Page 28 of Wreck Me
Megan didn’t strike him as the type that would go all stalker like on his brother, but people were weird when it came to stars sometimes. He’d had to lend Del a hand in an official capacity more than once in town when the tourists came to call.
“You met Charley, but there’s also Grace and Amelia. They’re like Irish twins, although they couldn’t be more different.” He smiled thinking of his sisters. “Grace is a kindergarten teacher at one of the local elementary schools. She’s perfect for it. The calm during a storm.”
“And Amelia?”
“Amelia owns the bakery in town, The Sweet Spot.”
“Hey, I saw that the other day before my accident. I wanted so bad to go in, but I’d stuffed myself at the deli.”
“I’ll have to take you in. But fair warning, Amelia likes to ask a million questions and can be a ball-busting loudmouth if the mood strikes. But she’s smart as hell and making a name for herself with the bakery. Not that she needs it. She used to be a chef at some fancy-pants restaurant in New York for a couple of years.”
“Wow, really? What happened?” She closed her eyes and shook her head. “You know what? Don’t answer that. It’s none of my business. I’m sorry.”
Even in the moonlight, the flush on her face was evident.
“It’s okay. If you were to ask Amelia, she’d tell you. She burned out. Said she didn’t want to live her life in that cutthroat world.”
“I can understand that,” Megan said, her voice barely above a whisper. She sipped her beer and looked up at the sky. “It’s so beautiful out tonight. I haven’t seen stars like this in years.”
“Too much city living?”
Her mouth quirked up on one side. “You could say that. I can’t remember the last time I was outside at night in such darkness for no reason other than to just be. Or hang out. If I was out during the evening, it was usually on the way to some sort of charity function or something.”
His eyes slid over the pale curve of her neck, and his gut tightened watching her long, dark hair fall in a straight curtain down her back and brush across her ass.
Jesus, she was gorgeous.
And he couldn’t stop the thoughts that flashed through his mind of wrapping all that hair in his fist while he took her from behind.
He sipped his beer to cool the fire raging in his blood. “So what does your brother do? You said he lined up a job for you?”
She rubbed a hand down a thigh. “He owns a sports bar in Cape Sands, Florida. And I’m going to run it.”
The pieces started to click together. “Now I see why you’re happy to work at the Silver Moon.”
“I’ve worked in bars before as a server and a bartender. It’s great money when you’ve got a good client base. I worked in some high-end bars in Nashville before I got married.”
It didn’t take a detective to put the puzzle pieces together. “He made you quit work?”
Her lips pursed before she looked at him with a smirk. “More like implied I should quit. My ex’s family is old Southern money in the elite part of Nashville. Debutantes and all. My family was upper middle class, but his family was a whole other world. I turned out to be nothing but a pawn. He only married me to make his mother happy.”
Aidan had many things he wanted to say as his blood boiled, but she wasn’t deflecting anymore, so he kept his mouth shut. She sipped her beer before continuing. “Anyway, me being a bartender, even in the city’s most exclusive club where drink tabs could run more than some people make in a month, was unseemly for the family name. So I quit, thinking that would get me in the good graces. Unfortunately—or maybe fortunately now—my ex didn’t realize that he had to quit dating other women while he was married.”
Her sigh was heavy before she continued. “The truth is I didn’t love him. I was in love with a fantasy. That’s always been my problem. I’m in love with love. So I constantly pick the wrong guys. Something Nate has always told me, but I didn’t listen.” She straightened her shoulders. “So now I’m determined to stay single for a while and give the whole love thing and guys a break. It’s been nothing but trouble for me.”
Shouldn’t he be glad to hear that? Megan was off-limits anyway, so shouldn’t the fact that she was on a guy hiatus bring him some relief? So why didn’t it?
Shut that shit down, Reynolds. We’ve been over this.
“And that’s why you’re headed to Florida. For your fresh start.”
“Yep.” She looked out over the lake, her booted feet swinging over water. “I’m lucky Nate hasn’t rubbed all this mess in my face too much and is giving me a chance at starting over.”
Something tickled in his brain about the name. Why did his name sound familiar? “Do you and your brother have the same last name? Gentry?”
She leaned away from him and watched his face for a moment before frowning. “Shit. Let me guess. You watch baseball?”
He narrowed his eyes and nodded his head when it hit him as to why he knew the name. “Holy shit. Your brother is Nate Gentry?”
