“Make it forty,” Adam says.
“Adam!” she says, slapping at his chest. “Everyone is here for you!”
“It’s my birthday trip, Birdie. I’m sure everyone will understand me wanting to spend some time alone with my girlfriend.”
“It’s still rude!”
I shake my head and laugh at their antics.
“It’s all good, Wren, enjoy your time together. I’ll make sure no one bugs you two for an hour.”
“You’re my favorite, Hallie. Remember that.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I say with a wave, then walk out, the heavy door slamming behind me.
I head down the hall, shaking my head, and then stop when my brother steps out of his room. I’m still not sure how Adam convinced Colt to leave the bar in his assistant manager’s hands for the weekend, but I’m grateful. I don’t know when I last saw my brother enjoy himself outside of work. He smiles wide, waiting for me to catch up before throwing an arm over my shoulder.
“Hey there, Hal. Where are you headed?”
“Downstairs. I was getting ready with Wren, but they started getting all touchy-feely and, well, you know.”
Colt nods with a knowing look. “Well, that means I can get a drink with my favorite sister before dinner, I guess.”
I look up at him with a smile, warmth in my chest since I have missed spending time with my brother, and then we head to the lobby bar together.
I should have known it was coming, but I’m on a vacation high, or maybe it’s the elevation, but barely five minutes after settling into a corner bar table, he strikes.
“Hear you’ve been spending a lot of time with Emma and Jesse,” he says, and I force my body to remain loose, not to get too tight, since if anyone can read me, it’s Colton.
“Yeah, I watched her while Wren was out in Paris.”
He nods, taking a sip of his beer and keeping his eyes on me.
“Word on the street is you’re there a lot.”
I lift a questioning eyebrow. “Word on what street?”
He grins. “Madden,”
My jaw tightens, and I shake my head with an irritated sigh. “Madden has a big fucking mouth,” I say, taking a long sip of my drink. Bad move, since Colton takes the opportunity to land his next hit.
“Are you finally going to admit you’re in love with your best friend’s brother?”
“What—” I start, but his face is so sincere, so kind and nonjudgmental, I hesitate in my argument, in my denial.
At some point, I’m going to have to make a choice, and I’m realizing that choice, made rapidly, is never going to be letting Jesse go. Eventually, everything will be out in the world if I’m going to confess this to anyone before we tell everyone, Colton’s the safest of them all.
“I think love is a bit of an exaggeration,” I murmur, though these days, I don’t actually know if that’s it.
A moment of surprise crosses my brother’s face as if he thought he’d have to work harder for a confession, but he bounces back quickly, crossing his arms on his chest and sitting back.
“So you’re together?” he asks, taking me in.
“We’re not…I don’t know. I’ve been trying to do a friends-with-benefits thing with him, but he isn’t into it. He wants all or nothing.”
Colton let out a short huff of a laugh. “He’s Jesse King. That doesn’t surprise me in the least. So, you’re the one looking for just friends?”
I brush off the disbelief in his words.
