Page 60 of Falling for the Bad Boy
So instead of backing out of the deal with Wyatt, I shoved the business card in my back pocket. “We’ll talk about this later?”
“You got it.” Wyatt grinned.
I gave a half smile in return then hustled down the hall to meet the delivery driver. I had some decisions to make, and I was running out of time.
CHAPTER 26
Oliver
The delivery guy had almost finished unloading our shipment by the time I met him outside. I took a quick inventory, signed for it, and began the long process of moving everything in, restocking the cooler and switching out the empty kegs. On my last trip out to the alley, another truck pulled up. The driver got out and appeared to be searching for an address. He caught sight of me and headed my way.
“Excuse me.”
“Yeah? What can I help you with?” I let the keg I’d been rolling toward the door rest against my leg.
“Is this the back entrance to a place called No Limits?” The driver checked his tablet. “I don’t see a sign back here.”
“What have you got?” I asked. Trinity said she was expecting a delivery the next day. Maybe it had shown up early.
“I don’t know, but there’s a ton of it. Is this the right building?” He gestured to the dock next door.
Before I had a chance to think about what I was doing, I shook my head. “You must have bad information. There’s nothing in the building next door.”
The guy frowned and checked his tablet again. “There’s not a business called No Limits? But there’s a sign out front.”
“Yeah, that’s old. They aren’t open anymore. Sorry I can’t help you. I’d suggest you send it back.”
“You’re sure?” The driver let out a huff as he glanced back and forth from the tablet to the building. “You’d think they would have required a phone number for this. Do you know how to reach anyone there? Maybe the old manager or someone who used to work for them?”
I ignored the tightness radiating out from my chest. What the hell was I doing? I wanted to stop, tell the guy I’d sign for the delivery or even use the key Trinity had entrusted me with to unlock the loading dock door and let him in. But the business card Wyatt had handed me made me reconsider my plans. I needed time to think, to figure out what I truly wanted. It was becoming more and more obvious I couldn’t have it all.
I shook my head. “Sorry. I just started here. My manager’s out of the country so there’s no one else to ask.”
The lie burned on its way out of my mouth and I tried to swallow the bile rising in my throat. A sour taste filled my mouth.
“Yeah, thanks anyway.” The guy shut down the tablet and climbed back in the truck.
I waited by the door while the truck rumbled away. My gut wrenched, sending a wave of nausea through my stomach. I hated being in this position, and I hated even more that I had no one else to blame for my decisions but myself. Wyatt might be a total douche, but it’s not like he was holding a gun to my head and making me choose my own needs over Trinity’s.
I scrubbed a palm over my face, trying to wipe away the guilt. It didn’t help. Heading inside, the keg tossed up onto my shoulder, I promised myself I’d stop. What good would it do to stick around if Trinity found out I was the one responsible for her business failing before it even opened? But the need to succeed fought with my intention to do the right thing.
Years ago, when I’d secured a visa to study in the States, I’d finally felt like I’d achieved something. My friends figured I wouldn’t last, that I wouldn’t make it longer than a month. Everyone expected me to return home and take over for my father. But I’d surprised them all, myself included, when I started to get good marks. I finally felt like I’d found something I wanted to throw myself into.
I’d even gone so far as to tell my old pals that I wouldn’t be coming back. Of course they didn’t believe me. At the time I felt like I had years ahead of me—plenty of time to find a permanent position and establish myself. But now time was running out. I wasn’t such a pussy that I wouldn’t be able to handle the good-natured ribbing of my mates if I had no choice but to return home. But I’d tasted success. I’d watched Wyatt build Tapped from a hole-in-the-wall beer joint into a respectable establishment that could support a franchise.
That’s what I wanted for myself…the opportunity to be involved in something fresh, new and exciting. My dad’s family had lived on their land for generations. Making any sort of change at home would be virtually impossible. Every time I made a decision to support Trinity, I was reminded of how much I had at stake. She was a smart woman with a huge support system whether she welcomed it or not. If she was forced out, she’d land on her feet, I was sure of it.
But what about me?
Trinity
“You’re doing it wrong.” I snatched the knitting needles out of Macy’s hands and fixed the mess she’d made. “I don’t think you’re going to get your mom’s gift done in time. Are you sure you don’t have two left thumbs?”
Macy leaned forward and refilled both of our glasses from the pitcher of frozen margaritas she’d whipped up. “Well, if I’m a total lost cause, maybe you could offer to make it for me, and then we could skip this painful process and go out for sushi instead.”
“You bitch.” I let out a laugh as I dropped the knitting and twisted to face her. “That was your plan all along, wasn’t it?”
She bit her lip and raised her brows.
