Page 28 of Three Little Words

She looked me in the eye as she did it.

That was unfair.

I took a deep breath, looking away. “So. How’s Bryan?”

There was a shift in the air between us.

Maybe that had been the wrong question to ask.

Bryn sighed heavily. She shrugged. “He’s a pain in the ass. Nothing new.”

“I thought he was doing okay?”

She shook her head. “He’s joined up with the King’s Devils. You know about them?”

“Uh, yeah. I know a little.”

That was an understatement, but she seemed to be pretty unhappy. I didn’t want to make it worse by talking about the ink I did for them.

“Yeah, well. He joined up…three, four years ago? And it’s changed him. He’s such a prick now.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Shit. Bryn, I’m really sorry to hear that.”

I knew how much she loved Bryan. And he’d been a headache when me and her were together, but this sounded like something entirely different. A pang of feeling flashed through me—not as strong as pity. Maybe sympathy. I felt bad for her.

Bryn shook her head and took a long drink of her margarita. “Whatever. I don’t want to talk about him. At all.”

I nodded. “Okay. That’s fair.”

Bryn nodded. “Okay.” She took a deep breath, pressing one hand to her forehead. “It’s just too much to think about all the time, you know?”

“I gotcha.” I took a sip of my beer.

“How’s Bradley?” she asked.

She just wanted to change the subject. I understood. “Bradley’s good. He’s good. Got a girlfriend, still doing great work.”

“Is he running the new shop?”

“Nah, he’s gonna stay at the main shop with me. Logan and Ryker are co-owners now. They’re in charge of the Malone location.”

Bryn hummed. “I never saw Ryker as the responsible type. You’re sure you want to put him in charge?”

“He’s grown. He’s a good guy. Hard worker, smart as they come. Most people just don’t look for it.”

She smiled. “Well, good.”

Good?

That’s not what I expected her to say when we talked about the new shop.

She looked at me for a moment, her head tilted to one side. “So, I gotta ask. Why?”

“Why what?” I took a sip of beer.

“Why Malone? Why are you expanding?”

I sighed. “Listen, first off, I promise you. We didn’t even think about Skin Buzz being there when we chose Malone. We were thinking about the college, more than anything.”

---