"Well?" Amanda demanded as soon as they were settled on the tall bar stools. "Didn't I tell you it would be great?"

"Yes, you're amazing and awesome, and I bow to your brilliance."

Amanda's smile broadened. "And that's why I keep you around."

"Speaking of people to keep around, who's that?" Brooke nodded toward the absolutely gorgeous guy now talking with Jenna.

Amanda turned dutifully toward the broad shouldered hunk of awesomeness with the shaved head and the sleeve of tats revealed by his The Fix on Sixth T-shirt. "Oh, that's Reece. He's the bar's manager. He's also Jenna's boyfriend."

The latter could have gone unsaid. It was obvious in the way he gently caressed her lower back as she spoke to him. And just as obvious in the way she looked at him, as if any minute he wasn't touching her was one minute too long.

Brooke swallowed a lump in her throat as she glanced away. Once upon a time, she'd felt that way. As if any moment without Spencer was a moment that didn't need to exist. As if she didn't need to have any secrets from him, because their love was perfect and pure, and no matter what demons stepped into their path, they'd conquer them together.

Yeah, she'd been an idiot. A young, foolish, trusting idiot.

Beside her, Amanda lifted her hand and signaled to a tall, lanky bartender with an action hero build and clean-cut dark hair. "Hey, Eric. Can I get two Jalapeno Margaritas?"

"No Cosmo?" Eric asked.

"Cam made a JM for me last night, and it was like an orgasm in my mouth." She smiled at Brooke, who wasn't sure if she should laugh or beg Eric to just give her a beer. "Seriously. Once you've had a spicy, hot Jalapeno, you're not going back."

"Oh, my God, Amanda. Remind me why we're friends?"

Amanda winked one dark brown eye. "Because all the rest of your friends are boring and tame."

"Fair enough," Brooke said. "Jalapeno me."

"You got it," Eric said. "Anything to eat?"

"Hell, yeah," Amanda said. "Put in an order of Lasagna Rolls for us. Freaking amazing," she added as an aside to Brooke. "Trust me."

"Got it," Eric said, then moved down the bar.

"He's a total hottie," Amanda whispered. "And he's single. Want me to hook you up?"

"Are you kidding? He's what? Twenty-one." An incredibly hot twe

nty-one, but still.

"He's twenty-five, actually," Amanda said, a little haughtily. "And a very mature twenty-five."

"Oh, really? And do you have personal knowledge of his ... maturity?"

Amanda made a face. "Don't be crass," she said, as Brooke burst out laughing. Amanda talked a good game, but Brooke seriously doubted she saw as much action as her boasting suggested.

"At any rate," Amanda continued, "twenty-five is totally in your range."

"Um, hello? I'm almost thirty."

Amanda flashed her please, girlfriend look. "You're twenty-eight."

"Only five months from twenty-nine. And that makes me almost thirty."

"That makes you bad at math."

"Fine. Whatever. But I'm not sleeping with Eric."

"Sorry, what?" the man in question asked as he slid their drinks in front of them.

Tags: J. Kenner Man of the Month Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net