“It’s notable that you only guessed well-known famous people, as if the commoners are all too good for you.”
“Whatever,” she huffs again. “Are you going to tell me or not?”
“Here’s a hint…” When I have her full attention, I say, “You used to be married to him.”
“Oh.” She turns away and goes back to pacing. “You saw Barrett?”
“So, you do remember his name!”
“Lyla, is tonight really the time and place for this?” our grandmother asks with an arched eyebrow in warning. At the same time, Laurel rolls her eyes and says, “Shut up. Of course, I remember his name. How did he look?”
Grinning, I tell her the truth. “Really fucking good.” Rubbing it in a little more, I add, “He’s so much bigger, like bulging muscles all over. Now that he has facial hair, he’s a lot more rugged than before. Oh, and he’s in a motorcycle gang.”
Laurel freezes and glares at me. “Shut. Up.”
My sister has always had a thing for bikers, leather, the whole nine yards. If you ask me, she has serious daddy issues, which is why she’s marrying a man nearly our father’s age, who is also his best friend and Harley-riding buddy. At least John refused to ever join the Devil Hounds MC. He’s a good guy and could do so much better than my gold-digging sister, who is probably already plotting how to boot his teenage children from his will.
“Big ole Barrett Fulton in a leather cut,” I continue my taunting. “I probably should’ve taken a photo after we had lunch.”
“You had lunch with him?” Laurel’s voice is so high it’s nearly a supersonic squeak.
“Yep. At that little café. We ate on the terrace. It was so nice, and of course, he paid.”
She narrows her eyes at me. “You little slut.”
“Everything I know I learned from a gigantic slut.”
“Girls, please don’t do this here,” Grandma says when she comes over to stand between us.
“Grow up, Lyla,” my sister grumbles around her. “Do you even have a date for the wedding?”
“You know I’m not seeing anyone,” I huff. “And why would I need a date to a wedding?”
“Because not having an even number of guests throws everything off. God, you’re so clueless!” she says before she storms off back toward the tables.
“Don’t let her get to you, hon,” Grandma Perry says as she sits down and wraps her arm around my shoulders to give them a squeeze. “Your sister is just stressed-out. She wants everything to be perfect tomorrow.”
“Of course, since she insisted on a shotgun wedding the first time, the second has to be Graceland on steroids to make her millionaire sugar daddy happy.”
“Lyla! It’s Laurel’s day. She gets to decorate however she wants. I’m not even going to start with how inconsiderate it was for you to bring up Barrett Fulton, today of all days.”
Her day? The world has revolved around this wedding, and my sister, for more than a year! As soon as her divorce was finalized, she was planning. Probably even before that, knowing her.
“You won’t see him again,” Grandma says.
“Who?”
“Your sister’s ex-husband.”
“How do you know?” I ask her. “He doesn’t live that far away.”
“I meant that you’re not going to see him again because it’s inappropriate to date your sister’s ex-husband!”
Does she actually think a man like Barrett would want to date me when an entire high school and college campus full of boys rejected me?
Our poor Grandma is getting senile in her old age.
CHAPTER FOUR
Barrett
“So, I heard that cheating ex of yours is getting remarried,” Greer tells me as he pops the top on a bottle of beer and slides it in front of me on the bar counter.
“How did you find out about Laurel’s wedding?”
“Overheard whispering at the grocery store,” he says as he wipes up the spilled beer on the counter with his rag. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m fine.”
“Yeah? Is she marrying the man she cheated on you with?”
“No clue. What does it matter?”
He shrugs and throws his rag over his shoulder like the stereotypical bartender he is. “I don’t know. I guess I would want all the details. You’re not the least bit curious?”
“Not really. I know his name is John, but that’s it,” I say, remembering it from my lunch with Lyla.
“I would want to see the man who filled my shoes, if you know what I mean.”
“You think I’m insecure about the random guy who replaced me? We weren’t even together that long.”
“Then you’re a better man than I am. Because if I got fucked over by an ex like that, while I was in the service, well, I would raise a little hell.”
“Well, I’m not now.”
“You have been pretty damn grouchy lately,” he says.
“You’re always grouchy.”
“Yeah, because I’m struggling to keep my shitty business up and running in a small town. I’ve got bills coming out of my asshole and haven’t had a night off in…fuck if I can remember. The only sex I have is quickies in the stock room with…”
“With whom?” I ask when he stops short of naming them.
“No one. My point is, you’re in a better position than I am.”
I decide to let his secret booty call go, at least for now.
“Oh yeah? I don’t have a job, I still live at home with my brother and father, and I haven’t had sex in…years.”
“Years?” he repeats. “You haven’t had sex in years? Why not?”
“Why not what?”
“Why haven’t you hooked up with anyone, you know, just to get it out of your system before your balls burst?”
“There’s no one I want to just hook up with, and I sure as shit don’t want another relationship.”
“Understandable. You got screwed over by the woman who broke her vows. But take it from me – a hookup now and then can do wonders for your mental health.”
I decide not to bring up the fact that my dick has lost its will to live. I’ve been celibate for so long that my sex organs may have shriveled up. I can’t remember the last time I even had an erection.
“I don’t know if I could do casual sex,” I admit instead. “My brothers lived that life before they settled down. It seems like more trouble than it’s worth if you accidently knock up someone you barely know or catch a nasty disease.”
“You’re only focusing on the downsides. You’re a grown man – just be careful, and none of that is a problem. You need to think about all the upsides.” Greer begins counting off on his fingers. “One, it feels fantastic. Two, it’s good for your self-esteem. And three, it clears your head, and four, did I mention that it feels fucking fantastic,” he finishes with a grin. “Has it really been so long that you’ve forgotten how good it is?”
“Maybe? I’ve only ever had actual sex with one woman…”