out, but as the youngest in the family, she rested in a soft spot in Sam's heart. "What are you doing here?"
"Noah called me," she explained, tossing her ponytail back over her shoulder. "He said you're not answering your phone."
Sam rolled his eyes. "So, he sent his little sister to track me down? This family…" He bit back the curses he wanted to let loose and took the phone from her. Turning to Holly and Amelia, he offered a stiff smile. "Would you ladies excuse me a moment?"
Holly nodded, turning away to give him privacy as she and Amelia began chatting with his cousin.
Walking a few feet away, Sam lifted the phone to his ear. "Hey."
"Sam, did you get the permits yet?" Noah's voice boomed through the line, almost like a roar but not gruff or hostile. Noah was just naturally excitable and lively, and spoke about everything with a gusto Sam never seemed to have. Possibly because Noah's life was focused on fun, while Sam's was piled high with responsibility. "We're about to light the rickyard up."
The rickyard was where they burned sugar maple wood with whiskey in a giant bonfire to create a unique charcoal. They would later use the charcoal to slowly drip whiskey through during the distilling process. It was one of his favorite things—watching the flames demolish a giant stack of lumber only to be reborn into the very thing that made their whiskey so much better than any of their competitors.
It was symbolic, it was dangerous, and somehow, it was beautiful.
Creating something from nothing, Sam was more confident in their product every day. With only a few months left until the launch, he had to be. Or at least, he had been until today.
"Not yet. Go ahead and light it without me," he said. "There's an event at River Ridge Park I'm checking out."
"I heard. Ruby said you were fawning over some redhead. Just grab her number and bag her later. We've got shit to do."
"Watch your mouth," Sam shot back, feeling his thin rope thinning even more. "It's your shit I'm cleaning up right now."
"My shit?" Noah countered.
"Cassie quit."
There was silence from the other end of the line. Finally, a loud sigh. "Yeah, that's probably on me."
"Probably?" Sam almost laughed at the insanity of it all. "Seriously, Noah?"
"Okay! Definitely. It's definitely on me." Noah sounded as frustrated as Sam felt. "I should have seen that coming."
That'd be a first, Sam thought. His cousin was selfish as hell, never considering how his actions impacted others.
"Yeah, you should have. But you didn't, so I'm fixing it. This party looks like it was done by a pro, so I'm going to scope out the event planner and try to set up a meeting."
"Good call."
For some reason, Noah's approval only pissed Sam off more. "Goodbye, Noah."
"Bye, Sa—" Noah started, but Sam clicked off the phone before he could finish.
Shoving Ruby's phone into his pocket, Sam turned and walked back to the tent to talk to Holly. He hoped she'd know who put this event together because it seemed like she must be working for them.
He needed to get back on track—stay focused, finish his errands, and find a new event coordinator immediately. There was no room in his life for personal distractions.
But damn it if he wasn't…distracted.
Now Live!
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About the Author
Photo Credit: Valerie Bey
Sarah Robinson is the Top 10 Barnes & Noble and Amazon Bestselling Author of multiple series and standalone novels, including the Exposed series, The Photographer Trilogy, Kavanagh Legends series, the Forbidden Rockers series, and Not a Hero: A Marine Romance. A native of Washington, D.C., Robinson has both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in forensic and clinical psychology and works as a counselor. She owns a small zoo of furry pets and is actively involved in volunteering in her community.
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Also By Sarah Robinson
The Photographer Trilogy
(Romantic Suspense)
Tainted Bodies
Tainted Pictures
Untainted
The Photographer Trilogy Boxset (includes deleted scene!)
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Forbidden Rockers Series
(Rockstar Romances)
Her Forbidden Rockstar
Rocker Christmas: A Logan &
Caroline Holiday Novella
Logan’s Story: A Prequel Novella
Logan Clay: The Box Set
(Purchase any of the Forbidden Rockers here!)
Kavanagh Legends Series
(MMA Fighter Standalone Romances)
Breaking a Legend
Saving a Legend
Becoming a Legend
Chasing a Legend
Kavanagh Christmas
(Purchase any of the Kavanagh Legends here…also on audio!)
EXPOSED Series
(Hollywood Standalone Romances)
NUDES
BARE
SHEER
Exposed Boxed Set (includes extended epilogue!)
(Purchase any of the Exposed series here)
100 Proof Series
(Contemporary Country Romances)
Wylde Fire (Purchase here!)
Wylde Spirits (Coming 2020)
Wylde Hearts (Coming 2020)
Standalone Novels
Not a Hero: A Bad Boy Marine Romance (Purchase here!)
Misadventures in the Cage (Coming 2020)
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One Night Stand: An Erotic Serial: Episode One Page 5
