“I’m not that good of an actor.”
“Lara! She’s your sister. You should always love her. No matter what.”
“Sure, Mom.”
“You can stay at the hotel in town.”
The hotel that Chandler owned? Where everyone would stare at her? Yeah, no, she’d pass. “I’ll stay in Haven or Freestown.”
“What? How will I explain that? If you’re allergic to Oscar, there’s no reason for you to stay two towns over.”
“I don’t know. Tell them I’m allergic to Chandler.” Far closer to the truth.
“Lara,” she said in a sharp whisper. “Do not say things like that.”
Do not apologize. Do not apologize.
“I’ll come for the wedding. Spend one night in Haven or Freestown, then I’m gone.”
“Twenty grand, one week, and you go to the dress rehearsal and the bridal shower. And one family dinner.”
Jesus.
Who knew her mother could be such a skilled negotiator?
“No way.”
“Please, dear. For me. It would really make me happy.”
And just like that, her resolve crumbled. Because no matter what she thought of her mother’s choices, she was still her mom. And the little girl inside her wanted to make her happy.
A wedding. A dress rehearsal. The bridal shower. Family dinner.
She could do that.
Right?
Maybe. Hopefully.
Twenty grand would change her life.
“Fine. I’ll come.”
“Oh, Lara. That’s wonderful.”
“I’ll need some money in my account for the flight and hotel.”
“Of course, I’ll have Chandler buy you a ticket, and we’ll book you a hotel room. Just promise you’ll be there.”
“I’m not a liar, Mother. I’ll come. I promise.”
“Good. Well, maybe get your hair and nails done. You know Chandler likes his girls to be put together and presentable.”
“I’m not one of Chandler’s girls. And he’ll just have to accept me how I am.”
She hung up before her mother could say something that would have her screaming into a pillow.
And backing out of this stupid idea.
She really, really needed the money. She only hoped it wouldn’t come at the expense of her dignity and pride.
Yeah, that might already be too late.
1
“I need a fucking shower.” Butch slid onto the seat next to Tanner in Patty’s Bar.
“Yeah, well, I didn’t want to say anything, but we’ve noticed.” Tanner waved his hand over his face.
“What?” Butch snapped. “What are you going on about?”
“Body odor issues are nothing to be ashamed of, man,” Raid replied. “But you really need to do something about it. Maybe talk to the doc.”
“What the fuck? I don’t stink!” At least, he didn’t think he did. He’d showered and put on cologne and deodorant before coming out tonight with these two assholes.
“I don’t know how you’ve gone this long without noticing,” Tanner told him.
Raid nodded solemnly.
“Fucking shut up,” he grumbled. “I don’t need a shower because I stink.” He discreetly sniffed himself. All he got was sweet, sickly perfume.
Fucking great.
Tanner leaned over and sniffed him. Then he drew back with a disgusted look on his face. “Gross. What is that?”
“That’s the reason I need a shower. Those damn women over there are handsy as hell. On my way to take a piss, one grabbed my ass, and then on the way back here, another one went straight for my cock.”
Tanner grinned. “And you’re complaining?”
“The one that went to grab my dick was the bride-to-be.”
Which didn’t speak well for her wedding. Butch loved women. He wasn’t opposed to a fun time. But cheating was a hard limit. A line he’d never cross. And once he found a woman he wanted to keep, he’d never even look at anyone else.
That was for damn sure.
“Where are they from?” Raid asked. “Never seen them in here before.”
“They’re from Devotion.” Tanner scowled, glancing over at them. “They’re here slumming it. I actually heard one of them say that earlier when I went to the bar.”
Devotion.
That explained some things. The people in that town drank crazy juice every morning. They practically worshiped its mayor, Chandler Devout. It was almost cult-like.
Someone let out a braying laugh. Christ, that was like nails on a chalkboard. He glanced over with a shudder to see that the bride-to-be, who was wearing a sash proclaiming her status, was laughing like a donkey on a high.
She wore a tight, red dress and was wobbling on her very high heels. Everything about her screamed expensive.
Not his type. Especially with how handsy she was. She was the lucky groom’s problem.
“I’m going to get a drink,” he said. “Maybe that will erase my memory or something.”
“The effects are only temporary unless you want to become an alcoholic or something,” Tanner said in a tight voice. “It won’t erase the memory, trust me.”
Butch shot Raid a look. His other brother just shrugged. Something was going on with Tanner, but no one had been able to figure it out. Normally, he was carefree, almost reckless. Okay, definitely reckless. But lately, he’d been more reflective and quieter.
“Bro, if you need to talk or some shit . . .” Butch shifted around, feeling uncomfortable. Talking about feelings and emotions wasn’t something that came easy to him. To any of them.