“Blake, you’ve certainly done well for yourself,” I said. We were in Blake and Alice’s first franchised bar. “I think I like it even more than the ones you have in San Francisco.”

“Location’s great,” Blake agreed. “If things work out here, we’re going to green light the opening of two more.”

The bar was on the rooftop of a five-story building, overlooking the beach. Paige and I had arrived early, along with Jace.

The three of us were perched on stools in front of the bar, and Blake was behind it. The rest of the family would be filtering in soon.

“Impressive,” Paige said. “You also own restaurants, right? Do you plan to franchise those as well?”

Blake nodded. “Yes, we do. Eventually. We actually wanted to start by franchising the restaurants, but quality control is more hassle, and profit margins are higher for bars, so we’ll stick to them for now. What can I get you to drink?”

Jace was studying the menu. “I’m usually not a cocktail kind of guy, but these look good.”

Paige propped an elbow on the bar and parked her chin in her palm. “Aren’t you supposed to stay away from sugary things during the season? Val wouldn’t give you dessert yesterday at dinner.”

“You’ve been around my sisters for too long,” Jace grumbled. “One drink won’t throw away my diet. But I’d better have it before the rest of the gang arrives. I can’t fight off everyone at the same time.”

Paige grinned. “I can still tell on you.”

Jace turned to me. “Will you have my back at some point?”

By way of answering, I drew my chair closer to Paige’s and kissed her bare shoulder. “Brother, I’m protecting my own interests. I’m with Paige on this one.”

She gave me a warm smile, looking at me with those soulful eyes. I’d felt a change in her over the past few days, a reticence that hadn’t been there before, and I couldn’t help thinking that she might be sensing my own turmoil. Ever since my accident, the idea that I might not be what Paige needed in her life wouldn’t leave me. Seeing her so hurt at the hospital gutted me. I’d watched her walk away from a job she loved to dedicate herself to a project that was dear to her, all with little hesitation, even though it was a big change. She’d been threatened with a knife that night at the restaurant, and she hadn’t even shed a tear. Paige was a strong, tough woman, and yet she’d been inconsolable at the hospital. I’d put her through that, and the thought did not sit well with me. I wasn’t sure what to do about it either.

“Blake, where is the ladies’ room?” Paige asked. My cousin gave her instructions, and she hopped off the chair, swinging those sinful hips as she crossed the bar.

As Blake prepared Jace’s drink, I noticed my brother was scrutinizing me.

“What crawled up your ass?” he asked.

I pointed at my arm, which was still bandaged. He didn’t buy it.

“No, it’s something else too. You haven’t tried to make even one lousy bet with me since you arrived, and you’ve almost been mute.”

“Just give him an hour,” Blake interjected. “We’ll get some cocktails into him. That’ll loosen his tongue.”

“So just because I don’t fight you for air time, it means something is wrong?” I would be annoyed if he wasn’t spot-on. In my family, nonverbal communication was more telling than actual words.

“Are things between you and Paige okay?” Jace went straight in for the kill. I wasn’t sure what to answer, but Jace picked up on my hesitation.

“They’re not,” he said. A statement, not a question.

Blake shoved a cocktail in front of Jace.

“Things have been off,” I said reluctantly. “I’m not sure this is the right thing—”

Blake cleared his throat. Jace turned in his seat and straightened as if he’d been electrocuted. I turned a second later. Shit. Paige had returned from the bathroom. And by the red color in her cheeks, she’d overheard at least part of the conversation.

“I’m going in the back to sort through some supplies that were delivered this morning,” Blake said smoothly.

“I’ll give you a hand,” my brother added. They went out quietly. Paige hadn’t moved. I walked over to her, despite the fact that she was shaking her head.

“Paige, I’m not sure what you heard.”

“Everything you told Jace.” Her voice was steely. “And I have to say, I always thought you’d have the guts to tell me to my face if something was wrong.”

I swallowed, searching for the right words. “Paige, there’s nothing wrong, per se... I just....”

I reached out a hand, but she stepped back, crossing her arms over her chest. I pointed to the bandaged arm, trying to find the right words. The trouble was, I didn’t know what the right words were. I wanted Paige in my life more than I wanted anything else, but I felt guilty for having put her through a lot of worry. “At the hospital, you were so worried. That pain I saw on your face... to know I caused it pains me. I’m afraid you’ll come to resent me for it.”

