“You seem to be in a good mood,” Ryker remarks.
“I am,” I admit.
“Things have been going well at work?”
“You can say that.”
Who would have thought that giving Violet hell would be just as fun as trying to seduce her?
Well, it hasn’t been all fun. There were times I felt like I was the one being punished, times when the guilt was so bad it made my stomach hurt. Whenever I saw her on the verge of tears, I wanted to punch myself. If she had cried right in front of me, I probably would have wrapped my arms around her. And earlier in the conference room, it took everything I had to be mean to her and walk away when all I wanted was to have sex with her on top of that conference table. Hot, angry sex. The best kind.
Still, I think it’s only a matter of time before that happens. Or she quits. Either way, I win. So yeah, I guess things have been going well at work.
I take a sip from my fresh martini. “What about you? How are things at work?”
I know we both work in the same building, but we’re on different floors, in different departments—me in Finance, Ryker in Acquisitions. We might as well be living on different planets.
“Good,” he answers. “Things are starting to settle down. I don’t think the company is making any other acquisitions for the rest of the year.”
After all the trouble we all went through to get Odermatt Inc., I didn’t think so either.
“Which means you can take things easy for a while,” I tell him. “Good for you.”
We raise our glasses and let them clink before sipping our respective drinks. As I put my glass down, I see the empty seat next to me and glance at the door to the bar.
“Where’s Ethan, by the way? Is he coming?”
“I thought he sent you a message, too.”
I check my phone. “No. What did he say?”
“That he can’t make it.”
“Because?”
“Guess.”
I only have one in mind. “He’s with Stella?”
Ryker grins. “Bull’s-eye.”
Of course he is. These Friday midnight drinking sessions are supposed to be our time together as brothers, but ever since Ethan found out Stella is pregnant, the stool beside me has been empty more often than not. After Stella gives birth, he might stop coming altogether.
And I understand. He’s starting a family of his own now. I know. I just wish he didn’t leave me and Ryker behind.
“It’s unfair,” I say. “We promised we’d meet each other for drinks every Friday no matter what.”
“And we’ve been doing it for years,” Ryker says. “But we can’t do it forever.”
“Said who?”
“Ethan is going to be a father soon. He’s going to have a family of his own. Of course he’s going to be spending as much time as he can with them.”
“That doesn’t mean he can’t hang out with us anymore. We’re still his brothers.”
“And as his brothers, we’ll always be there to support him when he needs us, regardless of whether or not he goes drinking with us.”
I snort. “You’re too nice, Ryker. Do you know that?”
“And you’re just jealous,” he points out.
“Of Stella because Ethan is spending more time with her?”
That sounds stupid.
“Of Ethan because he has Stella,” Ryker answers.
I fall silent. Am I?
I know the gears in my head have been turning. Ever since Ethan, who I never thought would take romance seriously or fall in love, got together with Stella, I’ve been wondering if the same thing can happen to me. Seeing them so happy together, getting lost in each other’s eyes whenever they look at each other, I’ve started to feel that I’ve been missing something. Yes, I’ve been with a lot of women, but most of them have given me nothing more than a bit of excitement, great sex. That used to be enough, but not anymore. Now, I’ve started to wonder how it would feel to have someone to come home to, someone to laugh with, to climb rocks and cliffs with, to work out at the gym with. Someone to share my life with.
The image of Violet pops into my head. I can just imagine waking up next to her in bed, seeing her curls splayed out on the pillow and playing with a few until she wakes up and gazes at me with her sapphire eyes. I can see us working together in the living room, checking each other’s numbers. Maybe sometimes we’ll argue because she doesn’t like being wrong but then I’ll shut her up by kissing her and we’ll end up having sex on the couch or on the carpet. The scene makes me smile.
But I push it aside. Violet can’t even stand to be in the same room as me. How can she be in my life?
I let out a sigh as I bring my glass to my lips. I guess I am jealous.