After a long day of seeing patients at the office, I decided to sit on my back patio with Coal for a bit before heading out to meet Weston and Walker. Coal brought me his favorite ball, and I threw it out into the yard for him a couple of times beforehe decided to lie out on the patio and chew on it. I never grew tired of the view from my backyard—the hills rolling across the horizon, framed by a bright blue sky. My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out to see who it was.
Addison:
What are you doing tonight?
Addison and I saw each other as much as our busy schedules would allow, which was not enough. If we weren’t hanging out, we were texting or talking on the phone at night. I couldn’t get enough of this girl. I felt like I had to see her or speak to her at all times. We had been out on a few dates, and word quickly spread across our small town that we were dating. Everywhere I went, someone commented. Whether it be Mrs. Williams at PrimCup, my office staff, or patients that I saw at the grocery store, everyone had to give me their two cents about what a great girl Addison was, like I didn’t already know. I would then be politely threatened that I would be hunted down if I hurt her. Those types of comments only fed into the anxiety that I tried to shove way down deep, of not being enough, that if we were to break up, I would lose my practice over it.
About to head out to grab a beer with your brothers. You?
Addison:
Oh, that’s right. They mentioned they were going to invite you out this week. Ava and Farrah are coming over for dinner.
Sounds fun. Do you want me to come pick you up on my way home? You can stay over.
Addison:
Depends if the girls are still here or not. Text me on your way home.
Well, if you kick them out early, I’ll make it worth your while…
Addison:
Oh yeah? Is that a promise?
Kick them out early and you’ll find out.
Addison:
I’ll see what I can do.
I’lltext you when I’m headed over.
I spotted Weston and Walker right as I entered Hops & Hills. I waved at them both and made my way over to the bar to grab a beer before joining them at their table. Stanley, the owner as well as tonight’s bartender, placed a Modelo in front of me. The perks of a small town—they knew your order. I smiled, and we bumped knuckles. “Thanks, Stan, appreciate ya.”
Stanley was in his mid-fifties and a really cool guy. I always enjoyed talking with him, and his Doberman, Major, was a patient. “No problem, Doc. Weston and Walker mentioned that you were meeting up with them.” I nodded as he continued, “I hear that you’re dating Addison, huh? I wouldn’t be shocked if those two overprotective brothers of hers over there lured you here to threaten your life if you fuck that up.” He chuckled while drying off a glass.
I hadn’t thought of that. Wouldn’t blame them though. I knew how close they all were. “Well, shit, here I thought they wanted me to be their new best friend.” I smirked.
Stanley’s head fell back in laughter as I held up my beer in a salute before turning and heading to the table. “Good luck,” Stanley called out after me.
Once I made it to the table, both Weston and Walker stood up to shake my hand and clap me on the back. We all sat down,and I took a long pull from my beer. Weston looked at me. “Why did Stan tell you good luck?”
“He thinks you guys brought me here to threaten my life if I hurt your sister.” Weston and Walker shared a look, a wordless communication passing between them. “Uh, is that why you guys invited me for a beer?”
Walker cleared his throat. “Not entirely. Yes, we wanted to talk to you about Addison, but we also wanted to get to know you.” He smiled before bringing his beer to his lips.
Weston studied me a moment. The dude was intense. I noticed he had the same hazel eyes as his father, whereas Walker had green eyes like Addison and his mother. “Look, Addison got fucked over by that rich, entitled prick of an ex, and we aren’t blind to the fact that you also come from a shit ton of money, and have heard things. We wouldn’t be doing our job as her big brothers if we didn’t sit you down and have a chat.”
Walker nodded as Weston continued. A good cop, bad cop vibe between the two of them. “She seems to trust you, which surprises me based on everything that went down not even six months ago, but that’s another story. I like you, and I trust my instincts, but I will say this once and then we can drop this topic. If you fuck with her or fuck her over in any way, I will be your worst fucking nightmare.” His eyes bore into me, and I noticed the tight grip he had on his beer bottle. I nodded, and we held eye contact for what seemed like several minutes. I wasn’t going to back down to him, and I needed him to understand that I took this seriously.
Walker cleared his throat to break the tension.
“Uh, yeah, I’m not quite as intense as this guy.” He pointed his thumb at his brother. “But in all seriousness, Dean, we like you, and we want our sister to be happy. You seem to make her happy, so we trust that you will take care of her. And like my big brother so eloquently put it, we will fuck you up if you fuck with her.” Walker smiled like he didn’t just threaten me and then took a pull from his beer.
I let out a long breath that I didn’t realize I’d been holding. “I get it, and understood. I care a lot about Addison.” Both Weston and Walker nodded.
“All right, now that we have that out of the way, how are you liking Primrose Hill?” Walker asked, doing a complete one-eighty with the topic of conversation.
