“Ah, man,” he said, squeezing my forearm. “I’m sorry.”
“Happens,” I said, then took another drink.
“True. Though I feel it necessary to point out that you’re finally taking advantage of that barstool, and you’re not even here for business.”
I chuckled dryly. “Mr. Paige gave me the idea, y’all helped with the planning, and I ran with it. The stool has already done what it needed to do.”
“Maybe,” Ozzie said, bumping my shoulder with his. “But if I can’t help you with the business side of things, I’m happy to lend an ear for your personal troubles.”
I shrugged. “It’s kind of crowded in here, so?—”
“We could go upstairs,” Walker suggested as Tommy brought over a basket of tater tots laden with fried eggs.
Ozzie rapped the bar with his knuckles. “Good idea. Nobody’s at the rooftop lounge, and we’ll have Tommy send up another round of drinks.”
“You sure?” I said, eyeballing the pile of tater tot goodness.
“Of course, man.”
I grabbed my basket and my Bloody Mary and followed them upstairs to the empty but beautifully appointed rooftop. High-end artificial turf carpeted the rooftop, which was dotted with seating areas, large planters filled with local flora, and colorful sails to protect against the harsh Texas sun. We went to a shady corner and made ourselves at home in a cushy outdoor dining set.
“So, what’s happening?” Ozzie asked, sitting across from me. He leaned his forearms on the table, paying careful attention.
“I fell for the wrong person.” I sighed, my body slumped in defeat.
“What makes this person the wrong person?” Walker asked.
And wasn’t that just the million-dollar question.
“We agreed to keep it casual, and I’m no longer feeling very casual.”
“That’s surprising, considering you’ve got a pretty good roster going,” Ozzie noted.
I shook my head. “Ihada roster going. I haven’t seen any of them in a couple of months.”
Ozzie whistled quietly. Prior to Ren, I’d usually gotten laid once or twice a week, at least. Mostly men, couple of nonbinary folks, the occasional couple. Nothing complicated, everyone having fun.
“And the person you’ve been with isn’t interested in more?”
“I don’t think they’re capable of anything else right now?” I said, more of a question than a statement. “Anyway, we had a really intense time last night, and I think he figured out I was feeling some kind of way. He ended it this morning.”
“Shit.” Walker shook his head. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thanks, man.”
I took a slug of my drink, already wishing I’d grabbed another. Ozzie and Walker also sipped their drinks, but their curious, concerned eyes never left me.
After another deep pull, I set the Bloody Mary down. “Anyway, I’m a bit of a mess about it, and I don’t know what to do.”
“Any person who’s been with you and doesn’t want to make it a full-time thing is an idiot,” Ozzie pronounced, crossing his arms, clearly offended on my behalf.
Walker nodded, and something about that made me feel better. Neither of these guys was the kind to blow smoke up a person’s ass, and it felt like they knew I’d been wondering if something was wrong with me.
“It doesn’t help that he’s got a work colleague who’s been sniffing after him. According to him, he nipped that in the bud, but it wouldn’t shock me if they ended up together.”
“Why?” Walker asked. “Who would choose someone else over you?”
Ozzie jokingly gestured between himself and Walker. “Sorry, Major. I’d choose Walker over you every day of the week.”
