Page 77 of Just the Tipsy
“Oh, fuck no,” Wes says with a snort. “I definitely wouldn’t believe I’m getting married period, much less marrying Rose.”
“See? There you go.” Jasper takes a hefty sip of his cocktail. “A lot of shit can change in five years.”
I hum in agreement. I wouldn’t have guessed Wes would be the first of us to get married at all. He reallywascompletely different five years ago — he was still my twin and best friend, but he wasn’t nearly as mature and put together.
He was sleeping around, keeping things casual. He wasn’t unhappy, but he wasn’t nearly as happy as he is now.
A pang of jealousy pokes through my buzz. Part of me wants what he has — someone to come home to. But letting go of all my fucking baggage isn’t as easy as shaking off a lifelong rivalry. Then again, the tension between wanting Bianca and fearing I’m going to end up fucking myself over again is going to drive me crazy.
Having drinks and talking to friends is helping some, but I can’t help but feel like I seem off. Even when more people arrive and the party picks up over the next hour, I feel like I’m only 75% present.
“Oh, there’s Rose,” Wes says, his eyes lighting up.
He murmurs a goodbye and weaves through the crowd to his fiancée. I scan the room for Bianca since she’s supposed to be here too. I spot her next to the bar, facing away from me, and Ash facing her. The lazy, warm smile on his face while he talks to her says everything I need to know.
The jealousy and anger that rush up in me nearly make me dizzy. I know Ash has no idea who Bianca is, but seeing him flirting with her makes me want to do something I’d possibly regret.Possibly. Ash and I get along well and almost always have, but if I had to, I could beat him in a fight.
I storm over, locking eyes with Ash for a second. He looks bewildered, an eyebrow going up, and Bianca turns to look at me too. She smiles, and I manage to smile back a little.
I slide an arm around her waist and kiss her the moment I can get a hand on her. She smells even better than she usually does, and I want to press my face into her neck. Is it her hair? Or just her lotion? I don’t know, but it’s making me even more feral.
“Ash, this is Bianca. My girlfriend. Bianca, this is my brother Ash,” I say, cutting off whatever conversation they were having. I don’t even care that I’m being rude. My pulse is still racing, but having Bianca close is slowing my heart down.
“Oh.The girlfriend I’ve heard whispers of. So that’s why he looked like that,” Ash says with a grin, shaking her hand and giving her a little more space. “I’ve never seen him look like that in his whole life.”
My face flushes with heat, especially when Bianca looks at me, curious.
“Look like what?” she asks.
“Like he wants me dead for even daring to look your way.” Ash notices that my face is probably beet red, but thankfully ignores it and says, “When’d you roll into town, Bianca?”
“A few months ago,” she says. “How’d you know I was new here? Or did Waylon tell you?”
“I can tell by looking at you. I haven’t lived here since I was eighteen but I can still tell when someone’s not from around here.” He sips his drink. “And I’ve spent enough time other places. I’m in a band.”
“Oh.” An inscrutable look crosses her face before disappearing. “Where are you based?”
A dark look crosses over Ash’s face for a moment before he pulls himself together. “Yep. And right now…kind of all over the place. The band tours a lot.”
There’s definitely more to what Ash is saying, but if I ask, he’ll never tell me.
“To be honest, I’m surprised Waylon’s seeing someone.” Ash recovers with a smirk and elbows me. “Especially someone half-way interesting.”
He’s not completely serious, but I still glare at him. He grins in response, not a care in the world.
“Being from out of town doesn’t automatically make me interesting,” she says. Her tone is the same, but I can see the shyness in her eyes.
“More interesting than a lot of people who never leave this place.” Ash glances at me. “Waylon doesn’t count, though. And neither does Wes.”
Bianca just nods, completely unaware of the dig at John David. He went straight from high school to under Dad’s wing at the company, taking remote college classes instead of leaving for school. Ash was fully moved out of the house the day after high school graduation, and has only come back for Thanksgiving and Christmas when he’s felt like it.
“How’d you meet, then?” Ash asks. He’d never admit that he’s just as nosy as Mom is, but he is.
“Just luck, mostly. Everything just fell into place.” Bianca looks at me with such warmth and affection that I can’t help but feel that in return – even if it’s fake. “We connected because he was taking care of my great aunt’s dog after she passed. He’s really helped me feel more at home here and helped me get used to being a dog owner.”
“Waylon the dog whisperer.” Ash scans Bianca’s face, more out of curiosity than flirtation like he was earlier. “I’m glad to hear y’all found each other, then. It’s been a while since Waylon’s looked at home with someone.”
Ash saying something like he means it is rare, so the compliment hits differently. Our relationship isn’t real, but arewe really pulling it off that well? Ash’s bullshit detector is pretty good, but he’s convinced.
