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Had I earned that right?

He reached up, adjusting his hat before finishing his drink.

“It’s been a while since I’ve laughed like that,” he admitted, the weight of his words hanging in the air. It felt like a victory, drawing out something from him that had been locked away, forgotten.

“You should keep doing it. Smiling too. You’re kinda irresistible like that,” I said, the thought slipping out before I could stop it. I will blame it on the liquor making me lose my filter.

“Oh, Eleanor,” Colton murmured. “You have no idea how good it feels to actually smile again.”

“It does feel pretty nice,” I replied softly.

Colton nodded. There was a brief moment before his smile faded and he asked, “Do you think I’m hard to talk to?”

His question took me by surprise.

“Prior to this moment, yes,” I said, leaning in and placing my hand on his. “But it’s kinda refreshing.”

Colton let out a sharp laugh, his head tilting back. “Refreshing? Now that’s a word no one’s ever used to describe me.”

“In the way I don’t feel like you’re pretending around me, trying to impress me by being someone you’re not.”

He took a sip of his drink, his gaze steady. “My lawyer thinks you could be good for me.”

“Hmm.” I leaned in and traced slow lines up and down the back of his hand. Colton’s eyes snapped to where I touched. “How so?”

“He said you could teach me a thing or two about people skills.” Colton brought his gaze back to mine.

I smirked. “I mean, he’s not wrong.”

“Like what?”

“For starters, your fake smile is awful. People can tell you’re not genuine.” I reached up to his face, running a finger over the corner of his eye. “Right here, when you really smile, these fine lines appear.” My touch fell to his lips. “Here, your lips curl up, but when you’re faking it, it’s more of a scowl.”

“Noted,” Colton replied, his voice softer, more thoughtful.

“That’s just the surface, but we don’t have enough time to fix it all tonight. It would probably take a lifetime to make you a people person.” I leaned away, giggling. My vision was a bit blurred, and my body swayed with the effects of the alcohol.

He shook his head but his eyes held a warmth I hadn’t seen before.

Colton stood and offered me his hand. I placed mine in his, letting him help me off the barstool. The floor moved beneath me, and I instinctively leaned into Colton for balance. His large hands found my hips, steadying me effortlessly.

“I thought I’d ask you to dance,” he murmured. “Colton from earlier would’ve just sat at that bar all night, drowning in the liquor.”

My breath hitched as I stared into his eyes. The space between us shrank, the heat of his exhale grazing my lips, teasing the moment between us.

“Then who did I meet the night we met?” I asked, my voice softer now. “He asked me to dance too.”

Colton leaned in, pressing the faintest kiss to the tip of my nose before swaying slightly, his grip on me steady.

“That was Tripp,” he teased, pulling back just enough to smirk at me.

I rolled my eyes. “You have too many personalities to keep up with.” I lifted my arms, placing them around his neck. My fingers tangled in the ends of his hair, just beneath the brim of his cowboy hat.

“It’s the one way I got by,” he admitted, his voice dipping into something raw, something real. “When you grow up the way I did, with expectations and the urge to please everyone just to avoid the consequences…you tend to forget who you are.”

That confession hit me straight in the chest. My heart squeezed, but my body relaxed as I studied him.

For so long, he’d forgotten himself. Lost pieces of who he truly was, reshaped and chiseled into whatever version of himself kept him safe. I wondered if he ever thought about it—if he ever sat with the question of who he was beyond the roles he played for others.