Page 39 of Possession

“I just feel like some secret dinners are being made.”

“Secret dinners?” he scoffs. “That sounds ominous. I’m sure it’s just a delivery error. I’ll check the order log when I’m finished over here.”

“That bar couldn’t get any cleaner if you tried.”

“I have a certain standard.” He smiles.

“Are you trying to take Megan’s job from her?”

“Now you and I both know that Megan is about to own this place once she marries Hunter.”

“And?”

“She won’t need this job.”

“Are you saying she should be a good little wife and stay at home, do as she’s told, and let the men handle the business?”

Gage leans on his forearms, which I guess I never noticed were that lean and muscular, and offers up a questionable smile that I don’t trust.

“I see that you’re breaking out of the whole shy little sister thing, and now you’re sticking up for your future sister-in-law? It’s cute.”

“You should watch how you talk to me. Like you said, I am the boss’s little sister.”

“Definitely cute,” he says, standing straight up again and reaching for a bottle of whiskey. “You want some before our shift starts?” he offers me a shot.

“No, thank you. I don’t cook drunk.”

“One shot will not get you drunk; in my opinion, everyone cooks better tipsy.”

“Not me.

Then it hits me.

Gage is the key to this whole thing. He knows everything about everyone but always stays under the radar. If anyone knows what’s going on with Parker, I’m convinced that he does.

“Fuck it,” I tell him. “Pour me one.”

I take the shot of amber liquid and sip it slowly.

“Are you sipping a shot?” he chuckles.

“You’re questioning the drinking skills of someone under the age of twenty-one?”

“Right, I keep forgetting that.”

“Yeah, like you’re the only person who doesn’t constantly remind me of that.”

“You’re very mature for your age. It’s easy to forget you’re not quite legal yet.”

I sip the rest of the whiskey and clank the glass down on the bar, uncomfortable with what I think was just a compliment from Gage. It’s now or never.

“If I asked you something, would you tell me the truth?”

“Depends.”

“It depends? What kind of an answer is that?”

“A truthful one.” He winks playfully.

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