close to full despite the cool evening air, so it was impossible to miss the attention their group garnered. The flick-knife looks from two middle-aged women in the corner, with their £300 Barbour jackets and rapid whispers. The hard jaws and low mutters of three young men to the right, who nursed their beers like baby bottles and glared mutinously. But it wasn’t all bad. There was also a group of giggly women in the corner who’d nodded at Ruth as she’d come in. And then there was the sweet, older couple—the man wearing a cap that read CLARKE’S PIPES and the woman in a shiny, blue wheelchair—who sent over encouraging looks like proud parents.
This town had its ups and downs. So far, the ups were worth it.
“So,” Hannah said, clapping her hands. “We’re all here.”
“You know what that means,” Zach piped up.
Rae smiled blandly at him, shaking off her introspection. “The ritual sacrifice begins?”
“The inquisition begins,” he corrected. “You have sacrifice on the brain, woman. I’m starting to worry.” Then he steepled his fingers under his chin, his usual grin replaced by a serious stare. Gravely, he began. “You know my stance, ladies and gentlemen. Before the night goes any further, we have a problem to solve. A tongue-twister in our midst. Rae and Ruth. Ruth and Rae. They’re practically the same name. It’s too confusing.”
From her place further down the table, Ruth snorted. “They certainly are not. They have entirely different vowel sounds. The body of each word is fundamentally—”
“Way too confusing,” Zach went on. “Something’s got to give. And I have the perfect solution.”
Evan—long-suffering, eminently reasonable, and somehow Zach’s best friend—sighed. “Mate. You do this every time. She’s not going to tell you.”
“Shut up. As I was saying, something’s got to give. Rae…” Zach turned to face her, flashing what he obviously considered to be his best and most charming smile.
Unfortunately, he was right.
“Tonight will go much more smoothly if you tell us your real name.”
He was trying to cheer her up, and she knew it. Adored him for it. This wasn’t a new topic; ever since Zach had learned that Rae’s first name wasn’t actually Rae, he’d been on a mission to find out ‘the truth’—which he usually said with as much dramatic emphasis as the voiceover on the trailer of a Hollywood blockbuster. Since Rae’s real name was truly terrible, he’d be waiting a long bloody time. But she rather enjoyed it when he asked. His frustration was delicious.
His attention was even better. Sweet and rich.
She maintained a purposefully bland expression, just to irritate him, and said, “My real name is McRae.”
He arched a brow. “Stop being smart. What’s your first name?”
“If the issue is confusion—if Rae is too similar to Ruth—why don’t you just call me McRae?”
Zach narrowed his eyes and actually growled a little bit. Her vagina became a fountain. Of champagne. “Come on, sunshine. Take pity on me. What’s your name?”
“Susan,” she said. “What’s everyone drinking? I’ll get the first round.”
Zach gave her an exasperated look. “You don’t need to do that. Why do you always do that?”
She ignored him.
“I’ll have a G&T,” Hannah said, rising to her feet. “But I’ll come with you. You can’t carry everything on your own.”
“Your name is not Susan,” Zach declared, as if no-one else had spoken. “It’s not.”
“You’re right. It’s Sarah. Ruth, what’ll you have?”
“Lemonade,” Ruth said. “Zach, I know Rae’s name. It’s Natalie.”
“Nah.” Evan smiled, crossing his muscled arms behind his head. “It’s Kate. You ladies want a hand?”
“We should be good,” Rae said.
“Then I’ll get a beer. Thanks, Kate.”
“Her name isn’t Kate,” Zach snapped.
Nate smirked, flicking his brother’s ear. “You sure about that?”
Zach threw up his hands, a reluctant grin spreading over his face. “Fine! Act like you don’t want to know. Fuckin’ traitors.”
Rae shook her head and led Hannah inside toward the bar. But something made her turn back at the last second, and she caught a glimpse of Zach through the swinging patio doors. He was talking to Duke. Really, properly talking to her dog, the way only Rae did. And she could guess what he was saying.
I bet you know her name, don’t you, boy?
“Hey. I’m sure that dog’s a great conversationalist, but I’m gonna have to drag you away.”
Zach bit back a smile, gave Duke one last scratch between the ears, and turned to face his older brother. “Yeah?”
There was something careful and considering in Nate’s eyes. He drummed his fingers against the table, and the swallow tattooed on