What the hell had I been thinking?
Talking to Natalie was like the exact opposite of my conversation with Rae on the porch. I was shocked to realize how much time had passed that day. She was so easy to talk to.
“Need another drink?” I asked. “And a menu?”
“Yes to the menu, no to the drink. You downed that one pretty fast.”
To get to the bar? Yes, I did.
Thankfully, she was sitting on the end. Breathing in her now familiar scent, I edged myself between Rae and the empty seat next to her.
“If it isn’t the brewmeister himself,” Owen Smith said from behind the bar. “How’s Grado Brewing Company this week?”
Owen and I talked before we broke ground about how the new brewery might affect him. He’d been cool about it, knowing ours were two different crowds. I’d also agreed to send beer drinkers to him, and vice versa, so it was a win-win.
“So far so good,” I said, sorry he gave me another beer so quickly. I turned to the women but looked directly at Rae. “Evening ladies.”
“Long time no see,” quipped Thayle.
“Hiya little sis. Rae.”
“Marco.”
It was there again, the zing between us. I wanted to reach up and grab the back of her head so fucking bad it was painful. I’d pull her into me and brand her with my kiss.
Possessive. It wasn’t a word most people would use to describe me. Yet there was no doubt sharing Rachel would be off the table.
“Showing her the finer points of Kitchi Falls?” I asked Min and Thayle, using the conversation as an excuse to stand close to her. A few more inches and our legs would touch, reminding me of the gym.
It was easier not to like her than being tortured this way.
“I mean, what tour of the town would not include KC’s?”
“Appreciate that,” Owen said, obviously listening to our conversation while he tended bar.
Not wanting to head back but knowing I had to, I grabbed two menus off the bar.
“You didn’t eat yet?” Min asked. “It’s after nine o’clock.”
“Thanks for the reminder, Mom. Hey Owen, can you do a salad for me?”
He gave me a look. KC’s Taphouse wasn’t the kind of place that served salads, but they had the ingredients for it.
“Sure. Want some chicken too?”
“Yep. Grilled please. And I’ll take the boneless bites, hot.”
“Since when do you eat salad?” Min asked, immediately realizing her mistake. It wasn’t for me. “Oh. Seems like an odd choice for a dinner place if you don’t eat bar food.”
“Agreed, but I couldn’t get out earlier,” I said. “Well ladies, it’s been real.”
Pulling myself away from that spot, wedged next to Rae, was like heading to the gym on a Sunday morning after a night of drinking. Not fun, but had to be done.
By the time I sat back down, and we ordered, or I ordered, since Miss Fitness Queen wouldn’t be caught dead eating wing bites, I reconsidered the date. I really just wanted to cut Natalie loose.
The highlight of the night was the two times I ordered more drinks, Natalie wondering why I didn’t just let the waitress get them. After the third time, though, Rae not saying much to me, I decided she was definitely annoyed for some reason.
Looked like we were back to square one.