Chapter 3
2076 Words
Three
Savannah
“You’re cranky today.” Juno sits across from me at Lucky’s Tavern, sipping her new favorite drink—Malibu and Coke.
She drinks something different every time I’m here with her. My only saving grace is that Colton hasn’t joined us yet. And by yet, I mean I anticipate him walking through the door at any moment.
“I’m not cranky.” I sip my wine. Damn Holly. The girl only supplies us with white wine, so now I know all the different kinds. I’m currently torn between Riesling and Moscato as my favorite.
“You are cranky, and I think it has something to do with the guy over at the pool table.”
I don’t bother to look. “Well, our brother pisses me off on the regular.”
“Denver especially,” she agrees without pushing me to look at who he’s with. I see Liam enough. I saw him this morning, this evening before I came here, and I’ll see him before I go to bed. That’s enough for me. “Maybe it’s not the guy but the girl at the pool table with him that’s making you cranky?” She taps her finger against her lips as if it’s something she has to contemplate.
“I don’t really care. As long as I don’t have to hear her moaning my brother’s name at night.”
“I don’t think it’s going to be Denver’s name you hear.” She puts her red lips around the straw of her drink, sucking the coconut-flavored liquid into her mouth while her eyes zero in on what’s happening behind me.
I glance over my shoulder. Liam’s attention is on a girl in a short skirt, sitting at the bar table next to the pool table. Denver’s playing wingman with her friend. I want to roll my eyes but school my features at the last second.
“So I was thinking… let me set you up,” Juno says. “I’m between clients right now and I want a tough project.”
I purse my lips. “I’m a tough project?”
“You aren’t exactly Mary Poppins.”
I tilt my head. “Was Mary Poppins really that nice? She was strict.”
“It’s a phrase, Sav.”
I place my wine down and c***k my neck when the girl by the pool tables laughs so loudly, my eardrums hurt. I think they might be bleeding as a result of her cackle. “I have no time to date. I have to plan Brooklyn’s reception. When are they coming home again?” I twist the stem of my wine glass with my fingers.
“She said they’re home tomorrow, since it was spur of the moment. I’m not surprised she eloped after he-who-shall-not-be-named stood her up the first time around. And you know I can help with the reception too.”
I nod. “Wyatt’s parents are flying in and we’re doing it in two weeks.”
Only Brooklyn would think that’s feasible. She better mean small when she says it. Not like Austin and Holly’s “small” wedding. They would’ve been better to invite the entire town of Lake Starlight.
“At least you’ll be able to check it off your to-do list quickly.”
I roll my eyes.
“Come on. You need some fun in the meantime. I know I can find you a good guy. It’s what I do.”
I glance over my shoulder again. The girl’s t**s are practically pressed against Liam’s chest. His legs are widened with a pool stick in one hand and his beer in the other. Liam is obviously moving on from last weekend, as I knew he would.
I sigh. Truth is, I could probably use a distraction while I’m forced to watch Liam showboat around town—at least until I can move out of his place. “If you think you can find someone I’d like, go for it. But the man has to be able to handle the fact that I’m a business owner. I work a lot of hours, and I won’t be made to feel guilty over it. I have family obligations.”
I stop stating my wants when she laughs, her Malibu dripping down her lips. I swear to God, if she sprays me with that drink because she can’t hold in her laughter…
“Got it, sis. So pretty much you want a guy who understands that you’re a workaholic and accepts that dates will be canceled due to your hectic schedule?”
“Exactly.” I bring my wine glass to my lips.
“And you don’t think you’re a tough case,” she deadpans.
“Where do you find people who want to use a matchmaker anyway?” I ask.
She shrugs, never one to let out her secrets. Juno truly believes she got handed the gift of matchmaking through our genetic ancestry. The other eight of us have either struggled or are currently struggling to find our Mr. or Miss Right, but Juno—
“Hey, ladies,” Colton says, sliding into the booth. Juno’s best friend smiles at me, raising his hand to Nate at the bar.
“Colton, how’s the internship going?” I sip my wine and straighten in my seat as though anything Colton is going to say is the most fascinating thing I’ll hear all night. Anything to distract me from the shrill laughter coming from the pool table area.
“Good. You know Dr. Murray. Stickler for the rules. Mrs. Klein came in with her cat today…”
Colton’s boring story about being a vet intern turns into background noise as Liam’s deep voice sends a shiver up my spine. He’s razzing Denver about playing another round. One last game before they head out.
Head out? As in back to our house, er, his house? I inwardly reprimand myself and make a mental reminder to drill a new asshole into my contractors tomorrow. My entire focus is off. Even at work. Living with Liam is not an option anymore. But if I leave, then I’m admitting defeat. I can already see his cocky smirk as he helps me load my last box into my vehicle.
Screw him.
“Couples?” The woman’s voice is as grating as Janice’s from Friends. I can’t be the only person annoyed by it.
“Perfect,” Denver says. “Can I pick my partner?”
As Colton makes eye contact with me, I shake my head and smile, pretending I’m still paying attention. It’s great that Juno’s so enthralled with his vet stories, but since I’m not much of an animal person, they don’t really excite me.
“And then the cat pisses and Mr. Dweedle’s dog, the German Shepherd…”
Seriously, I can’t sit here anymore. My body is full of nervous energy and I just want to move around.
