Page 40 of The Other Guy

“I own this place. I can and I am. You’ve been coming in here for weeks, leaving with a different girl every night, and I told you to cut that shit out because I thought you had this one waiting for you at home. You’re done causing a scene in my bar. Get out.”

“Weeks?” I ask stupidly even though I’ve already put it all together.

Nick’s gaze softens when he turns to me. “I wanted to tell you but then you were gone for weeks and I thought maybe you’d left him. Didn’t have your number or I’d’ve called to warn you. Told him a few times to stop but he told me you were gone. Thought it meant gone for good.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“Can someone please get me a towel?!” Jeff shouts, completely ignoring the fact that Nick just threw him under the bus — and out of his bar.

“Dry yourself off.” Nick escorts him to the door and shoves him through. “When I say don’t come back in here, I mean it.”

“You’ll hear from my lawyer.”

“For what?” Nick laughs and turns back toward me when he sees that Jeff is gone.

The crowd in the bar is happy and lighthearted after being able to witness the spectacle that just went down in front of them. And me? I’m just sitting here chugging the last of my beer.

“You okay?”

“Surprisingly yes. I knew we were done. Just didn’t know how done until that happened.” I chuckle.

Nick takes Jeff’s plate and puts it on the bar next to him, asking his bartender to take care of it for him, then takes Jeff’s place across from me, helping himself to my food much like I did to Jack’s.

“Damn, we’re good,” he mumbles around a slice of deep fried onion.

“Yes, you are.”

“Seriously, Sierra. You okay? I promise I would have told you but he said you were gone. Thought it meant something different.”

“It’s okay. It’s not your job to rat on your customers.”

“But it is my job to inform my friends if their boyfriends are rats.”

I laugh and pop a boneless wing into my mouth. Chew and swallow and think.

“You have nothing to apologize for. Especially after kicking him out just now. Though, I’m in a bit of a pickle because he was my ride and I live with him.”

He winces. “Yeah, this could get interesting. Don’t worry. I can get you home and help you pack if you need. You got a place to stay tonight?”

“I can go to a hotel or go back to uncle Kyle.”

“I’d let you stay at my place but my wife and I just had a baby.”

“Wife? When did that happen?”

He shrugs. “Been married for a few years.”

“I feel like a piece of crap for never knowing that.”

“My job is to ask questions and listen. Your job is to come here and eat and drink.”

“Well, congratulations.”

“Thanks.” He pulls out his phone and shows me several pictures of an adorable baby boy. “Nick III. Family name, obviously.”

“He’s adorable. And your wife is beautiful.”

“She is. I married way up.”

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