He winked. “Good thing I’m a mechanic. I’m used to maintenance upkeep.”
Gavin laughed and shook his head the way Baby had intended. “Well, I wouldn’t go see her right now. Boy and Girl Riley got back in town today, and I let them know Quinn was here, and about the Harvard situation.”
Baby grimaced. So much for Quinn being able to tell them about everything when she was ready. “How’d they take it?”
“They were surprised. Hadn’t heard anything from her. Of course, Quinn couldn’t have contacted them if she’d wanted to. They’d conveniently decided to disconnect from the whole world for the three days they were gone.”
“Can’t blame them for that.”
Gavin shrugged. “I guess.”
Gavin was always so busy taking care of everyone that it would never occur to him to turn off his phone for three days to be with a woman–what if the world needed saving and no one could get in touch with him?
“Anyway, Boy Riley was pretty concerned that his sister was out here at all. Actually, your name was mentioned...” Gavin paused for a moment. “Something about you knowing something about her birthday. When I left, Girl Riley was trying to convince him to let her go talk to Quinn first. They have a lot to discuss.”
Baby bit back his curse. Boy Riley deserved a chance to talk to his sister. Baby would have to wait his turn. He’d had a place at the front of the line and blown it.
Instead of going out with Quinn like he wanted, Baby found himself at the Eagle’s Nest later that evening. He was more than a little surprised when Boy Riley sat down at the bar beside him.
“I’m a little surprised you’re not with your sister right now,” Baby said. He signaled over to Lexi behind the bar, pointing at his beer to get one for Riley.
“I heard you were here and wanted to talk to you first. To finish our conversation about how you knew it was Quinn’s birthday a couple of weeks ago.”
“I met her here when she was working the lunch shift. I had no idea she was your sister.”
Not that that would’ve stopped him from getting to know her.
Baby and Riley had been friends since he’d first come into the Oak Creek area years ago for a YouTube stunt. And they’d become much closer after their brush with death together during the Wild Wyoming Adventure Race. But friend or not, bro-code or not, Baby wasn’t going to be staying away from Quinn. Not if she would give him another chance.
“She is my sister,” Riley said as Lexi slid the beer over to him. He tilted it in Baby’s direction in thanks.
“I know. And believe me, from the moment I found that out, I encouraged her to tell you she was here. But I also wanted to respect how she’d decided to handle the situation.”
“I wished she’d come talk to me right away. I still don’t know the extent of everything going on.”
“You haven’t seen her yet?”
“I will be in a few minutes. I got a text from Girl Riley that she’s throwing together a girls’ night out to give Quinn a proper welcome into Oak Creek. I’m sure they’ll be here soon.”
This night was suddenly looking a lot more adventurous.
Baby slid his beer back onto the bar. He’d only drunk half, but he wasn’t going to be drinking anymore, especially if Quinn was on her way here. He ran his fingers though his hair, wishing he’d paid more attention to how he’d looked before he’d left his apartment.
Riley’s eyes narrowed. “What just happened? Did you just start fluffing yourself like some sort of peacock when you heard Quinn was on her way here?”
Shit. His eyes shot over to his friend. “Phoenix, it’s not what you think...”
“Oh really? Because I think you want to bang my sister.”
Okay, so it was exactly what he thought. But it was much more than that.
Baby held his hands out in front of him in a gesture of surrender. “Look, man, I have the utmost respect for your sister. She’s smart, funny, and beautiful.”
Riley ran a hand through his hair. “I can’t believe she’s been here for two weeks, and I didn’t know it. Quinn and I have never been particularly close, but I hate that she would’ve thought I didn’t want to see her.”
They both turned on their barstools so they were facing the rest of the bar, both keeping one eye on the door.