Chapter 6

“Do you want your usual?” Wren asked with a charming smile as I sat down next to him at the bar. “Or are Cosmos not your thing anymore?”

I laughed as I sat my purse next to me. The crack of a pool stick combined with the winning music of a dart machine sounded behind me. “Cosmos are still my thing,” I told Wren with a laugh, “but I’m feeling something a lot stronger tonight.”

“Bartender!” Wren called as he held up two fingers. “Can we get two shots of tequila, please?”

“Coming right up!” The bartender called.

“Yes!” I exclaimed. “I’m starving. I don’t feel like making any decisions tonight, so you can order for me. You know what I like.”

Wren ordered our food and I was counting down the minutes before the bartender brought us our shots. Maybe this night out would help clear my mind and make me feel a little better. God knows, I needed it. After all, I had this mysterious time off at work now. Speaking of…

I frowned and looked at Wren. “Do you know anything about a trip coming up?”

“A trip?”

“Yeah, apparently West had requested time off on my behalf at my job. I have no idea what it’s for.”

Wren closed his eyes briefly. Yep, he knew something. At least with Wren, I knew that he would tell me if I asked. “Yeah. It must be for the lake house. Our family is supposed to go down there for a couple weeks.”

My eyes widened. “Weeks? Weeks!” The bartender sat my shot down and I threw it back. “Another one, please. And keep them coming.”

“I take it you had no idea about this, did you?”

I scoffed. “No. I didn’t. I found out from my boss when he told me it was approved.”

This was just like West. Always making decisions for me. It’s almost like, he thinks I’m going to say no, so he springs it on me last minute.

“I’m sorry, Cath.”

I threw back my next shot. This alcohol needed to kick in already. I wanted to not think or get upset over all the stress I’ve been dealing with. I just wanted to enjoy my night out with my best friend.

“Are you and West doing okay?” he asked without looking at me.

I snorted at his question. “Aren’t I supposed to bitch to my girlfriends about my boyfriend?”

“You don’t have any girlfriends, Cath,” he said with a laugh.

I frowned at that. I had girlfriends, didn’t I? I mean, I had a few work friends but I wasn’t close to many of them. Not close enough to talk about my relationship issues.

“Oh, my God,” I breathed and looked at Wren. “I have no girlfriends. You are literally the only best friend that I have.”

“Ouch.”

“No!” I said sympathetically with a laugh. “I’m sorry. You know I didn’t mean it like that. Besides, it doesn’t change anything. This is weird. I can’t bitch to you about my boyfriend because he’s your brother.”

He shrugged a shoulder. “Why not? You know I’ll probably be on your side anyways,” he teased.

I knew it was a mistake as soon as I looked at him. He was looking at me like he did whenever he tried to get his way when we were growing up. He had the pouty lips and the puppy dog eyes and I fell for it…just like I always did.

“Fine. But if I’m going to bitch to you about West, then first you need to tell me what happened with your girlfriend back in California.”

Wren groaned and turned away from me.

“Oh, no. Tell me. Now.” If I was going to have an awkward conversation, so was he.

The bartender brought us another round of tequilas. We drank them and I clapped my hands together. “Okay, Wren. Spill.”

Wren was quiet for a few minutes and I started picking at our food that the bartender brought us. I could sense the tenseness in the shoulders and I started to feel bad that I forced him to tell me. Just as I was about to tell him to forget it, he started talking.

“We only dated a couple months. She’s the one who asked me out, actually.”

“Really?” There was surprise in my voice as I took a bite of a mozzarella stick. West was always more forward when it came to the ladies, but it still surprised me that this woman is the one who asked Wren out.

Then again, he was…very nice to look at. And he was an amazing person. I guess it wasn’t surprising to have to have some random California woman fawning over him.

Wren cleared his throat before he continued, “Yeah. We were in the same Sociology class. She asked me out for a drink and I thought,” he shrugged and threw back another shot, “what the hell?”

I ate another mozzarella stick. “So, how was the date?” Even though I had feelings for Wren, I still cared about him and was curious about his life. In the end, I just wanted him to be happy. Even if it wasn’t with me.

“The date was actually good. We started seeing each other for a few weeks after that.”

When he didn’t answer, I asked, “Can I ask why it didn’t work out?”

Another shot for the both of us. “We just didn’t…click.” He let out a heavy sigh before he looked at me. “You know, we didn’t have that—that spark. That connection that draws you in.”

Something about what he said hit me close to home. I nodded absently and his eyes met mine. We stayed like that for several moments. There seemed to be an unwavering connection between us. That is until the bartender came up and broke that connection.