Page 46 of Good Time Boyfriend
I waved her off. “No, I’ll go up and get it. I’m technically our server for the night.”
“I guess it pays to know the bartenders.” Paisley grinned at me. “Thanks for letting me come. I’ve been enjoying hanging out with girls again.”
“Hey, Paisley,” Luca said from the table by Addison’s side, the puppy bouncing between them.
“Hi, Luca.” Then she turned to August, who stood on the other side of the table, beer in hand. “Hello, August. Good to see you again.”
And for the life of me, I could not tell if that was a lie or not.
August smiled, then came around the booth, set his beer in front of Luca, and walked right up to Paisley. He held out his arms, and she rolled her eyes before she hugged him.
I met Devney’s gaze, then Luca’s, then my sister’s, wondering what the hell was going on.
They hugged for a while, no words, before taking a step back.
“Good, glad that’s over,” Paisley said with a laugh while August just shook his head.
“Pretty much. Come on, you want your usual?”
“I could really use a beer.”
August laughed and gestured towards the bar. “Pick what you want on tap. We’ll get it for you. Since I’m his twin, I can pretend I work here, too.”
“They can tell who you are,” I called out.
“So you think,” August said, and just like that, the tension dropped.
We ordered food, and Denise brought us the nachos and other items we ordered, and we laughed, drank, and got to know one another. And though August and Paisley sat on opposite sides of the table, there wasn’t the tension I expected. Maybe it was because they were trying hard not to make it awkward, or maybe I really didn’t know why they had gotten married and divorced in the first place.
I needed to know soon, because the curiosity was killing me, and from the look on Devney’s face, it was killing her too.
When the girls went out to use the restroom all at once because, apparently, they did that no matter where they were, Ace grinned at me. “So, you and Devney huh? Getting serious?”
I choked on my beer, while Luca grinned. The puppy was long gone, his team member having come to pick Pongo up. Addison had pouted, but the puppy needed sleep, and I wasn’t in the mood to have to clean up after it.
“Look at you, scaring our big brother,” Luca said with a grin. Noah and Ford just sat back, sipping their beers. We had grilled them, so I guess this was only fair. They were enjoying it too much for my liking.
“We’re just hanging out.”
“Is that what they’re calling it?” August asked dryly.
“Fine. We’re enjoying each other’s company. But she hasn’t had a boyfriend before, and I’m not good at relationships. So as soon as we put a fucking label on it, it’s going to get weird. So, let’s just keep it as it is.”
“Well, that makes sense,” Ace said. “Are you taking her to the wedding?”
“I haven’t asked her yet.”
August cursed under his breath as Greer’s men winced and Luca just shook his head.
“What?”
“Grace’s been talking about the wedding all night, and we’re getting married in less than two weeks. Either you go by yourself, which is fine because you’re my best man and you have to be there, or you let her know you want her with you. But you should probably talk about it with her.”
“Fuck. We’ve just been busy, enjoying ourselves. I didn’t think about it. I wasn’t trying to be an asshole.”
“That just comes naturally,” Luca teased.
I liked this side of my brother, the laughter, the joy. But it also annoyed the fuck out of me.
