Page 20 of Lucky in Love
“I could use a beer and a bathroom,” he said, picking up his suitcase.
“I don’t have beer, but we can get some in town on the way to the restaurant.”
She led him up the path, past the office, to her cabin. He cursed twice, stumbling on the trail, seemingly out of sorts. Then again, she’d only known him for five days. Maybe this was his personality.
They dropped his stuff, and he used the restroom. Then they headed out to explore Whispering Pines. They stopped by the office, she showed off the new rec cabin, and introduced him to Daisy at the waterfront.
He said all the right things, but his tone and mannerisms belied his words. A thin layer of impatience and condescension underpinned his compliments.
“You wanna take the canoes out?” she asked. “It’s a gorgeous day for it.”
“Nah,” he said.
“Okay, well, we have time for a walk around the lake before dinner.”
“Why don’t we head into town early and grab a drink?”
“Yeah, all right.”
After stopping at the Kitchen Kart for a couple of six-packs—which seemed excessive considering Alex didn’t drink beer and he was only here for forty-eight hours—they headed to The Rusty Nail. He’d popped the top and downed a can before she pulled into the parking lot.
“I can’t believe how small the town is,” Drake said. And not in an “it’s so cute,” or “how quaint,” kind of way. It was more of a “how do you live like this?” vibe.
“You get used to it,” Alex said, pausing for a second at the door, giving him a chance to open it for her. When he didn’t make a move to do so, she pulled it open and entered ahead of him.
Was she putting too much pressure on this? On him? Had she set her expectations too high? They’d only spent a few days together and, really, barely knew each other. Had jumping into a long-distance relationship been hasty? Maybe. Maybe not. She’d use the weekend to get to know him and go from there. So far, he hadn’t scored many points.
In the time they waited for her friends to arrive, he drank two beers to her one glass of wine. They talked about his job, her ongoing remodel issues, the escaped fugitive still at large, and reminisced about their time together in New York City.
The beer seemed to loosen him up, and the jovial, easy-going Drake she’d hung out with in NYC finally emerged. Just in time for her gang to pour in.
When she made introductions, she noticed Drake’s gaze lingered on Faith’s legs a little longer than polite. Nick didn’tmiss it either and shot Drake a glare, sliding a possessive arm around Faith’s waist. When they were shown to a table, Nick pulled out a chair for Faith on the opposite side of where Drake sat.
“Can you believe they still haven’t caught this Dexter guy?” Tess asked. “Supposedly, someone saw him in Meredith. That’s one town away from here.”
“You guys need some NY detectives up here,” Drake said. “We’d find this dude in a heartbeat.”
He probably hadn’t meant to offend, but Nick’s lips pursed and his brow narrowed. As a former FBI agent and now the local sheriff, he seemed to take offense on behalf of all New Hampshire law enforcement.
“Hey,” Nick said. “Isn’t that Brody at the bar? I’m gonna go say hi. Order for me, will ya, hon?” He planted a lingering kiss on Faith’s lips.
“Oh,” Faith said, surprised. Nick didn’t normally engage in public displays of affection. “Sure, babe.”
“I suppose a kiss is better than peeing a circle around her,” Alex mumbled. Drake was on her right and didn’t hear her, but Tess, who sat to her left, heard it and laughed.
It embarrassed Alex that it was her boyfriend bringing out a jealous side of Nick. Three beers might make him more fun, but apparently less tactful too.
“I hope they catch him soon,” Alex said. “I’m getting a crap ton of cancellations because of it.” And by crap ton, she meantallof them. Brody was currently the only tenant, and he was leaving in a few days. She didn’t want Drake to know that though.
“I mean…can you blame them?” Juliet said. “Would you want to stay in a secluded cabin with a murderer in the woods nearby?”
“That’s literally how every horror movie starts,” Tess said.
“I doubt he’s actually in Meredith,” Faith said. “You know how people tend to see what they want and sometimes exaggerate.”
“In New York, he would have already shown up on facial recognition cameras,” Drake said, sipping from his fourth beer. “Do you have those here?”
The four women shook their heads. They were saved by the waitress, who’d arrived to take their orders. Alex cringed when Drake ordered another beer.
