Page 48 of Bourbon and Secrets

She glances up, spotting us right away. “Finally! You two took forever.” She smiles at me. “I’m so happy to see you again, Faye. Did Hadley convince you to join us at Midnight Proof later? Seasonal cocktails samples!” Glancing around, like she’s looking for someone, she whisper-shouts, “It’s how she wooed me into loving this place.”

Grant yells from the next room, “I heard that, honey. And it’s not even a little bit true, Faye. Hadley had nothing to do with it. Don’t listen to my wife; she's been known to lie.”

That has Laney laughing, a guilty-as-charged look on her face.

I glance at Hadley, who’s distracted by Kit as she chews on the pom-pom to her boots. “Hadley, how long since you opened Midnight Proof?”

Smiling proudly, she says, “I bought it the year I turned thirty. Best thing I ever did. It took some work renovating the shithole into what it is now. I had to gut the entire building and ended up renting the upper half to the girls from Crescent de Lune.”

“Great coffee,” I add.

She points at me, oh-so-serious. “Great fucking coffee.”

“Amen,” Laney says.

“Most of the building is Midnight Proof. And there’s a top floor pied-à-terre specifically designed for one-night slams.”

“Stands,” Laney corrects, just as Ace comes into the kitchen.

Hadley pops a raspberry in her mouth. “Sometimes standing is fun. But”—she sighs—“I prefer a good ol’ slam.” She winks, and I can’t help but laugh.

“Totally appropriate conversations happening in here among the girls,” Ace says as he pulls down rocks glasses from one of the cabinets.

Hadley doesn’t miss a beat. “You’re going to have to do a little more than roll your eyes and grind those teeth, if you want to call me your girl, Daddy.”

Laney and I look at each other, eyes wide. I keep my facial expression neutral because, as much as I want to laugh, Ace looks unamused, and Hadley looks like she’s ready to word spar.

“I said THE girls, Hadley,” he says, walking over to the counter to bring the fruit salad that Laney just finished to the other room.

“You sure about that? Sometimes people in their elder years tend to forget what they’ve just said.” She smiles coyly, head tilted like she’s the picture of innocence.

“And sometimes mouthy brats—” he cuts himself off as Laney and I barely bite back our smiles.

Hadley is still standing there, staring at the doorway that he just walked out of, looking like she’s in awe for a solid ten-Mississippi seconds. “You heard that, right? Like, my brain didn’t short circuit from seeing him in that friggin’ pair of Wranglers tonight. WRANGLERS!” she whisper-shouts to Laney. “And he called me amouthybrat. What the actual fuck?”

Chuckling, I glance at Laney for some kind of explanation, but she just shakes her head as she lifts the dish of French toast and brings it out to the three-season patio.

The cool night air hits me as soon as we step into the living space. I find Lincoln immediately, and before I can make any moves, Kit stretches her front paws on my legs. “Hi, pretty girl. Did you enjoy your bone?”

She barks a response I’m assuming is a yes as Lily slides over to us.

“Did she just answer you?” Lily asks.

“She’s very smart,” I say, rubbing her ears as she leans into it. “Aren’t you? You’re a very smart lady.”

“Faye, can I sit next to you? I want to show you a trick.”

Lark doesn’t seem to be interested; in fact, she’s given me the stink eye since I came in.

I look up and find Lincoln watching me with Lily. Despite what’s happened between the two of us, I haven’t forgotten what he said about not wanting me anywhere near his family. I understand why he’s so protective.

I mouth out,Is this okay?

He doesn’t answer right away, just watches with a stoic glare for a few extra beats before he gives a nod.

Griz cuts in, “The guest of honor gets to sit next to the oldest man in the room.” It throws me off for a second to be so welcomed. He nods to his right, where there’s an empty chair waiting. When I sit, he says, “Glad you decided to join us for dinner.”

My cheeks heat at the nice words.

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