Page 2 of Break My Heart
‘What? You don’t like it?’
‘Too sour, and it’s got some kind of weird aftertaste.’
‘I know,’ I say with a sigh. ‘I can’t figure it out. I think it might be the spices I added.’
‘Keep working on it. You’ll figure it out.’ He takes a big gulp of his beer, like he’s trying to wash away the taste of the cider.
‘I’m running out of time. The competition is only a few weeks away.’
The hard cider competition happens every year in October. It was started by our parents as a way to bring people to their orchard while also supporting breweries in and around the area. Entrants can only be privately-owned microbreweries, not big commercial breweries. The competition itself is small, but it draws a crowd tothe orchard because we also have a barbecue, food trucks, and live music, making it like a big party. It’s only been going on for five years, but it’s become so popular that it’s been getting a lot of press. And as a new business owner, a lot of press is what I need to make this brewery a success.
‘Drinking already?’ Nick says to Brody as he comes through the door. He’s got a huge smile on his face. It’s good to see him smiling again. When he lived in New York and came back to visit, he was always so serious, and always stressed, like he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. But since quitting his job at the law firm and moving back, he’s like a different person, always smiling and joking around. It’s also Lyndsay making him that way. He lives with her now and the two of them are so in love it’s almost nauseating. Or maybe I’m just jealous. I’d like a girl in my life, but I’ve dated pretty much every girl in town who’s single, close to my age, and hasn’t dated one of my brothers. That’s the problem with a small town. I love it here, but finding someone to date is nearly impossible.
‘I’m done for the day,’ Brody says to Nick. ‘I thought I’d stop in and give Sawyer some business.’
‘Thanks, but you’re not the kind of business I want,’ I tell him. ‘I need paying customers.’
Nick walks up to the bar and takes out his wallet. He sets a twenty on the counter. ‘Give me the pale ale.’
‘You’re not paying me,’ I say as I go to get his beer. ‘You’re family. You get all the free beer you want.’
‘Then call it an investment,’ Nick says. ‘I’m investing in your business.’
‘And expecting what kind of return?’ I hand him his beer. ‘More free beer? Because that’s probably all you’ll get if business keeps up like this.’
‘Works for me.’ He takes a sip of his beer. ‘Sawyer, this is really good.’
‘Yeah, I think it might be my best one.’
‘Maybe Mom and Dad should change the contest to a pale ale competition instead of hard cider,’ Brody jokes.
‘Yeah, I know it sucks. I’m working on it.’
‘You’re having trouble with the cider?’ Nick asks.
‘I can’t get the flavor right.’ I grab the pitcher of hard cider and pour some in a glass. ‘Try it. Let me know what you think.’
Nick drinks it and coughs. Brody bursts out laughing.
‘Thanks a lot, assholes.’ I walk to the end of the bar where I have the list of cider ingredients I’ve tried that haven’t worked.
‘It’s not horrible,’ Nick says. ‘It’s just really sour. I wasn’t expecting that. It kind of burned my throat.’
Brody laughs again.
‘Would you stop?’ I walk over to Brody. ‘If you think it’s that funny, thenyoutrying making it. It’s not the same as making beer. It’s like making wine. I even had to get a wine license to sell it.’
‘Dude, I don’t think you want to be selling that,’ Brody says. ‘You think this place is empty now .?.?.’ He looks around at the empty room.
‘I’m not selling it. I’m just saying.’ I blow out a frustrated breath. ‘I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing. Why did I think I could open a brewery?’
‘Hey!’ Nick sets his beer down. ‘You better not be thinking of quitting after all the time and money you put into this place.’
‘Why? You put time and money into law school and now you’re running the orchard.’
‘I didn’t like being a lawyer. That’s why I quit. You don’t quit something you love, and you love this brewery. You love making the beer. You love bartending, interacting with all the customers.’
‘What customers?’ I point behind him. ‘The place is empty.’
