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“Take your tongue off the lady,” I tell him, my brow lifting. “This one’s mine.”

“Hey!” A voice calls out over the tinny Christmas music playing from speakers above the bar. Caleb and Beck are in a scratched wooden booth in the corner. From the empty glasses on the table they’re already two pints in. Next to Beck, Daisy is sitting on her knees on the bench, coloring in a book with a pink pencil.

Caleb grins at me. “Glad you could drag yourself away and join us.”

They both stand and hug Georgia, then shake my hand. The next few minutes are taken up with a flurry of polite questions about the drive and how Georgia is finding Ravensmere. And then Daisy insists on Georgia sitting next to her, so I end up on the other side next to Caleb.

Daisy points at the coloring book. “Can you do the sky?” Daisy asks. “But please don’t make it rubbish.”

Georgia laughs. “I’ll try not to.” She flexes her fingers like she’s taking Daisy seriously. “Which blue do you want?”

“This one.” Daisy chooses the dark blue, handing it to Georgia like she’s giving her a gold medal.

Smiling, Georgia bends her head beside Daisy’s, their shoulders touching, and without hesitation she starts filling in the page carefully, tongue caught between her teeth in concentration. I let my gaze wander over the curve of her neck, remembering how it felt against my teeth a few hours ago.

I look away to find Caleb grinning at me.

“What?” I roll my eyes at him.

“Nothing.” He bites down a smile. “You were staring.”

“I was making sure she didn’t color outside the lines,” I tell him, taking a long sip of beer. “It’s serious business, you know.”

“Absolutely.” Caleb smirks. “Very important. I’ve ended relationships for less than that.”

“That’s because you don’t have the patience for actual relationships,” Beck says mildly.

Caleb lifts his glass in salute. “I still have standards.”

Before Beck can retort, the landlord appears, wiping his hands on a towel. He takes one look at me and grins.

“Dear God,” Brian says. “The three amigos back together again. Thought you’d finally grown out of us.” He lifts a brow. “Or maybe I hoped you had.”

Beck stands first, as he always does, easy and respectful. “Evening, Brian.”

Brian shakes our hands in turn, looking me up and down. “Nice to have you back,” he says. “I think. Though I told the wife we’d better reinforce the bar.”

Caleb huffs a laugh. “That was one time.”

“It was not one time,” Brian replies. “You used to jump over the damn thing like it was a hurdle. Took the counter clean off one year.”

“That was an accident,” Beck says, looking sheepish. “And we made amends.”

We definitely did. That summer we worked behind the bar in shifts to pay for the counter repairs. Caleb’s feet were always too big for his body. And his appetite too big for his patience. He much preferred jumping over the bar to pour himself a beer than to wait for Brian.

Funny how much those memories make me smile.

“You’re only staying for one night?” Brian asks Beck.

Beck nods. “That’s right. I have to be home tomorrow morning. The parentals are coming for Christmas. If we’re not there when they get in, I’ll be written out of the will.”

Daisy looks up. “What’s a will, Daddy?”

Beck ruffles her hair. “It’s how you get everything you want from me.”

“She gets that by being cute,” Caleb points out.

“And you’re staying for two, right?” Brian asks Caleb.