Chapter Seventeen
Hayden
I nodded to Drake’s bartender, Crete, as I walked through the bar toward his office. “You feeling better?”
“Yeah, much better. I asked Drake if I could come in for a couple of hours to work. Doc Fritz said I wasn’t contagious. Just some sinus issues.” Crete was a good guy. He’d lost his dad in the same logging accident that had taken Alexa’s father. Now he helped support his mom and siblings. The guy had a heart of gold.
“Good to hear. Keep feeling better.”
“I will, man. Thanks. Drake is in the back.”
“Thanks.”
When I opened the door, Alexa was grabbing her purse.
She gave me a grin. “Hey, Hayden.”
“Hey, Lex.” I scooped her up, eliciting a laugh. When I turned to face Drake, he had a scowl on his face. One, he hated anyone else calling her Lex, and two, he was a bit possessive and didn’t approve of the over-the-top hugs… which is why I did it as often as possible.
I set Alexa down and draped my arm over her shoulders. “You’re engaged to the man, and he still can’t stand it.”
Alexa laughed. “You’re incorrigible.”
“Stop being an asshole.” Drake pointedly stared at me.
I raised an eyebrow. “I’ll stop on one condition.”
Drake folded his arms across his chest. “And that is?”
“No more Boo Boo Bear. And make sure Kane stays off my ass about it, too.”
Drake said nothing, just sat there with a smirk.
I pulled Alexa in for another hug. “I think I might just start calling you Lex all the time.”
Alexa mashed her lips together, and Drake shook his head. “Deal. But you stop all that shit from now on.”
“Deal.”
That was easier than I’d expected. The nickname was funny coming from Kory… not my brothers, who would give me shit until the day I died.
Alexa patted my shoulder. “I’m going to let you boys have some man time. I have a proposal for Kory and want to talk to her about her wedding ideas. We’re doing a Christmas wedding.” She pointed at Drake. “Behave yourself.”
He walked around the desk. “I’ll walk you out. I’ll be right back, dickhead.”
“Okay, princess.”
He flipped me the bird as he walked out the door. Getting under his skin never got old. Never. Taking a seat, I waited for Drake and let Kory know I had stopped to see my brother first. A couple of minutes later, he walked back in with a tray of food. The smells reminded me of how hungry I was. The last time I’d eaten was yesterday at lunch.
Drake set it down in front of me. “You’re lucky I didn’t spit in it.”
“Dude, you make it too easy to aggravate you.”
“Yeah, well now that you’ve got a girl, you’ll see how it feels.”
“We’ll see.”
Drake took a seat, nodding in a way that clearly said, Yeah, we will. Shit. “So, you’ll be a married man in about two months.”
“It can’t come soon enough. Thank fuck Lex finally told me why she was stalling on picking a date.”
I was ravenous. I took a bite of the burger and sighed. Amazing. “Why’s that?” I asked around a mouthful of food.
“She was nervous about asking Dad to walk her down the aisle since I’d mentioned asking him to be best man. I should have realized it. We asked Dad, and he said he’d be honored. And we’re keeping it simple. Kory suggested we get married at Lex’s family’s house. We love the idea.”
“Wow, a lot happened while I was away.”
“Yeah. I got to meet Kory last night and saw her again this morning. I like her. Lex adores her.”
I had forgotten Drake stopped by to meet her. He was protective of Alexa and probably wanted to check out Kory, which I understood.
“I’m glad you like her. Means a lot to have the support of the family.” Before things got too emotional, I changed the subject. “Hell, those text messages last night.”
Drake laughed. “Fuck, they were funny.”
“Yeah, they were.”
He leaned back in his chair. “So, what’s going on?”
My brother was never one to beat around the bush. He said what was on his mind and didn’t mince words. Drake had been an old soul for as long as I could remember.
I took a swig of beer to wash down the burger. “This thing with Kory has me in knots. I don’t know… it’s just… I’m a wreck. I’ve never had a girlfriend—not like a real girlfriend, where it mattered. When she came back here, we started over. After last night, she’s giving signals to move forward, which is a hell of a lot faster than I planned. She might think she’s ready, but I think we need more time.”
“Her parents sound like assholes. How’s she coping?”
“They are. Everything about us isn’t conventional. Yes, we like each other, love each other. But we’re not to marriage proposal stage yet. I don’t know. It’s just so complicated.”
Drake took a drink of his own beer. “Relationships are like that. Lex and I had to deal with her mother and sister, who hated me. Then all the shit when Lex’s dad died. Are you afraid about what could happen if things don’t work out?”
Maybe that was what scared me. I hadn’t thought about it. “Well, yeah… I mean, I love her. She loves me. But we’ve never been in love before. Hell, I’m not making sense. I want her to see how much I care about her. Make it special. Then I worry she’s not going to find what she’s looking for here. What is she going to do here in Skagway? I mean… I just don’t know what I mean.”
For a second, Drake leaned back in his chair and steepled his index fingers under his chin. Finally, he said, “Lex has a proposal she wants Kory to hear. It has potential to be a job—a career.”
“What is it?”
“I can tell you, but do you want to know or do you want to let Kory tell you?”
He had a point. If I already knew about it, she might think I orchestrated it. I’d wait for Kory to talk to me. “I’ll wait. So… what do I do about my other issue?”
Drake ran his hands through his hair. “When Lex came back to open the clinic, I had no idea how far I should push. How much help I should offer. When I should take it to the next level. What I did know was that Lex had to know I was there for her to support her dreams any way I could.” Drake leaned forward. “You guys will figure it out. And you’ll know when it’s time to take it to the next level.”
“How do you make sure it’s not all about the sex?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. That wasn’t an issue for Lex and me because we had a history. But maybe… you keep waiting for a bit. Plan something that has to wait until a certain date.”
Drake had confirmed what I’d figured I should do.
He added, “If you want to see… take it out of the equation. You’ll either get stronger or…”
We’d fall apart.
I let out a long breath before standing to shake my brother’s hand. “Thanks, Drake.”
“Anytime. Like I’ve told you before… the risk is worth it.”