Page 50 of Tricked in October
It felt as if all the eyes in the bakery were zoned in on him and his brother.
“Hey, Miss Rita, give us two pieces of your famous apple spiced cakes and two slices of your pumpkin loaf,” Garrett said, smiling brightly.
Garrett was always doing that, ordering for him whenever the two of them were together. He wasn’t the one who’d spent the afternoon in bed with a woman, burning calories the best way possible, so he wasn’t that hungry. Maybe he wanted a slice of apple pie. Or nothing because his stomach had been twisted with nerves most of the day as he’d prepared to talk to Garrett. But arguing about it would do no good. He’d give Garrett what he couldn’t finish.
“Here you go, boys,” Rita said as she set two plates on the counter.
Garrett slapped a twenty-dollar bill in front of her. “Thanks.”
They took their plates and found an empty table near the window.
“Whew,” Garrett exclaimed as he sat down and stabbed a fork into the apple spice cake. “I am exhausted.” He blew out an exaggerated breath. “This woman I met at Cosmos the other day has hardly let me sleep. It makes sense, she’s leaving tomorrow, but still. It’s been wild, bro.”
A bit of protectiveness coiled itself into Davis’s chest. “Garrett, maybe you should slow down.”
Shoveling a big bite of cake into his mouth, Garrett said, “What are you talking about? Slow down. I’ll slow down when I’m dead. The dead don’t hurt like the rest of us.”
“Garr…” Davis leaned across the table.
“Davey, I’m fine. You worry about you. Like when you’re ever gonna get a date again, never mind have sex again. I think I should be the one worrying about you.”
He had this urge to tell him about Kelsey, but he couldn’t. He wouldn’t. Not yet.
“Fine. All I’m saying is, you don’t gotta prove anything to anyone by trying to be this player. You don’t gotta live up to the reputation Franklin or Mr. President is trying to present you on the show.”
“That’s not what I’m doing. Get a grip. I’m just having fun.”
“Fine. Whatever.”
“What did you wanna talk about anyway?”
He’d nearly forgotten the reason why he wanted to meet Garrett. O’Henry’s. “Right…so I have a business opportunity…and I wanted to discuss it with you before I jumped into it.”
Garrett frowned, and he stopped chewing the extra-large bite of pumpkin loaf in his mouth. “What kind of business opportunity?”
“So…Kelsey has been struggling with paying the loans at O’Henry’s and…”
“Davey, no,” Garrett cut him off. “You are not bailing her out just ‘cause you have a boner for her.”
His body tensed as his pulse sped up. He couldn’t deny the accusation, but that wasn’t why he wanted to do this. “That’s not what this is about.”
“No? Because ever since you met that chick ten years ago she’s been stringing you along and you haven’t had a real relationship.”
His nostrils burned. “She has not. She was married. And I’ve been in plenty of relationships. Lissa? Or have you forgotten about her? And her twin sister, Emma?”
Garrett swatted his plate away from him. “You don’t want to go there, bro.”
“Maybe I do.” Davis challenged his brother with his eyes focused and narrowing at him.
Leaning across the table, Garrett lowered his voice, “Look, I don’t know what this is about, whether you’re unhappy with the memo that went out and the new angle of the show, or something, but whatever it is, I can assure you, buying out O’Henry’s is not the answer.”
“That’s not what I want to do, if you’d just listen. I want to be partners.”
“With Kelsey?” He looked hurt, the way his eyes were downcast and his shoulders slumped.
“I’m not planning on quitting the show. I just want something to fall back on when the show has run its course. Because I hate to break it to you, but one day, it will.”
In the middle of their heated discussion, Davis felt the unexpected presence of someone standing near their table. He jerked his attention up to find a woman he recognized.
