I laugh. Truth is, Josh doesn’t seem to date much when I’m in town. Maybe it’s the job or maybe it’s the fact he’s hung up on Bree Russo, one of the three sisters who run the winery just outside of town. Not that he would ever admit it. In high school he had a reputation though. Not a bad one, but he never went long without a girlfriend. I know he’s a good guy because even in this small town, he’s still friends with most of his exes. That’s not easy to do when everyone knows everyone else.
“Up for some dinner tonight?”
He nods. “I was just about to knock off for the day. I have to do a couple things, and then we can head out.”
I nod and wait while he signs out and leaves his deputy with instructions for the night. We head off to Wyatt’s. He’s another local, and his bar serves the regular greasy food most bars do. It’s slow because it’s a little early for the drinking crowd. We take one of the booths in the back. Wyatt shows up.
He’s a few years ahead of us, closer to forty than both Josh and me. Tall and broad, he looks like he could play linebacker for the Cowboys. He tops six foot six inches, with dark hair and dark eyes. The fact that he rarely smiles is normal.
“Hey, guys. Didn’t know you were back in town, Fillmore.”
“Just got back today. We finished up the season last night.”
He nods. “What do you two want?”
We both order longnecks and burgers, and he leaves us alone.
“So, you’re staying with Nancy?”
I sigh. “No. At the office.”
Josh’s eyes bug out of his head. “What?”
“Yeah, we’re having a few issues.”
He chuckles. “Nothing new there. I just watched the episode where you sprayed her with a hose.”
I remember that from the second season. We had been finishing up the landscaping and the reveal was scheduled for the next day. Nancy and I had been fighting a lot more than usual that week—at least at that time. That day, she had been wearing a pair of short shorts, a tank top that hugged her tits in the most delicious ways and I snapped. I needed her mad at me, so I sprayed her with the hose. There were two problems with that. One, once the thin fabric of her tank got wet, it clung to those spectacular tits. I also didn’t know they were filming it. When she saw the final cut of the episode, she refused to talk or even text with me for three days. Jesus, it seems like a lifetime ago.
I look around and notice Wyatt coming back with our beers. Once we’re alone, I lean forward.
“She’s leaving the show. Or says she is.”
Josh was in the process of swallowing some beer, and the announcement leaves him choking.
“Jesus, warn a guy. She’s leaving?”
He says it so loud a few people turn and look over our way.
“Shh. First, I don’t want it to get out right now. I’m trying to convince her to stay. Also, if she finds out I told you and word got around, she’ll be even madder at me.”
“Oh, so you drove her away? What the fuck did you do? Nancy’s a sweetheart.”
I bite back a growl. I’m more upset that he dated Nancy for a bit than the fact that he and my sister dated. Possessiveness slaps through my blood, heating it. To cover my true feelings, I take a big swig of my beer. The yeasty cold brew slides down my throat but does nothing to calm my irritation. So, I take another one. Otherwise, I’ll probably tell him to shut his dirty mouth and to never talk about Nancy again.
“Whoa, sorry, but what the fuck is that look for?”
I can’t tell him. I’ve hidden my attraction from everyone, even someone I consider a friend. If he or other people knew, they would start reading too much into my actions. I have to get her back and the only way to do that is by making her think that I’m just her friend.
“Nothing. Just, I really fucked up this season. It’s all my fault.”
He studies me for a long moment. “Ah. Okay. You know she’ll forgive you.”
God, I hope so. But there is a big part of me that is worried I broke us completely. I hurt her so deeply. I don’t know how I did. I know what I did, but I didn’t think I could hurt her that much. But now that I have had a tongue lashing from my sister, I have been thinking back over the last couple of seasons and realized that they were both right. I was disrespectful and worse, things I said seemed to have a lasting impact. I know there are circumstances in her past that I don’t know. Her fucked up family definitely makes her emotions a minefield at times. So, maybe something I did triggered that. Is that at the root of this?
Granted, I was an ass just like she said, but normally, she would laugh it off, or throw objects at me. This season I felt I truly hurt her. That was never something I thought I would do. And now it feels like I might have pushed her past her breaking point.
“What do you know about the Howards?”
Josh studies me. “Not much. You know they keep to themselves.”
“Hmm.”
“Why don’t you ask her?”
“I’m staying at the office. You think she’s gonna have a heart to heart with me?”
“How about Syd?”
That is a good idea, but she might not tell me either. “Yeah, I’ll text her later.”
“So, her and that Grady still together?”
Josh got a front row seat to their romance when Syd and Nancy went on a bender after Grady and her had a misunderstanding. Nothing like having to pick up your sister and her best friend—and your cohost—at the jail the next morning. In fact, Grady had to plunk down a lot of money to fix up Wyatt’s because they started their brawl there.
“Yeah. She’s talking about coming up here this weekend.”
“Please tell me he will be here to keep a leash on her.”
“Can I group text her and Grady about that? I’m sure she’ll want to talk to you about the fact you called her a bitch.”
“I didn’t call her a bitch.”
“Saying that Grady has to keep her on a leash is the same thing.”
He flips me off just as Wyatt returns with our burgers.
“Hey, Wyatt, Syd’s gonna be back in town this weekend and Nancy’s probably gonna want to blow off some steam.”
He eyes us both. He’s almost as big as I am. I’ve heard Syd call him a bear, and she would be right, but he doesn’t have a mean bone in his body.
“They’re banned until month after next. They can come in separately but not together. Syd’s the fire and Nancy the gasoline.”
I chuckle because it’s true. “Are you kidding me?”
He shakes his head. “I talked to them about it after last time, and they both agreed.”
Then he turns and leaves us alone.
“Well, I didn’t know that,” Josh says.
“Oh, you mean something happened in this town you didn’t know about? Losing your touch?” I ask.
He flips me the bird again, but with both fingers.
“Besides, if I don’t know about it, there is a ninety-eight percent chance the LOLs don’t. And if they don’t know, no one knew about it.”
I chuckle as I pour ketchup on my fries. “That’s true. Although, the LOLs keep me up to date on everyone.”
“Sure, you like to get messages from them, because you aren’t here year-round. I tried to have a staycation. Just a few days off to take a break before the insanity of summer. Know what happened?”