“You’re sure she’s all right?”
“Shane is taking good care of her, and Mom and Julia have been there every day. I took food, and Laura did, too. She’s holding up okay.”
“I never want anything to hurt any of you guys after what we’ve already put up with.”
“We feel the same about you, you know.”
Jace came back to their end of the bar and took a measuring look at John, who had blond hair and blue eyes and favored their older brother Owen. Was it her imagination, or did Jace seem annoyed to see her sitting with a man? “Jace, this is my brother John. John, this is Jace.”
The two men shook hands.
“Good to meet you,” Jace said, smiling since she said the word brother. “What can I get you to drink?”
“What’ve you got on tap?”
After Jace gave him the rundown, John said, “A Sam Summer, please.”
“Coming right up. Are you eating?”
“Sure.”
Jace handed him the menu and the list of specials and then went to get his beer.
“I’m having the seafood casserole that’s on the specials list. Jace says people are loving it.”
“Jace says that, huh? He didn’t seem too happy to see you chatting with me.”
“Don’t be silly. I just met him the other night.”
“He likes you.”
“Stop it.”
John nudged her. “You’re blushing.”
“Go away.”
Her brother laughed, which was a welcome sight. He’d been in a deep funk since he’d come home for their mother’s wedding to Charlie.
“Nice to hear you laugh,” Cindy said. “We’ve been worried about you.”
His smile immediately faded. “Sorry about that.”
“What’s going on with you? And don’t you need to get back to work?” He was a police officer in Tennessee and had said something about an issue with a superior officer. But Cindy hadn’t heard any more than that.
Jace returned with John’s beer.
“Thanks. I’ll have the same order as my sister.”
“With fries, slaw and tartar sauce?”
“Yes, please.”
“You got it. Want me to bring them out together?”
“That’d be good,” Cindy said. “Thanks, Jace.”
“Anything for you,” Jace said with a wink and a smile.
“I rest my case,” John said.
“He probably says that stuff to everyone. Check out his tip jar. Charm pays.”
“He likes you.”
Hearing her brother confirm what she already suspected made Cindy feel like she’d been dropped off the steep side of a roller coaster. “Enough about me. Let’s talk about you.”
“I’d rather talk about you,” he said glumly.
“I’ve got nothing to say. You, on the other hand, haven’t been yourself since you got here, and the fact that you’re not in a big rush to get back to work tells me something’s up.”
“Yeah, something’s up.” He sipped from his beer and shredded the cocktail napkin into confetti. “I was, um, seeing someone I worked with, and it ended badly.”
“I’m so sorry. Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not really, but I, um, quit the department.”
Cindy was shocked by that news. John had loved that job. “For real? It was that bad?”
“It was with my sergeant. One of us had to go, and it wasn’t going to be him.”
Him.
“Oh, I, um… I hadn’t realized.”
“That’s because I went to great lengths to keep my private life off the general’s radar. You’ve heard his hateful rants about ‘fags’ and how they’re ruining everything.”
“You dated women. A lot of women.”
“To keep him off the scent.”
“God, John. I’m so sorry you had to go through that.”
“We all went through something horrible at his hands. Why should I be any different?”
“True.” Cindy sipped her water as she tried to process what her brother had told her. “You quit your job, though. What about your pension?”
“I get to keep a portion of it, which I’ll invest. I’ll figure it out. I couldn’t stay there after people found out about us, and it turned into a BFD. I was afraid he was going to kill me.”
“You really worried about that?”
“He was so angry that people found out about us. I think he thought I told someone, which I didn’t. I never would’ve done that to either of us.”
“So how did they find out?”
“That’s a good question. I think he told someone and then tried to blame it on me.”
“That’s screwed up.”
“Yep, and now here I am out of a job and a relationship all at the same time.”
She put her arm around him. “I’m so sorry that happened to you, Johnny.”
He leaned into her embrace. “Thanks, sis. I’ll be okay. I’ve got some money saved, and Mom and Charlie told me to stay as long as I need to. I’ll figure something out.”
Jace returned bearing plates he put in front of them. “Clams casino, specialty of the house.”
“Uh, we didn’t order that,” Cindy said, glancing at her brother.
“It’s on me,” Jace said with the charming smile that made her heart beat a little faster. “Enjoy.”
“He likes you,” John said the second Jace moved on to other customers.
“Shut up and eat your clams.”
John’s laughter rang through the bar. “Cindy’s got a boyfriend,” he said in a singsong voice, “and may I say, he’s a fine-looking man.”
Yes, he certainly is, Cindy thought. What did it mean that he was treating her—and her brother—to something special off the menu?
* * *
Gigi woke to a text to her and Jordan from Matilda. Rise and shine, ladies! I need a meeting with you two this morning at nine to discuss the final episode. Please come alone to my hotel. This meeting is just for the three of us, and I’ll provide breakfast. Thanks!
Jordan replied a minute later. Why does she have to be so chipper in the morning? It’s annoying.
Seriously annoying, Gigi said.
Matilda responded with laughing emojis. I can hear you two! Get your asses out of bed and get to work!
Gigi groaned and started to carefully extricate herself from the tight hold Cooper had on her. She usually hated when guys slept all over her, but she didn’t seem to mind it with him.
All her usual rules had gone out the window since she met him, and with shooting coming to a close, she needed to get back to normal, whatever that was these days.
She managed to get out of bed without waking him and took a long, hot shower to clear her mind and body of thoughts of the man who’d rocked her world three times during the night. But when she emerged from the shower twenty minutes later, she was still thinking about him, still reeling, still reliving every second with him and still trying to believe she might get to keep him. Despite the seismic shift that had occurred yesterday, a big part of her still refused to believe something this good could last forever.