“Yeah, that sounds about right.”
I had no idea what he meant by that, but I had a feeling it was a jab. And I didn’t like it. I didn’t judge him for working at a strip club or a casino. As far as I saw it, he had no business judging me. So, I crossed my arms and snapped, “I’ll have you know I do quite well. I have a wait list a mile long.”
“Good.” Luke didn’t even blink. “You’ve always worked hard. I figured you’d be doing alright.”
Oh, great.
He was giving me a compliment. I love that.
Just add a little more pressure to the pot. I’m basically boiling alive at this point. I forced a tight smile and nodded, hoping he’d go back to talking to Davis.
No such luck.
“What about Lila Kate? She still all over the place?”
“Yeah, I thought she’d settle down when she got older, but she’s still at it.”
Luke smiled, and it nearly sent me sliding out of my chair and into a puddle on the floor. “She was always easy-going and never met a stranger. I liked that about her.”
Of course, he did.
Everyone liked that about her. Her chaos was part of her charm. My chaos was dealing with her mess. I was over this.
I didn’t want to speak.
I didn’t want to lie.
And I didn’t want to talk about Lila Kate or my job or anything personal. I just wanted out of there. Unfortunately, that wasn’t going to happen any time soon.
5
GOOSE
“Glad you came by tonight.”
“Me, too… It’s been too long, and that’s on me.”
Davis smiled that old Davis smile. I had to give it to him. Davis looked and sounded the part of the remorseful brother, but that didn’t mean he was sorry.
It just meant he’d gotten better at faking it.
His smile remained as he added, “I’ve missed my little brother.”
Little brother.
I hadn’t heard him call me that in years, and I won’t deny that it got to me. Felt like maybe all those years of tension and heartache were finally behind us. I had no idea how it happened or why, and while I was leery, I was glad to finally have a decent conversation with my brother.
I didn’t want the good to end with us all drifting into different directions, so I asked, “Where you staying tonight?”
“I’ll hang with my girl tonight.” Davis rubbed the back of his neck and grimaced. “But that’s not gonna work long term. Her sister’s been staying there, and you know… She’s a lot.”
Presley’s jaw tightened as she glanced up at Davis.
There was something in the way she looked at him, but it was only for a split second. If you blinked, you’d miss it.
But I didn’t miss it.
It was a look of guilt intertwined with sadness, but I had no idea what she had to feel sad about. She had a good job. She had Davis. Things seemed good. I would’ve expected her to be happy, and it made me wonder if something was going on with them.
