on you to make sure they’re in front of my face before the night ends.”
“You sure you don’t want to talk about it?” She motions around the mostly empty room. There are only two other people hanging around and they’re too busy talking to drink. “As you can see, I have the next hour to fill. Help me speed the time up, gorgeous.”
“I’m fucked. Nat refuses to go with me on the trip.” I slam back the remainder of the whiskey, before setting the empty glass down and sliding it her away again. “Alana is going to ruin me once again, and I’m going to let her, because I’m a sucker for love even when it kills me.”
“Then don’t let her, Madden.” She exhales and leans her elbows down on the counter. “Ignore her the entire trip and maybe she’ll realize it’s truly over.”
“I can’t do that, Carla. I’ve tried and failed every fucking time.”
“Then don’t let Natalie say no. Tell her why you need her, but don’t forget what I said earlier. Things could get messy if you don’t know what you want.”
“I do,” I say stiffly. “I just want Alana to move on.”
“Okay. Well, if your brother isn’t holding Natalie back and you’re sure you won’t fall for her or vice versa, then it’s on you to make sure she says yes.” She reaches for the bottle beside her and refills my glass. “You’re not easy to say no to, Madden. If I wasn’t afraid of falling for you—let’s face it, all women do—I’d go my damn self. I’d show this Alana bitch just how much she screwed up by hurting you. Biggest mistake of her life.”
“Thanks, babe. Appreciate that.”
“I’ll be right back.” She slaps the dark wood, before turning away to mess with her phone or something else over by the register. I can’t tell which and I’m not sure I care at this point. My head is too screwed up to think straight.
After checking on her other customers and doing a few things, she returns with a glass of ice water, practically shoving it in my face. “Drink. You’re going to need to sober up a bit for this.”
“For what?”
“To get what you want…” she nods behind me when someone walks in. “…from her.”
I turn around to Natalie standing there in a leather jacket, looking fully awake. I thought she’d fallen asleep hours ago. After she went in my brother’s room it was completely silent. “Hi, Carla.” She offers a genuine smile before slipping out of her jacket and taking a seat beside me. “I’ll have a Sprite, please.”
“Coming right up, babe.” Carla smiles and lifts a brow, sliding Natalie’s glass in front of her. “I’ll be cleaning up a bit. Holler if you two need me.”
The moment Carla walks away, I set my gaze on Natalie, trying to read her. I can’t tell if she’s pissed she’s here because of me or not. “I suppose Carla told you I’m drunk and needed you to come save me?” I stand up and slip into my jacket, not wanting to give her more reasons to hate me. “I’ll give you gas money for the hassle, but I’m fine. I can drive myself. I’ve only had three drinks.”
She shakes her head. “I texted Carla.”
“Okay…” I take a seat again and reach for what’s left of my drink, curious about why she left my brother sleeping to go out to a bar at one in the morning. “Get into a fight with my brother?”
She huffs. “He fell asleep hours ago. I doubt he even realizes I’m gone.” She rolls her eyes at the last part. “I noticed you left a while ago and wondered if you were here drinking, so I asked Carla. I almost didn’t come but I couldn’t sleep.”
“You don’t have to explain that shit to me. I doubt I’ll sleep for a while,” I admit. “I’ve had too many sleepless nights to count.”
“Me too,” she says softly. “Too much stuff on my mind that I can’t shut off.”
“You’re dating my brother, so I don’t doubt that,” I joke. “I remember what it was like being around his uptight ass every day. Does he still get mad about fingerprints on the coffee table or the toilet paper roll being put on wrong?”
She laughs into her soda, nearly spitting out what she just drank. “He’s the one who puts the toilet paper roll on wrong and then complains about it as if it was me. Every. Single. Time.”