Page 13 of Pillowtalk

Smelling strongly of Jack and bar nuts, he slapped a hug around Aaron. The guy had bulked up since last Aaron saw him, his middle rounder and his shoulders broader. Aaron hit his friend’s back twice before pulling back, grateful he was in for good company while he had to be out.

“Thatisyou, right?” Sawyer said, nodding at Aaron’s unusually trimmed chin. “I’m not drunk enough to see double just yet.”

His gaze drifted over to Austin, who finally found his way through the chatty crowd to the bar. Aaron let out a laugh and ran a hand over his jaw.

“He wishes he looked as good as I do,” he joked, and Austin rolled his eyes and gestured for the bartender. “So how the hell are ya?”

Sawyer waved him off, slumping back onto the stool with a force that Aaron was surprised didn’t crack the wood. “You,” he said, pointing a finger. “You gotta tell me about L.A. Specifically thewomenin L.A.” He flipped a hand at Austin. “That one is no help.”

Austin held a shot glass out to Aaron. “Not my fault. I’ve never been to L.A.”

Sawyer rolled his eyes at the joke and snapped up his own glass. They all clinked and tossed them back, the burn in Aaron’s throat surprising him for a brief moment—it had been a while since he’d felt the sting of a stronger drink.

“Pool table,” Sawyer said, slamming the shot glass onto the bar top. “I could use twenty extra bucks.”

Aaron grinned, tilting his head. “All right.” Little did his friend know that Aaron’s game had improved over the years, and he wasn’t one to turn away from easy money.

They slid through the crowded place, Aaron finally feeling enough at ease to meet people’s eyes and give waves to familiar faces. Sawyer had a way of doing that; even the most tightly wound person would find themselves unraveling in his company. He was no doubt the surprise Austin had in store.

“How long you here for?” The question slurred off Sawyer’s half-drunk tongue, making Aaron hold back a laugh as he racked up the billiard balls.

“Indefinitely,” Austin answered for him, slapping Aaron mid-back. The particular response reminded him of the answer Chelsea had provided for Kennedy when they were introduced. He wondered if that, too, was just a joking yet hopeful answer Chelsea decided to fill in whenever the question was asked. Austin sure used it in his case.

“Right…” Sawyer said, his thick brow furrowing. “Because there is so much opportunity for a technical genius out here in BFE.”

Aaron bent over the table, the bright lights overhead already making him break out in a sweat. He set the cue up and broke, sending the fifteen ball into the corner pocket and the eleven in the side.

“Shit,” Sawyer hissed under his breath as Aaron straightened and moved around the table for his second turn. He felt a smug smile pull at the corner of his mouth as he bent and knocked the twelve into the corner. Austin sat on a nearby stool, knowing it would be a while for his turn. Aaron had schooled his brother many times on the table in their extra room.

After about an hour of playing time, Sawyer let out a husky breath and slapped another twenty on the felt. Aaron gladly picked it up and tucked it away with its brothers.

“I hope I’m not too drunk to forget about this next time,” Sawyer said, putting up his cue.

“I hope you are.” Aaron laughed as he shoved his wallet back into his pocket. It felt good to bet with a friend again…and to actually win money. Aaron was usually bested in sports-related activities, with Austin being the burlier, bulkier brother. He could hardly complain, however, since he was usually the one to beat anyone when it came to things of the mind.

Jared had been the one to point that out, and Aaron found himself thinking about it in the most random of times, like right then.

Sawyer slapped a hand on his shoulder, swaying and using Aaron to keep him steady. He pointed with his beer at the door. “You see that beauty who just walked in? I’m gonna go see if she’s ready to tame this beast.”

Aaron laughed, until his eyes fell on the group of women congregated around the entry. Sawyer must be beyond drunk, oblivious to the one person Aaron had hoped he wouldn’t run into while on his journey to self-discovery. A sober Sawyer would have directed Aaron’s attention toanywhereelse.

She was distinctly older, but it complimented her. Her once-silky brown hair was now streaked with red and blond, hanging just above her waist. It was wavy and sprayed, so unlike what it had been—messy and pulled back ninety percent of the time. She was fuller around the waist, soft and exquisite, and the small of her back was exposed in a light orange flowing top. The smile set on her lips was wide, full, gorgeous—more genuine and real than Aaron had ever seen it.

His heart was crushed into dust, the mistakes he’d made and the friendship he’d lost all repeating on a loop in his mind. He took a step back, his thighs hitting the pool table before he ripped his gaze away. Sawyer had disappeared already, slogging his way to the group. Aaron’s eyes swiveled above, desperate for another exit. Remembering there was one near the restrooms, he made his way over, relieved when the back door didn’t send out an alarm as he pushed outside.

“Oh!”

The surprised squeak followed by a crash came behind the door, and Aaron whipped around, rushing to help the poor girl up.

“Sorry,” he said. “So…so sorry. You okay?” He reached out, clasping her around the elbow. The touch shot through his fingertips, making him drop his hold. He blinked as the dim light of the back parking lot fell over the woman’s face.

Kennedy looked up from the pile of crates she’d tumbled into, a soft chuckle escaping her lips and a pink hue sprouting up on her cheeks. “Serves me right for leaning against an exit.”

Aaron felt a small laugh bud up inside him, and his lip quirked as he tried—again—to help her to her feet. Her grip tightened around his forearm, heat spreading from her fingertips and seeping down to his nervous system. He swallowed back an expletive threatening on the tip of his tongue, knowing that she’d question his sanity if it were to escape him.

“Really?” he mused, attempting to keep his voice light and airy. As soon as she was upright, he dropped his hold and took a step back. “You’ll yell at me by accident, but when I actually deserve it, I get nothing?”

She lifted a brow in surprise, the dim light doing great things to the color of her eyes. “I’m too tired, I guess.”

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