the wine from my arm and twists off the top, pouring generously into each jar and handing me both. The remaining wine stays on the table. The rule at this happy hour is that you have to bring something, and you have to share what you bring. Last Thursday I mooched off Andrea’s white wine supply, so this week I made sure to bring the same bottle.
“Spill, Dakota. How did you meet the most reclusive and handsome Hayden brother?” She taps her finger against her chin, reconsidering. “Well, maybe not the most handsome. They’re all kind of dreamy, aren’t they?”
I picture Warner with his playful smile and Wyatt with his defined cheekbones and mysterious nature. “Beau and Juliette know how to make them, that’s for sure.” I look over at Wes. His hands are tucked into his front pockets, but he’s grinning at something Derrick is saying. “But I’m partial to one in particular.”
Andrea grins. “And what a stallion that one is. Or was.”
I tense at the word ‘stallion’. Did Andrea have a relationship with Wes? Did she mean the word sexually?
Andrea keeps talking. “He was wild in high school. Desert parties, taking his dad’s truck mudding, cliff diving at the lake.” Nostalgia brings a soft-focus glaze to her face. “We had a blast. And then Wes decided to join the military. He came home and visited from time to time, but he wasn’t so crazy anymore. Still fun, though. And then…” Andrea watches him talk to Derrick. “It was like a switch was flipped to the off position and taped down. Derrick drove out to the Hayden Ranch when he heard Wes was home for good, but Wes made it clear he didn’t want anything to do with anybody. We saw Warner in town a little while after that happened, and he told us Wes would hardly talk to him either. Or anybody in their family for that matter.” She cocks her head, studying him. “He’s got that haunted look in his eyes, doesn’t he?”
I see what Andrea sees, and so much more. Haunted is an accurate description. To that, I’d add anxious and easily provoked. But also loyal, confident, protective, heroic, generous, and loving. And there’s a whole lot of vulnerability hiding behind a brick wall.
“He’s working through some things,” I tell her.
“Oh, I’m sure, I’m sure,” she’s quick to say, in a way that lets me know she’s not trying to stick her nose where it doesn’t belong. “How’d you meet?”
Wes catches my eye and nods me over. Andrea sees this and pours herself a glass from the bottle I brought, then we start over to where Wes and Derrick stand.
“Remember last week when I told you I’m in charge of the new buildings going up on the far edge of town?” I glance at Andrea as we walk. She nods her head, her silver hoop earrings swinging. “It’s being built on land that used to belong to the Haydens. My family bought the land and we met at the initial purchase meeting.” Of course, this isn’t totally true.
Omitting the night we spent together five years ago hardly even qualifies as a white lie, though. Maybe one day, if Andrea becomes a real friend, I’ll tell her the full story. For now, this one works.
“Aw, it was love at first sight.” Andrea smiles at the romantic thought.
“Something like that.” We reach Wes and Derrick, and I hand Wes his drink. He takes it from me, wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me in, pressing a kiss to my temple. My heart swells, but then I remember the gesture is for show, and the feeling recedes.
Andrea leans into Derrick and looks at Wes. “Dakota was just telling me you met at the meeting about her family buying your land.”
Wes looks down at me, amusement in his eyes. “That’s right,” he says slowly, his fingers tracing the bottom edge of my shirt across my back. I swallow hard and block out the caress. “She came in talking about how she wanted to build something that would benefit the town and showcase local businesses, and I was sold. On the idea, and on her.”
If I didn’t know better, his words would melt me, cause my heart to liquefy and drip down into a puddle at his feet.
Andrea sighs. She’s clearly a fairy tale, hearts and flowers kind of girl. Good for her.
We stay another hour. Other people show up. Some know Wes, some don’t. They’re all older, mostly