Page 33 of Fairground

“What can I get you two to drink tonight?” she asks with a warm smile.

“I’ll take one of the Whitewood Creek beers. Whatever you think is best,” I respond, figuring it’s best to stick with something I know Cash would approve of.

She jots it down, takes Laken’s order, and then pauses, doubling back to me.?

“Cash isn’t here tonight,” she says casually, like that’s information I was dying to know.

To the surprise of no one, I was.

“Oh… okay.” My voice is steady, but internally, I’m panicking.

Is it that obvious that I was scanning the room for him? I adjust my shirt, tugging it slightly higher, suddenly self-conscious by the amount of cleavage that I'm showing to this town full of people that I’m trying to impress.

“Just in case you were here to work on planning stuff with him,” she adds with a knowing nod.

“Oh, I wasn’t. My sister and I are hanging tonight,” I lie, plastering on a forced smile as she walks away with another nod.

The second she’s out of earshot, Laken kicks me under the table, hard enough to make me jump.

“Thank you for leaving me hanging there,” I hiss through gritted teeth.

She laughs. “You looked like you wanted to die when she mentioned Cash’s name.”

“I did not.”

She sips her water. “You most definitely did. Does his name really impact you that much? I mean, you’re totally blushing right now.”

I open my mouth to tell her no and to drop it, but suddenly our server is back at my side.

“Sorry, honey, did you say you wanted loaded cheese fries or just the regular?”

My stomach growls and though I know without a doubt that I want the loaded cheese fries I also know that the difference in calories and the time of night means I should stick with the regular fries.

“Regular is fine.”

She nods and scribbles that down on her pad. “You got it. By the way, isn’t he the best? Honestly, the nicest of the Marshalls, too, which makes working under him so much easier.”

My forced smile tightens, and I nod along, trying not to show that talking about Cash makes me uncomfortable while she blushes and heads off this time for good.

“Workingunder him?” I whisper-shout at Laken.

She rolls her eyes, already amused. “You know what she meant.”

“No... I don’t think I do. Is Cash here right now? Hovering over the top of the bar like some sort of ghost?”

She snorts. “It’s a figure of speech.”

“She could have said working for him and I would have understood her point. She’s totally sleeping with Cash or has in the past.”

“And so, what if she is?” she raises a brow at my sudden interest.

Before I can spiral further into that conversation, another woman approaches the table while balancing our two beers. Herpiercing light blue eyes remind me of the sky in the summer, and her dark, auburn hair is pulled back into a high, bouncy ponytail. She’s wearing a white tank top with the wordsWhitewood Creek Brewery and Restaurantstretched across the front and a big smile.

“Hi there! I have your drinks,” she chirps as she plops the two frosted glasses down on the table in front of us.

“Hi, Regan!” Laken hops up to hug her, and the name clicks almost instantly. Cash’s sister.

When they pull apart, Regan smiles warmly at me. “Hi, Rae. Sorry I haven’t had a chance to introduce myself to you yet. I’m Regan Marshall, Cash’s sister.”

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