“I’ll have one more, too. And I wouldn’t mind seeing the dessert menu.”
“Coming right up,” the waitress said. “The band is here until midnight.” She moved on to tend to other tables.
Brianna looked at him through thick lashes. “I just want to say… I didn’t expect to talk to you like this, and it’s been nice. Thanks for listening to my tale of woe.”
“Likewise and thank you for listening to mine. It’s strangely cathartic to meet someone who’s been through something similar, although yours was much worse. At least my ex didn’t also ruin me financially.”
“You’re lucky.”
The waitress brought their drinks and the dessert menu. When Brianna didn’t see anything that tempted her, the waitress placed the check on the table.
Noah handed her the coupon Mrs. H had given him and his credit card.
“Let’s split it,” Brianna said.
“No worries. I’ve got it. And I was going to say that I already owned my house and my business when she came along, so my brother, the attorney, strongly suggested a prenup. I was so pissed with him for thinking I’d need that.” Noah smiled at the irony. “He said, ‘You just never know what’s going to happen, and you have assets to protect.’ Thank God I listened to him.”
“You dodged a second bullet with that.”
“No kidding. I probably ought to thank Grayson for that one of these days.”
“You really should. He saved you an even bigger headache than you already had.”
“It’s funny… I hated having to tell her that my brother was recommending a prenup. I thought that was a shitty way for her to start with my family. But she said she understood he was protecting me and signed it without another word about it. In the end, it was no big deal between her and me, but it sure saved my ass when shit went sideways.”
“Jeez, no kidding, huh? Imagine having her as your partner in the business after what she did.”
Noah cringed as he laughed. “Thanks for putting that thought in my head.”
“Sorry.”
“I feel like I’ve had three years’ worth of therapy over one dinner,” Noah said. “Thanks for that.”
“I’d say it was my pleasure, but I sure hate to hear that anyone else has had a similar thing happen. I’ve found it helps to talk about it, though. Keeping it all bottled up inside isn’t healthy. I don’t want to hold on to all that shit.”
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. My MO has been to keep it all to myself, if for no other reason than it was so freaking embarrassing. My wife and my best friend-slash-top employee? Seriously? Like was there no one else for her to screw? It had to be him?”
“That makes it so much worse than it would’ve been if it had just screwed up your marriage.”
“So much worse.”
“If you want to move on from it, you should tell people what happened. You’re not the villain in that story, Noah. Someone did this to you. No need to suffer in silence over it. The longer you do that, the longer the two of them get a pass with the people in your life.”
“That’s true. If my sisters ran into her somewhere, they’d probably be glad to see her. They liked her.”
“Yeah, you need to tell them what she did. She doesn’t deserve to be treated well by anyone in your life.”
“How much do you charge for this advice?”
“Free of charge in exchange for some baked beans and coleslaw.”
“Don’t forget the cornbread and vodka.”
“Ah, yes, that, too.”
“Not to mention deluxe accommodations at the Pig’s Belly Tavern.”
“And for this, I went to medical school.”
“Did you?” he asked, stunned.
She cracked up. “No, I was just rolling with the shrink thing.”
As Noah laughed—again—he realized he’d done that more in the last couple of hours than he had in years. He’d lost his sense of humor along with his best friend, his wife and the life he’d thought he was going to have with them both by his side. “Enough of this depressing shit. Let’s go dance.”
Chapter Six
“Being hurt by someone you truly care about leaves a hole in your heart that only love can fill.”
—George Bernard Shaw
They danced until the band quit at midnight. Brianna hadn’t had that much fun in more than a year. She was sweaty and disheveled and possibly drunk after that devil Noah kept the drinks coming while they danced. This evening had turned out much differently than she’d expected when she set out to dine with the man who’d been such a thorn in her side for weeks now.
It turned out he wasn’t mean, just wounded. Brianna certainly understood how the kind of heartache they’d both endured could turn someone into a moody asshole. She could only hope they’d had a breakthrough tonight, and things would be better on the job.
The dancing had served a secondary purpose of postponing their stay upstairs until the last possible minute. As the band packed up, Brianna sat with Noah at the table that had been their home base and finished the last of her latest drink. She’d lost track of how many she’d had and would pay for that in the morning.
Whatever.
It’d been worth it to have fun again.
In a year full of abject misery and heartbreak, the word fun had been a long way from her vocabulary. Something about sharing their experiences had given them the liberty to cut loose and enjoy themselves.
Brianna had polished off the last of her drink when a loud burp came from somewhere deep inside and had everyone still in the room looking at her.
She covered her mouth as her face heated with embarrassment. “‘Scuse me.”
Noah laughed harder than he had all night.
“Stop! It’s not funny.” She hiccupped on the word funny, which made him laugh some more.
“We should get you upstairs before you fall over.”
The hiccups intensified until they were coming one right after the other.
Smiling, Noah stood to offer her a hand up.
She took hold of his hand and let him haul her to her feet. The second she was upright, the whole world seemed to tilt, which had her reaching for him to keep from falling.
He put his arm around her. “Easy. I’ve got you.”
“I’m not much of a drinker.”
“You don’t say?”
“Stop making fun of me.”
“I’m not!”
“You are, too!”
His low chuckle was confirmation that he was, in fact, making fun of her. He half walked, half carried her up the stairs to room four. Using the key the waitress had given them, Noah somehow managed to keep her upright while unlocking the door. After they staggered into the room, Noah got her to the bed and waited for her to sit before releasing her.
Brianna promptly slid right off the bed onto the floor, where she lost it laughing and hiccupping. She laughed so hard, she feared she might wet her pants. Wouldn’t that be the kicker?
Noah offered her both his hands. “Let’s try this again.”
Brianna wasn’t sure why she pulled on them, but he fell almost on top of her, setting off another round of hilarious laughter.