Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 83992 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83992 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
I wasn’t going to show how disappointed I was that she hadn’t asked to see my ID.
Getting old sucks.
Returning her smile with my own, I started toward the terrace. The Muddled Moose had an indoor bar as well as an outside one. I knew Kian would be outside, along with James and his brother Gavin.
“Declan!”
Turning at the sound of my name, I grinned when I saw Kian Carter. I made my way through the crowd and stopped at their table. Kian stood, gave me a quick bro hug and pat on the back, and James followed.
“Shit, it’s good seeing you, man,” James said as he slid back onto his stool. “It’s been what…ten years?”
Nodding, I replied, “At least. Longer for you, Kian.”
Kian had been a year behind me in school, but we’d all grown up with each other. We played football and baseball together, and our younger brothers despised one another. I never knew why, and I don’t think Kian did either.
“Yeah, probably since high school. Right? You went right into the Marines, and then I think you came home once or twice before I graduated and headed to college.”
I shook my head. “And now you’re back home and no longer a lawyer.”
He smiled. “Nope. Home and writing a book.”
“That’s great, man. I’m glad to see you’re doing what you want, not what your parents wanted.”
Kian held up his beer. “Amen.”
The waitress walked up and set a cocktail napkin in front of me. “What can I get you?”
I pointed to Kian’s beer. “I’ll have the same.”
“Anything to eat?”
“No, thank you.”
Turning back to the table, I glanced at Gavin. The gangly boy I remembered had grown into a full-fledged man. A good-looking dude, actually. His brown eyes were light in color, and his brown hair was cut short on the sides, a little bit longer on top. He definitely wasn’t a kid anymore. “Jesus, the last time I saw you, you had pimples all over your face and you followed us everywhere.”
Gavin laughed.
James ruffled his brother’s hair. “Now he’s one of Moose Village’s most eligible bachelors.”
Gavin shoved his brother’s hand away and snorted. “Hardly.”
“How old are you now, Gavin?” I asked, nodding my thanks to the waitress when she set down my beer.
“Twenty-eight.”
I whistled. “Still a baby. I bet you got carded when you walked in.”
“So did I,” James said.
When I glanced at Kian, he shook his head. “She didn’t ask for my ID.”
I leaned back in my chair, feeling a bit better.
“You mentioned you found a place to rent?” James said.
Nodding, I took a swallow of my beer and set it down. “Yeah, Brystol Duggan is letting me rent the apartment above the toy store. Does she own the store now? I didn’t get a chance to ask her.”
Gavin groaned and rolled his eyes, as James laughed.
“What?” I asked, confused.
James grinned and said, “First, her mother passed it over to her when she decided to retire. And second, Gavin and Brystol are archenemies.”
Putting my attention on Gavin, I raised a brow. “What now?”
“She’s a pain in my ass,” he stated. “Her best friend, Evelyn, is married to my best friend, Denny McCain. So I’m forced to see her all the damn time.”
“And that’s a bad thing why?” Kian asked.
“Because she’s hated me since high school, and I have no clue why. I’ve tried asking her about it, but she claims I already know why. Whatever. I stopped playing that game, so I basically just ignore her now. Which I think drives her even more mad.”
“You don’t remember what you did?” I asked.
He shook his head. “All I know is she’s hated me since high school. For the sake of Denny and Evelyn, I just deal with her when I have to.”
“That’s got to be hard when you hang out with your best friends,” Kian said with a slight laugh.
“Luckily, I only have to see her during parties and things like that. Enough about me. Why did you get out of the Marines, Declan?”
I sighed and picked up my beer. “It was just time.”
“What does that mean?” James asked. “Did something happen?”
A humorless laugh slipped free. “A lot of shit happened, but I decided it was time to get out and do something else. Settle down and all that stuff we’re supposed to want to do when we reach our mid-thirties.”
My eye caught James’s. He said, “It’s a totally different world here than what you experienced.”
Gavin leaned forward. “You’re joining the force?”
I nodded. “That’s the plan.”
“I don’t think you’ll see the kind of action in Moose Village that you did in the Marines,” James stated.
“Have you thought about state police?”
“Hey.” James glared at his younger brother. “What are you doing?”
Gavin grinned. “I’m just saying, if Declan wants more action, the state police is where he’ll find it.”
“Are you NYSP?” I asked him.