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I ignore them, picking up my beer and chugging it down.“You donkeys don’t know what you’re talking about. Inez is not my woman.”
Archer grunts. “Keep telling yourself that.”
Mason picks up his hamburger. “Are you still doing the whole ‘denial’ thing? After everything that’s happened? Really?” He takes a huge bite.
I rake my fingernails across my scalp. “I’m not in denial.”
I’m totally in denial.
My brothers know it.
All five of them—Mason included—shoot me amused looks from around the table.
“Come on, bro,” Felix challenges. “Don’t act like you don’t want to make a move on her.”
“I don’t,” I respond, my words firm. “Believe it or not, things between Inez and me have never been inappropriate. Sure, we’ve grown closer in the four years since my divorce, but that’s just because we work well together. We got used to seeing each other every day. We were bound to become friends. That’s all.”
“But you’ve thought about it,” Ronan asserts confidently. “You’ve definitely thought about hooking up with her.”
I open my mouth to deny it, but he does that ‘twin thing’—cocking his head to the side and wordlessly daring me to lie.
Ugh! I hate sharing a brain with that shithead.
“Seriously,” Felix chimes in. “You like her. Admit it.”
I sigh. There’s no use in denying it. “Fuck yeah, I do. What’s not to like?”
“Finally!” Ronan drops his shoulders and dramatically turns his face up to the ceiling. “You admit it.”
I glance over my back to make sure none of my patrons are eavesdropping. Then I crack. “Inez is a magnetic woman. Of course I’m attracted to her. But we have a great working dynamic between us. A friendship, even. I’m not going to blow all that up just for one night in her pants.”
Darius leans back in his chair, sporting a half-smile. “I see your point, Noles. Inez is hot, but you know what they say—never get your honey where you make your money.” He winks, shooting finger guns my way.
For once, somebody’s on my side.
But the rest of them keep pushing it. “Who says it has to be one night?” Archer mumbles into his beer. “I mean—I’m no love guru but I don’t see why you’d have to restrict it to just one night.”
“So, you’re suggesting that I turn my best bartender into a booty call. That’s fucking sleazy, you jackass.”
I already know first hand that running my bar is absolute hell without Inez. No matter how much I like her, I can’t risk the future of my business—my entire livelihood—just to get between her legs.
“Are you being an idiot on purpose? Or did I kick you in the head when we were sharing a womb?” Ronan tosses a dirty napkin at me. “We’re telling you to pursue a relationship with her.”
I nearly choke on my beer. “A relationship?!”
“Yes, a relationship,” Mason presses, an entertained look on his face.
No fucking way. Inez is too good for me and I know it. I could never give her the things she really deserves. My life is too complicated. I’m too distracted. Too unavailable. That’s why I always kept my distance. It was the right thing to do. It still is.
I scoff some more. “Look—I think she’s beautiful. I fucking missed her when she was gone. I’m happy she’s back. But do you think I’m the only man in this town who feels that way?” I wave an arm in the direction of the counter where at least half a dozen bastards are hanging onto her every word.
Ronan slowly angles his head to the side. “Oh…you’re afraid of a little competition. That’s a pity. I guess all those years and years of hockey training were for nothing, then.”
Archer scowls at Felix and Darius. “I always knew we didn’t push him around enough when he was a kid. Would have toughened him up a bit.” He ruefully wags his head. “We failed as older brothers.”
I snarl at the band of morons. “You guys just don’t get it. Dating doesn’t work for me. Not with me being a single dad and a business owner. Relationships require time and attention and nourishment. And I don’t have any of that in me to give."
I’ve tried it a time or two over the years. Each time, I ended up being a half-assed boyfriend. The kind of guy who could never keep his promises. The kind of guy who could never commit. Because my other obligations were always too much. Each crumbled relationship would result in nothing but disappointment, bruised egos and a heap of annoying rumors that followed me around town.
