tonight. You’d scare ’em off. But I will insist you chug that beer so you can tell when I’m teasing you.”
“Right. Relieved, actually, to know there’s an extra layer of protection under those jeans.”
“Hey, in the desert, you want as many layers as possible between you and the sand.”
“I feel like that means I should encourage you to go commando. To celebrate being out of the desert. But since we share a cottage, I can’t justify giving you that advice.”
Teague almost snorted his beer. He did huff the top layer of foam out of his cup and onto the already sticky high-top. “That’s why it isn’t safe for you to talk to a single woman tonight. Not even our waitress. For Christ’s sake, can we stop talking about my underwear?”
“Yeah. Of course. Sorry.”
James clapped him on the back. Alex caught himself on the table with his wrists. Man, that guy was strong. “What’s going on over here? No apologies on St. Patrick’s Day! It’s a free pass holiday. Like New Year’s Eve. And bachelor parties.”
“Hey there.” The big man had attached green braids to his beard. His eye patch bore a pot of gold decal. Alex was thrilled at his arrival—and his look. It was just the right amount of festiveness to help Teague really celebrate. “We’re about to order a ton of food. Want to join us?”
“You bet. After we get a round of darts under our belt.” James wriggled his eyebrows. “Watch—even with this crowd, everyone within ten feet will edge back when they notice eye patch guy holding darts. It freaks ’em out every time.”
“Sounds fun.” Alex paused, only half-standing. “You’re going to beat us, aren’t you? We’re about to be hustled?”
“It’s not a hustle if you know going in that you’ve got no chance.” James laughed uproariously at his own joke. Teague joined in, and Alex almost let out a sigh of relief.
Now they had the beginnings of a crew. Triple the fun with three people. He’d eyeball the room again, see who else they could corral into their party.
Teague deserved a blow-out of a night. Alex would do everything in his power to make this a night his friend would never forget—unless they hit a level of Guinness/whiskey saturation that blacked out the whole night, which would also be acceptable.
Neither one of them was a drink-to-forget kind of guy. But they’d worked like dogs since moving here.
First there’d been the whole weird power dynamic to sort out (or as Teague now called it, for Alex to figure out how to give orders without being a jerk). Then he’d sort of abandoned Teague as he started spending any and every moment of free time with Sydney. Once that ended, he’d been a miserable wreck—both internally and to anyone in his vicinity.
If anyone had earned one damn night of throwing responsibility and common sense by the wayside, it was them.
Especially since Amelia had agreed to drive out and pick them up when they were done for the night. There. That would officially be Alex’s last responsible thought until March 18th.
Alex scanned the crowd. Between the hats, the headbands with shamrocks and the fake beards, it took him a minute to recognize anyone. But then he started seeing faces he knew.
Jed, from the hardware store, who slipped a bag of a dozen extra nails into every one of their purchases. Dwayne, the high school band director who played drums in Cam’s band at the Valentine’s Dance. Even their pregnant bride Annie was there, dancing what he’d generously call a jig.
It felt good to recognize so many. Solid. Rooted. If he’d been back in Pittsburgh at an Irish pub tonight, the odds were high that he wouldn’t see a single person he knew. Sydney had warned him that Chestertown took their holidays seriously—big or small—and Alex realized that he liked it.
The sense of community was palpable. Yeah, he’d lost his job. Then he’d lost the seemingly perfect woman who’d cost him said job. Lost the woman he’d been on the verge of admitting he loved.
But he’d survive. Because of these people. Because of Everleigh and Amelia. Because of the strangers who would come and entrust their vacations to his care at his inn. Because Alex belonged here. Because he’d staked his claim and would carve out a new, better life here.
That didn’t tamp down one bit his undeniably intense desire to have Sydney by his side while he did it.