“Who wants to be my partner?” Denver yells.
Without thinking, I stand. “I’m in.”
“What? Sav?” Juno whines, but I have no control of my body as I make my way over.
Liam’s wearing his classic smile as he tips back his bottle of beer. For a moment, I think I’ve fallen into some trap he’s set, but this is him. Drinking, messing around with my brother, and picking up women. It’s the Liam I haven’t witnessed since I moved in a few weeks ago, but it’s classic Liam Kelly.
“Perfect.” Denver points at me with a big smile.
The girl on the bar stool looks me up and down and whispers something to the one who currently has her fingers resting inside the waistband of Liam’s jeans. I eye her hand and shift my gaze to my brother.
“Who’s this?” the girl who seems to be interested in my brother asks. She must be from a few towns over.
Denver turns back toward her. “She’s my big sister. This is Savannah.” There’s pride in his tone.
“You haven’t picked up a pool stick for a decade,” Liam reminds me. One good thing about looking at Liam now is he’s stepped away from the girl and her hand is on her fruity drink instead of halfway to his junk.
“It’s like riding a bike.”
We used to have a pool table at my parents’, which is now Austin and Holly’s house. Everyone hung out at our home when we were younger. Dad would come downstairs and challenge the guys, which only made them better players as they grew older. Mom would feed everyone snacks. We were the house. Most of our friends would sit and talk with our parents before ever finding whatever sibling they were there to see.
“Let me grab you a pool stick,” Denver says.
“Sav can just pull the stick out of her ass and use that one,” Liam says with a bite to his tone.
“Another?” Nate asks before I can respond.
“Sure.” I have a feeling I’m going to need more wine to get through this.
Nate picks up the empty beer bottles and heads back to the bar.
“I thought we were having a conversation?” Juno says as she and Colton join us, taking a seat at the bar-height table next to the two women.
I shrug. “Well, I wanted to play pool.”
“Since when?” Juno asks.
“Exactly.” Liam leans some of his weight on the pool cue in his hands, looking at us over the top of the stick. I wish he’d slip and the cue would slide up his nose.
“How come you aren’t playing?” Juno asks the woman into Denver. She’s not shy. How can you be when you set people up for a living?
The woman smiles politely while flipping her hair. “It’s not my thing.”
“And where are you from?” If they were from Lake Starlight, we’d know them.
The good thing is I won’t have to dig up any information about Liam’s date tonight. Juno will do it for me.
“Sunrise Bay.”
“Nice, and you’re here with Denver and Liam?”
“We came for a change of scenery. Met them here.”
Juno nods and slides her stool closer to the woman. “So you’re single?”
“Yep.” She nods enthusiastically and reminds me of a bobblehead doll.
I let Juno get to know Denver’s “date” while I chalk the tip of my pool cue. “What are the stakes?”
Denver looks at Liam and shrugs.
“We could do household chores, but if I win, Denver will leave all that on you,” Liam says.
“Deal.” Denver laughs.
“How about we kiss our partner for every ball we sink?” the woman next to Liam says.
I stare blankly at her.
Liam wraps his arm around her waist, pulling her closer but stares at me over her head. “What do you say, Sav?”
“I say I’m not kissing my brother.”
“Let’s just do shots for the losers.” Denver finishes racking the balls and slides them to the line, then twirls the holder in his hands as he removes it.
“Fine.” There’s no way this girl has a shot at beating Denver and me.
Liam grabs a cue ball from the holder and puts it on the opposite side of the table. “Which one of you wants to go first?”
“Sav can,” Denver says.
I go around Denver, overhearing Juno giving her card to the woman here for Denver. I laugh on the inside because Juno has no shame.
“Ready?” Liam eyes me as the stick slides back and forth through his fingers. Cocky bastard.
“Yep.”
His eyes never leave mine as he hits the cue ball. It rolls back almost to where he hit it from. I might as well just tell him he’s got first shot, but I don’t play that way.
I align my ball and watch the tip of my stick leave a blue circle on the cue ball. It slowly comes back but doesn’t come as close as Liam’s.
“I guess that means I win,” he whispers in my ear.
“Not yet.” I narrow my eyes and walk around to the other side of the table.
“I have this guy in Sunrise Bay. He’s a fisherman and he’s super nice and—”
Denver finally pays his date—or hook-up or whatever she is—some attention. “Juno!”
“What?” Juno looks over all doe-eyed like.
Colton laughs from behind her.
Denver’s gaze shifts to Colton and back to Juno. “She’s here with me.”
“She said she didn’t come here with you.”
Denver blows out a breath and shakes his head as if he can’t believe her. “I just bought her a drink.”
Juno stands, holds up her hands, and goes back to her table with Colton. “Okay, sorry,” she says to Denver then turns to the woman. “Call me tomorrow.”
The woman looks as if she’s trying to figure out Juno’s words.
I bite my lip to stop from laughing.
“Thank you,” Denver says, sidling up next to the woman and blocking Juno from talking to her anymore.
Juno’s and my eyes catch, and we both smile because we know she’s just a hookup. That’s what Denver and Liam and our other brother Rome (before he became a father) are known for.
The crash of balls pulls my gaze to the table where Liam’s setting up his next shot.
I forgot. It wasn’t just my brothers my dad taught in our basement… Liam was always there too.
- Writer
