Page 59 of The Secret to a Southern Wedding

Cyril pressed a hand to his chest. “I’m decent. Though honestly, I haven’t played ball in years. You may not want me on your team.”

The guys laughed but Brian shook his head. “That’s no problem. None of us out here are pros. Just a way to get out, grab some exercise and try to pretend like we still got the moves we had in our twenties.”

“I get it. Maybe I will come out. I spend so much time at the bar that I need to get out and socialize more.”

“Your spot is nice,” Quinton said. “I was thinking of swinging through later.”

“You should drop in. Both of you. Friday nights are usually busy.”

Brian squinted at Cyril. “You think Imani and Tracey may come through?”

Cyril’s stomach clenched. Did Brian return Imani’s high school crush? He hadn’t forgotten the way the two of them were laughing and smiling at each other the morning he’d found her at Tracey’s bed-and-breakfast. “Not sure, why you ask?”

“I need to talk to them both about the shrubs for the wedding. If they’re at the bar I can kill two birds with one stone.”

Quinton frowned. “What two birds?”

“Getting answers out of Tracey and getting the drink I’m gonna need after talking to her. Tracey is always ready to go to level ten. She’s been that way since high school.”

“I didn’t grow up here,” Quinton said. “But I can’t imagine her going off. She’s so nice every time I see her.”

Brian pursed his lips and shook his head. “That’s the way she acts now. Been like that since she married Bernard. She tries to act all perfect, but she was a trip back in the day before him.” He shook his head. “I still can’t believe she’s still with that guy.”

Cyril held up a hand. “I don’t know if they’ll be there. I haven’t talked to either of them today.” He wanted to call Imani and check in on her but wasn’t sure if she’d appreciate it or not. She didn’t seem to like talking about her dad and he doubted she’d want to relive crying on his shoulder the night before.

Brian raised a brow. “I was surprised when I found out Imani was back in town. I haven’t seen her since high school.”

“Did you want to see her more?” Cyril asked quickly and immediately realized he sounded way too invested in Brian’s thoughts about Imani.

Brian shrugged. “She’s cool, but I’m not checking for her like that.”

Cyril tried not to let the immense relief he felt show but didn’t suppress the smile on his face. “Oh, cool.”

Brian cocked a brow. “Do you know someone who is?”

Cyril shook his head. “Nah, nah. You know our parents are getting married. So I’m just looking out for her.”

Brian chuckled. “Okay, whatever you say.”

Cyril’s cheeks heated. He needed to end this conversation before he made a fool of himself. He’d already stumbled through that clumsy attempt to dig for information about Brian’s interest in Imani.

“Well, I’m going to do one more lap,” he said and pointed down the walking trail. “I’ll see y’all later tonight.”

twenty-three

Imani arrived at A Couple of Beers before Halle and Tracey. The trio decided to meet up after they all agreed they needed a break after a long week. Imani didn’t ask what made their weeks particularly difficult. She decided to save getting all the information over drinks.

Cyril was behind the bar by himself while Joshua set up a microphone in the open area to the left of the bar. Cyril was the reason she’d arrived early. She wanted to clear the air between them before everyone else arrived.

He looked up and gave her a half smile as he wiped down a highball glass. Damn, he was good-looking when he smiled. He was dressed in his typical graphic T-shirt and fedora. His beard looked especially neat and trimmed which made the fullness of his lips even more noticeable. She ignored the clench of her stomach. As much as she wanted to pretend that him holding her in his arms while she cried meant nothing, she couldn’t. She appreciated that he hadn’t tried to force her to talk, and only gently wiped away her tears and tenderly kissed the top of her head while holding her. His actions meant a lot, and even though she was afraid to explore the deeper meaning behind what he’d done, she couldn’t pretend as if the moment hadn’t happened.

“How are you doing?” he asked when she reached the bar.

Heat spread in her face. She’d come to thank him. To let him know she was doing alright. To say she appreciated what he’d done. But years of suppressing her feelings and not admitting what she wanted were drowned out by the embarrassment of crying on his shoulder.

“I’m fine,” she said sounding so much like her mom she wanted to cringe. She pointed to where Joshua set up the microphone. “What’s going on over there?”

Cyril watched her for a few seconds, maybe judging for himself if she were good. He finally accepted her answer with a lift of his chin before glancing over at Joshua then back at her. “Setting up for the entertainment. We bring in local artists every once in a while to play.”

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