Page 62 of Whiskey & Honey

“You’re a dick. Let’s go,” I reply as I shove him a little and he laughs in return.

We decide on a sports bar that serves breakfast on football Sundays. Once we’re seated in a booth we immediately proceed with ordering two large beers and a couple of omelets.

“Are you going to tell me what has you wound up to the point that you are running like a Kenyan in the Olympics?”

“I’m not wound up. It’s nothing. So are you going to call that girl from the park? What happened to the other one, Sasha was it?”

“No deflecting. Come on, man, I know when something is up with you. You’ve been MIA for weeks, blowing us off at every turn. Landon’s poor little feelers were hurt when you didn’t come to poker night. I’ve had to listen to him whine for two weeks about that shit. You need to man up and tell me what is going on.”

“I haven’t been MIA; I’m working on my house, you know that.”

“Yeah, the house nobody gets to see. I’m a fucking contractor, Ben. We could have all been working on your house and had it almost livable by now. There’s more going on. Is it Laurel? Are you getting back together?”

“What? No. Why would you even ask that? I’m not getting back together with Laurel.” The defensiveness in my voice is obvious.

Our food arrives and I’m given a reprieve in this conversation while we both devour half of our meals without a word exchanged. I guess that run took more out of me than I thought considering I already had breakfast with Piper.

“If it isn’t your house and it isn’t Laurel, it must be Piper.”

I choke on the bite I just swallowed and take a drink of my beer to wash it down. As I set my mug down I notice the smug expression on his face.

“Thought so. You’ve been seeing Piper, haven’t you?”

“No. I have not been seeing Piper. You just took me by surprise. Why would you even say that?” While I pause and try to limit the defensiveness in my voice, he only stares at me, waiting for me to continue. “We talked at the lake like you suggested and she blew me off. I’ve just been dealing with my house and work has been busy. That’s all.”

“Nope. Not buying it. You are totally seeing Piper Lawrence and Ashton is going to kill you. Not Piper. She loves Piper. We all love Piper. You, my friend, are a dead man.”

They all love Piper. “What do you mean you all love Piper?”

Putting his hands up in defense he laughs. “Not like that, man. Piper is a cool chick and we like her. You know, like we do Ashton. Well, they all like Ashton, she’s on my nerves half the time and makes me want to stab my ears when she talks. Regardless, Piper’s good people and she’s one of us.”

I absorb his comments and don’t offer a response. We finish our breakfast while watching one of the games playing on the TV. Although the topic of Piper and me is off the table it is still in the forefront of my mind. After we pay and are headed back outside, Jameson stops with me at my truck.

“Look. I think whatever you aren’t telling me about you and Piper is a good thing. You guys actually make sense. That’s why I sent you with her the other night. I knew she wasn’t drinking much; she never really does but she was playing like it for Ash’s sake. All night long she was cranky and mumbling under her breath about the costume and how she dressed up for nobody. Then you walked in. Dude, she was finally herself. I could see that from ten feet away, you have to see it.”

I don’t respond. Which is a response on its own and he continues.

“I told you at the lake that you needed to make your move. You tried and she blew you off. I know you and I’ve gotten to know Piper. If my instincts are right, and they usually are, you are both under some sort of impression that you are protecting Ashton. You both have this impression that if you were to get together somehow Ashton would be upset or hurt. I don’t think you give your sister enough credit. She’s a royal pain in the ass and can be a total bitch but…”

“Watch it,” I warn.

“Sorry.” I offer a nod in acceptance that my sister is both a pain and often a little on the bitchy side. “Anyway, she can be those things, but at the end of the day Ashton cares about both of you. She plays tough and the whole ‘hos before bros’ thing is her mantra, but you’ll never know how she really feels if you never ask. Plus, if she finds out you’re doing the dirty and lying about it, she’ll probably kill you both.”

I’m left alone at my truck as he walks away. He’s right. Not just about Ashton being a royal pain but also about the lying. Suddenly this plan of mine seems like a really bad idea.

I get the distinct impression that Piper is ignoring me. It’s not so much the fact that she has limited our interactions during the workday to the break room or that she told me she had too much to do the last three nights and couldn’t hang that tells me that. It was the text she sent that simply said, “Yes I’m ignoring you.” I’m going crazy.

Tonight is the fourth night since we were together last and I’ve had enough. Armed with a bottle of wine, a pizza, and a bouquet of flowers, I arrive at her place with a lot of determination and a little trepidation. Once I’m standing in front of her door I realize my hands are too full to knock so I use my boot.

Like on Ashton’s birthday, the moment she opens the door she takes my breath away. Dressed in a tank with a pair of leggings and her hair piled high on her head, she’s holding a frozen dinner in one hand and a shocked expression on her face. I smile my best smile as her eyes widen.

“Not to sound all Fatal Attraction like, but I won’t be ignored, Piper.”

“Ben,” she sighs as I step around her and walk in her apartment.

I hear the door close behind me as I make my way to the small kitchen and open the bottle of wine. Just as I’m pouring the second glass I hear something land with a light thud in the trashcan and smile to myself knowing it’s the frozen dinner. Turning toward her with the glass, I brace myself for her wrath. I’m instead greeted with a warm smile and an extended hand. Holding the glass close to my chest, I return her smile.

“Nuh-uh. What did I tell you about proper hellos?”

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