AllFreeNovel
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On Friday night, my rowdy ass brothers stumble into the bar, tipsy and hungry and covered in colorful paint, with their equally paint-covered women in tow.
Apparently, they were all having a night out on the town and somehow, they ended up here. The Annual Festival for Amateur Artists is in Starlight Falls this weekend.
Half the town spent the afternoon down at the big parking lot behind town hall, dabbling in the arts and crafts. Now, the masses have descended onto my bar and it’s absolute chaos in the building.
My siblings all keep razzing me to sit and have a beer with them, but I can’t. We let go of Suzy this week and we haven’t replaced her yet. So I’m helping my crew cover the slack. Or at least, I’m trying to.
Eventually, Inez ends up convincing me to sit with the guys and have a quick bite to eat, and it’s becoming embarrassingly clear that she’s way better at this job than I am.
She runs the whole operation like a well-oiled machine and for a moment, I just sit back and watch it all. She’s whipping up fancy drinks while singing broadway tunes. She’s telling goofy jokes while dropping off appetizers. She’s even somehow managing to keep the Brighton table quite entertained throughout the night, too. She may be busy but she slows down for a few minutes to roast the guys.
“Okay, Brightons. I need to know, who’s got the most embarrassing anecdote about a night here at the bar?” She leans a hip against the side of my chair. “Tell me your stories. I’m the judge, and the winner gets one of my most exclusive cocktails.”
Ronan starts cackling. “Oh, that’s definitely Felix. There was the time he got sick in the bushes out front. Dr. Idiot got so wasted that Nolan had to go out there and feed him ginger ale through a straw.”
“Stop exaggerating, you little shithead. Nobody had to feed me anything through a straw.” Felix punches our brother in the shoulder.
“It was totally Darius, that time when he had too many shots and was trying to impress that chick from New York with his dance moves.” Karli laughs. “He did that awful spin move and ended up wearing her plate of food all over his shirt.”
Darius groans miserably. “It wasn’t that bad. That time a few weeks ago when Ronan drank two pitchers of beer and tried to serenade Nicky was way worse. People actually got up and left the bar.”
I shake my head at the memory. “That is true. Ronan cost me a lot of paying customers that night.”
Inez laughs. “Okay, Darius—you win. One surprise cocktail, coming right up.”
He punches the air victoriously. “Always a winner, baby.”
I possessively drape an arm around Inez’s waist from where I’m sitting and she leans closer to me. “Call my girlfriend ‘baby’ one more time,” I threaten my brother. “I dare you.”
“Please. What are you gonna do about it?” He dares me right back.
I chortle. “You just got over your cold. I don’t want to give you another reason to spend the night at the hospital. But if I have to, I will.”
He just rolls his eyes. “You’re lucky to have a girlfriend at all, with that shitty attitude of yours.”
Inez tenderly rakes her fingers through my hair, shushing me as her gaze floats around the table. It’s a surprisingly soothing gesture. “Okay. On to more important topics, which one of you is going to be designated driver for the night? Because clearly it won’t be Darius…or Ronan...or Mason…or Archer…or Felix.” She burns them all. “Ladies? I think it’s on your shoulders now.”
Karli, Daphne and Nicky all dig into their purses in unison, soberly dangling a collection of car keys in the air. Everyone just laughs.
Yeah. The guys are wasted tonight.
As I’m taking the last bite of my sandwich, I hear them all wishing Inez good luck on her upcoming audition.
Her face turns red. “How do you all even know about that?”
All eyes shift to Karli. Again, we break out in laughter. Of course my big-mouth sister is the one who spilled the beans.
“What?” Karli says, defending herself. “I’m proud of you, Inez. So I’m going to shout about it from the rooftops. We all know you’ll kick some ass at that audition.”
Inez’s blush grows fiercer but I can see the sparkle of excitement in her blue eyes. I recognize that look. It makes her feel good to have my family in her corner. She’s been alone for so much of her life, but now, she knows the Brightons have her back. That makes me proud as hell.
She thanks them for their encouragement and humbly accepts her hefty tip for the night. She deserves it, and then some.
My gaze follows Inez again as she goes back to serving drinks. I feel someone grab my arm and I turn to find Karli beaming at me. “Oh my god. Look at you, Nolan! New car. New furniture. New haircut. It’s like you’re having a”—she makes jazz hands—“a glow-up!”
My other siblings nod in agreement and I cringe.
Ronan laughs, pulling Nicky against his side. “A good woman will do that to you.”