She dropped her hands by her sides. “I was scared. So what? It’s human. You said so yourself.”

Her walls were up. I saw it in the defensive stance, in the slight change in her pupils. I’d seen it countless times when people were brought in for questioning and they were putting on a poker face, hoping we wouldn’t see past it. 

“Yes, it is human. You feel everything deeply, Paige. You love hard, you fight hard. And I’m afraid you’ll resent me, that you’ll come to think I’m not right for you,” I repeated, then shut my mouth.

I was making things worse. Absolutely worse. Paige crossed her arms again, averting her gaze. When I made to touch her shoulder, she pulled back yet again.

“I think all that pain medicine has affected your ability to think clearly. If you ever get your head out of your ass and decide to make sense again, come talk to me. I’ll be staying at the inn.” She rearranged the strap of her bag on her shoulder. “Tell everyone else I had an emergency and I couldn’t stay.”

“Paige!”

She whirled on her heels, rushing out the front door of the bar. I recovered from my stunned stupor a few seconds later. What had I just done? Was I an idiot?

Judging by the fact that I was barely restraining myself from going after her, throwing her over my good shoulder, and bringing her back, the answer was a resounding yes. But I also wanted her to have no regrets. Right now every instinct told me to go after Paige, wrap my arms around her, and apologize for the fool I’d been, for hurting her. Somehow I managed to return to the counter, fighting my own instincts. Going after her right now was the worst thing I could do. I wasn’t thinking clearly, and I’d upset her. 

“Well, that was the most stupid thing I’ve ever heard,” Jace said. 

I turned around. Blake and Jace and had just returned.

“You overheard us?”

Jace knocked against the wall separating the front area from the back. It sounded hollow.

“Thin walls, cousin,” Blake explained.

“And you weren’t exactly whispering,” Jace added. “So... what was that all about? I’ll tell you right off the bat, I’m siding with Paige.”

I rubbed my hands up and down my face, sitting on a barstool. Jace joined me, and Blake poured bourbon in a glass, threw in some ice, then slid the drink to me.

“It’s five o’ clock in the afternoon,” I pointed out. “Early for hard liquor.”

“Said no one ever. Besides, you just let that woman walk out of here. Clearly you need this,” Blake countered.

Jace nodded. “Keep them coming. Maybe he’ll get smarter once he’s drunk. Or we’ll be able to knock some sense into him.”

Blake had taken out the good stuff. Two glasses later, I was already feeling every muscle in my body relax, and I wasn’t drunk.

“Cousin, I heard everything you’ve said, and it still doesn’t make sense,” Blake concluded after I explained my reasoning.

Jace jerked his thumb in Blake’s direction. “I agree. Sounds to me like you jumped the gun.”

“You two are driving me insane.”

Jace shook his head. “No, you drove yourself insane all on your own. We’re just pointing out the crazy.”

Blake’s phone buzzed, and he excused himself, walking in the back to answer it.

I spun the empty glass, eyeing the bottle.

“You can’t control everything in life, Will,” Jace said quietly. “I know you’d like to, we all would, but most of the time you just have to trust that things will work out.”

It was easy to rebuff my brother when he was being loud and obnoxious, but I knew he was speaking from a place of concern right now. When Jace dished advice, I paid attention.

“In soccer, we train and prepare, but when we go out on the field, all we can do is play the game. Paige is one hell of a woman. She’s smart, and she’s crazy about you. Don’t let her go.”

Blake returned and made to pour me another drink, but I shook my head, moving the glass out of his reach.

“On a scale from one to ten, how sharp are your groveling skills?” Blake inquired. “Because I’m the Bennett expert at it, and I don’t mind sharing my knowledge to help out a brother, or a cousin. I’m happily married, but I stuffed up royally before I got where I am.”

“I don’t need—”

“Minus fifteen. He’s clueless,” Jace filled him in. “Actually, so am I, so shoot. I’ll be taking mental notes for later. I’m sure I’ll be needing them at some point.” 

I squinted at my brother. “I thought you were happy with your bachelor status.”

“Some habits just get old,” Jace said with a half smile and a wink. “Wait until Lori, Val, and Hailey arrive. They’ll hand you your ass. And I’ll be cheering them on.”