Any Time, Any Place(83)

Dalton grabbed her hand and squeezed. She noticed the deliberate looks and nudges from his brothers, as if they'd never seen him with a woman before. "You were really brave," Morgan said. "I think I would've frozen up. When I first met Gandalf and Balin and thought they were Cujos about to tear me to pieces, I couldn't even scream."

Cal laughed. "Trust me, I think you sensed those two beasts would love you to death. I've never known you to back off from fear. You tackled me head-on, didn't you, princess?"

She rolled her eyes and handed Raven a floral-painted wineglass. "I was never afraid of you, Charming. Just irritated."

He kissed her, and Tristan groaned. "Dudes, can't you keep your hands off each other for a minute?"

"No," Cal said.

"I saw the way you played poker," Raven commented. "She played like a badass. If you have balls in poker, you would've definitely taken that guy down."

Morgan puffed up with pride, and Cal grinned.

Brady grabbed a Raging Bitch and settled into one of the Adirondack chairs near the fire pit. "I heard you took him out with two kicks."

"Two kicks and a punch," she said.

"I talked to Xavier this week. He said he's never seen such a talented student. When he heard what you did, the man couldn't speak for a while. I think he was actually tearing up. Ever think about training for American Ninja Warrior?"

Raven laughed and took a sip of wine. Nice. Crisp and dry with a touch of peach and lemon. Long finish. "God, no. I just want to run my bar without assholes bothering me."

"Then what are you doing here with Dalton?" Tristan asked, deadpan.

Dalton glowered. "Funny. As always."




 

 

Raven tried not to smile at the sibling jabs. She'd always wished for a sister or brother, and enjoyed watching them interact. Morgan seemed a core part of the family, as if she'd been with Cal longer than a year. A pang surprised her. She'd never craved belonging somewhere after her father died, because she hadn't believed it was possible to replace what she had.

Until now.

She refocused on the conversation. "Looks like Sydney's running late," Tristan said, swiping a cocktail shrimp from the iced platter. A bucket of oysters sat among mouthwatering treasures like crusty French bread with brie and figs, mini spinach quiches, and a tray of meatballs that looked perfectly browned. Raven loaded up a plate of food and fell into culinary heaven.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you. She can't come," Morgan said.

He frowned. "Why? Is Becca okay?"

"Yes, but Sydney came down with the flu. Poor thing sounded terrible. I told her I'd run over there after dinner, but she insisted she was fine. Said she'd put Becca to bed early and just sleep it off."

In seconds, Tristan's easygoing features grew hard. His voice came out clipped. "And you believed her? Sydney is stubborn, she never wants to bother anyone. She's not going to be able to take care of a five-year-old if she can't even move. I'm going over there."

Morgan's mouth dropped open. "Tristan, I don't think that's a good idea, she probably wants to just stay in bed and sleep. We can check on her later."

Tristan ignored her. He put his glass on the bar and shot his cuffs. Even relaxing before dinner, he looked like he could easily attend a society function in his fitted charcoal suit. "I'll stop at Marty's Deli and get her some chicken soup."

Cal shook his head. "Dude, I don't think it's a good idea to surprise a woman when she's sick."

"I don't care. She needs someone to take care of her. God knows, she's not good at taking care of herself. Good to see you, Raven. Don't bother saving me dinner, Morgan, I'll grab something on the way."

He strode out.

Silence fell. Cal threw up his hands. "Let him go. He's just as stubborn as Sydney."

"Umm, are they friends or something?" Raven asked.

"Or something," Dalton answered. "They dated years back, but it ended badly. Not sure why."

Brady popped a meatball into his mouth. "He's still got it bad for her," he announced. "I hate being in the office with those two. Tension is so thick, you wish they'd just jump each other."

Morgan gasped. "Seriously? I always suspected there was something between them." 

Dalton groaned. "Can we not talk about Tristan and Sydney banging, please? It hurts my head."

Raven laughed. "Why? Did you have a crush on her when you were young?"

Cal waved his hand in the air. "Hell no. Tristan was always possessive of Sydney. Besides, sleeping with my fiancée was bad enough-Dalton didn't need another problem on his head. We ready to eat?"

Raven choked on her wine. "What did you say?"