Real Men Will (Donovan Brothers Brewery 3)

“Cairo,” Beth said, leaning forward to touch her friend’s arm. “I told Davis I’d hang around, but I’m exhausted. I need to go home and get some sleep. Will you tell him I’m sorry? Really sorry?”

“Sure. Are you okay? You’ve been a little off lately.”

“I’m fine. Just running on empty. But this was fun. Thank you so much for inviting me.” She tried to catch Davis’s eye, but he was watching the singer intently for cues, and he didn’t look up as Beth left.

She’d learned something important six months ago, but the lesson was starting to fade. She was capable of utter sexual completion. She could have that feeling she’d been chasing for so many years. The key was listening to her body. It didn’t matter how good a man looked on paper or even how interesting she found him. The thing that had always been missing from her life was chemistry.

She’d found it with Eric. She could find it again with someone else. But maybe what she needed was a refresher course. A reminder of just what that spark felt like when it exploded into flames and licked over her whole body.

A shiver stole over her as she stepped outside. Her nipples peaked, but she didn’t think it had anything to do with the crisp air. It was the thought of having that again. Of losing

herself in pleasure.

Why the hell had they decided on one night, anyway? Why couldn’t they have more than that? Why couldn’t they do what other single adults did, and use each other when the need arose? It didn’t have to mean anything more.

His lie hung over her like a warning, but what the hell did his name have to do with what he’d done to her body? Nothing. Nothing at all.

Beth pictured Eric’s card where she’d left it on her coffee table. She thought about calling him. Wondered what he would say. And this time, the adrenaline that pumped into her veins wasn’t urging her to run away at all.

ANOTHER EXCRUCIATINGLY tense day at the office had left Eric with what felt like a permanent scowl on his face. His only relief had been the chance to finally get caught up on the bottling, and that noisy, busy room had been his saving grace. Tessa had dared his mood several times, but even she’d finally given up. Jamie hadn’t even looked in his direction.

At least Eric’s knuckles had stopped aching, which was a nice relief from the constant reminder that he’d hit his little brother in the face.

Eric was just taking his first deep breath of the day as he turned onto his street, but when he pulled up to his condo, he saw Tessa’s car parked at the curb. When he saw that Jamie was sitting on his tiny porch, Eric groaned. What the hell was this? Some sort of bad mood intervention? He considered making a run for it.

But then his lights hit Tessa’s windshield and, through the rain, he noticed that she was still in her car. That was strange enough to make him pull up and roll down his window. Rain pelted his face as he waited for Tessa to put down her window and talk to him.

“What’s going on?” he called out.

“We need to talk this out!” she shouted.

“I’m not up for this right now.”

“Too bad!” She rolled up her window to prevent any further discussion, so Eric just sighed and pulled into his small attached garage.

But when he got out, all he saw of Tessa’s car was the taillights fading into the night.

“Hey!” Jamie shouted, running out into the rain after her. Once her taillights disappeared completely, Jamie stopped and stared after them.

When he finally trudged back to the porch, Jamie was glaring at Eric as though he might be considering starting another fistfight.

“What the hell is going on?” Eric demanded.

“I have no fucking idea. Tessa drove me over here, going on and on about how we all needed to make up. But when I got out of the car, she locked the doors and wouldn’t let me back in.”

“She locked you out?”

“And now she just left me here!”

“That little brat,” Eric growled. “She’s trying to force us to spend time together.”

“I’ll call Olivia.”

Eric rolled his eyes. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’ll give you a ride. Surely we can stand to sit in the same car for five minutes.”

“Or I could just walk,” Jamie muttered.

Eric jerked his head toward the car. A few seconds later, Jamie finally gave in and headed into the garage. But when Eric got in, he didn’t start the car right away. Jamie shifted uneasily.