I laughed around a spear of envy. Lucky Wynter. I caught Autumn’s gaze and she smothered the same wistfulness.
I could ignore what I saw and how I felt, but I’d been away for what felt like forever and I’d beenwrapped up too much in Jonah. “Someday, you’ll find someone.”
She shrugged and stabbed at the screen. Then she slipped the cover onto the tablet and sighed. “It’s fine. I’m just... I don’t know. Maybe I need to get another cat.”
I stood and went around the bar. I dug through the bottom cupboard for one of the bottles we saved from our special batches. In this case, it was the first bottle of Summer’s Summit ever produced. The line was sold everywhere, but Daddy had saved the first bottle for its namesake. I kept mine here, knowing I’d be with family if I had a drink from it.
Autumn already had two short glasses ready. When we drank together and commiserated, we had our bourbon neat. I poured a finger for each of us and tucked the bottle away, then returned to my seat.
I lifted my glass. “Here’s to our future families.”
“I feel like I should hand in my feminism card whenever I bemoan my single status.” She returned the toast and we each took a sip. She closed her eyes. “Mm, that’s good stuff.”
Flavor burst over my tongue. Notes of caramel, vanilla, and smoky oak. All Copper Summit bourbon was quality, but my line was my favorite. I might be biased. “It’s okay to want a family. It’s okay to feel panic like it’s not going to happen.” It’d better be. I was feeling the same.
“I know. Logically, I do.”
“I’m a boss babe, and I still want a family.”
“You’re also a nepo baby.” She took another drink.
“True.” I had walked right into my job, a position I enjoyed. If I’d had to work and compete for it, would Ifeel differently? Maybe, but I also knew how precious family was and I wanted my own.
“You’re not exactly giving the best pep talk since you’ve been hot and heavy with Jonah.”
I set my glass on the bar top and stared at the amber liquid. “It’s only been a little over a month of actual dating. It’s not like we’ve talked about marriage and kids.”
“You talked about marriage, just not yours and his.” She flashed a devious grin.
I mock glared at her. “Ha ha.”
She kept looking at me as she took another sip. “Are you afraid to discuss the future with him?”
Yes. So scared. “I stormed into his life. He’s gone from being a recluse to a sex god. What if he realizes what he’s missed out on and wants to see others?” I took a gulp of my drink.
“Jonah was never a ‘see others’ type.” She wrinkled her nose. “From what I remember, he was an ‘if you can keep up’ type. Jackie got tired of trying. He left any other dates in the dust.”
I didn’t think he’d return to his previous personality full force, but that didn’t quell my concern. “His life is in a period of upheaval.”
She polished off her bourbon, took my glass, and drained it too. That was fine. I didn’t want to feel like I was drinking my worries away. “Sounds like another talk you’re avoiding.”
I scowled at her while she ran a small sink full of water and washed the glasses. “Another talk?”
“I think you’ve been neglecting to have important discussions with the men in your life. Like what you really want for a wedding.”
“Boyd was different.” The arch of her red brow cut me off. I’d still be in shitty relationships if I avoided hard discussions completely. Maybe I just delayed them. “I am not avoiding the talk. There’s a right time to have one.”
“Remember that one guy you dated before Boyd?”
I’d had a few serious boyfriends as an adult. Boyd had been the longest and the most serious, which was saying a lot since, looking back, our relationship had had as much substance as cotton balls. “Which one?”
She screwed her face up. “Um... Jerry? Gerald?”
“Garrett?” I said dryly.
She snapped her fingers. “Right. The guy who loved to smoke meat and drink beer.”
“I like smoked meat.”
