Page 37 of Forbidden Desires

My jaw clenches as I watch her leave. She’s right—I can’t offer her anything. I need to stay away from her for the good of our business. Emerson would kill me if I messed things up now, especially since I’m turning it all around. But the idea of her with another man makes me want to tear this place apart and burn it to the ground. I need to know what I’m up against. I can’t shake the burning in my chest that tells me she should be mine.

I take another swig of my beer, trying to dislodge the pain in my chest as I glance around McAllister’s. It’s Saturday night, and the place is a hive of activity. A pool tournament is finishing up in the back, and a band has set up on the stage. They’re a local group from Bluewater Beach, and Elliot assures me they’ll draw a decent crowd. But that’s not the reason I left work early and joined the guys for a drink.

Mae leisurely swirls the last remnants of wine in her glass, a satisfied smile playing on her lips. “Well, I better get out of here before the girls arrive. I told them I was working to get out of this double date Paisley set up,” she confesses with a lighthearted laugh. “With the house to myself, I have a night with a good book and a bottle of wine planned, and I can’t wait.”

“Sounds perfect.” Parker, seated across from her, nods in agreement, his eyes lingering on her with a warmth that doesn’t escape my notice. I can’t help but wonder if his infatuation with Mae is as obvious to everyone else in McAllister’s as it is to me.

Elliot polishes off his drink. “Little bro has been talking nonstop about this date all day. I offered to give Pops a hand with inventory here at the bar and Jake had day shift. It was like we were back in high school again. I think he can’t actually believe she finally agreed. You’d think after pining after her for so long they would have picked someplace else to spend the night.”

I shake my head in irritation. “Why am I not surprised that this date is Paisley’s doing,” I grumble, annoyance seeping into my words. “If she actually likes Gisele like she says she does, she could have at least found someone not so...”

My words trail off abruptly as I realize the three of them—Mae, Parker, and Elliot—are all looking at me. I’ve said too much, and the sudden attention makes me uncomfortably aware of my honest comment. I pick up my beer and have a swig needed to shut myself up.

“What’s got your panties all in a twist?” Elliot assesses me with a smirk, his eyes probing for an explanation he knows I won’t give him.

Mae stands and tosses her shoulder bag over her body. She pats my back on her way past, offering a reassuring smile. “It’s okay, big guy, doubt he’ll match up.”

“Match up to what, Mae?” Elliot inquires, feigning innocence, but there’s a gleam of understanding in his eyes. In all their eyes.

My buddies know me too well. It’s one of the reasons I knew I shouldn’t come tonight. Yet here I am, itching to destroy this guy if he so much as places a finger on her. I choose not to indulge Mae by responding, and she wanders off through the bar, leaving Parker watching her with a contemplative expression.

“When are you going to tell her?” I ask, turning my attention to Parker. The boy has it bad for her.

“Tell her what?” His focus returns to me, but I can see his thoughts are elsewhere.

Elliot chuckles. “Come on, man, it’s so obvious you have a thing for Dorothy-Mae. Is it the strawberry-blonde hair or the short little skirts she wears?”

Parker frowns, offering a feeble defense. “She’s Paisley’s best friend,” he mutters like that somehow makes a difference.

“And?” Elliot shrugs, dismissing the argument.

“And she’s a good ten years younger than me,” Parker adds, attempting another justification.

“I agree with Elliot. That’s never stopped you in the past,” I throw his words from earlier back at him, seizing the opportunity to point out his own contradictions. He wants to call me out on Gisele, but I can give it back—especially when I watch him potentially making the biggest mistake of his life by ignoring what’s blatantly obvious. Besides, I think they would be well suited for each other. The Gisele effect is real. Two months ago, I wouldn’t have even considered setting up two of my friends because they make a good match, and now I’m trying to convince him to go for it. She’s infected my brain with her sunny attitude to love.

“Mae’s different,” Parker insists, and I can see he’s still thinking about her. It makes me wonder what happened here while I was living in New York. Everything is the same but different. Elliot was forced to grow up, his life all kinds of crazy with his girls. And our sisters and their friends who were once so little have grown into independent women striding forward in their careers and lives of their own. I couldn’t be more proud of Emerson. For someone so young, she shows a maturity far beyond her years, despite growing up without our mother. I guess Mae is like her. It’s easy to forget they are so much younger than us.

“How?” I watch him closely, answering my own question. “Because youlike her, like her. You don’t just want to roll around in the sheets with her.”

Parker takes a thoughtful sip of his beer, his gaze fixed on some distant point as he contemplates his predicament. He really does have a thing for her.

My attention is momentarily diverted as I spot Gisele entering the bar. She huddles up to Paisley, shedding her coat to reveal a sparkly mini dress that accentuates her legs, making them look like they go on for miles. I can’t help but let out a frustrated curse under my breath. Why does she look so irresistibly tempting tonight? Her hair is curled in waves down her back, and her makeup reminds me of the first night I met her. She’s stunning.

Parker raises an eyebrow, sensing my distraction. “What?” he asks, following my line of sight. “Oh, now I get why you were so easily available tonight. Here you are giving me a lecture on Dorothy-Mae. When are you going to come clean with Gisele? Tell her you get a boner every time she walks in the room.”

I shoot him a warning look. “Don’t draw attention to us. I don’t want her to know we’re here,” I tell them.

“Are you kidding me? You’re going to hide over here, watching her all night like a crazy stalker? That’s why you picked this booth, isn’t it?” Elliot laughs.

His comment makes my jaw clench. I’m not a crazy stalker. “I’m just going to keep an eye on her. Make sure Paisley doesn’t get her into trouble,” I say through clenched teeth.

Elliot bursts into laughter. “Whatever story you tell yourself, bro, so you don’t look like a nut job. From over here, you look completely wackadoo. Glad I got a sitter for tonight. I would have been disappointed to miss Alexander making a fool of himself.” He slaps me on the back.

“I don’t plan on doing anything to make a fool of myself.”

Elliot smirks knowingly. “You still will. You got that crazy look in your eyes that Whittaker and I know means trouble.”

Parker nods, agreeing with him.

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