Sidney laughs and hugs me back. “Avery, it’s so good to see you!”
“Awh, a reunion . If I’d known, I would have brought dip.” Trystan leans back in his chair and kicks his feet up onto the table. He’s wearing an old pair of black Chucks. Blue argyle socks peek out from beneath his dark jeans. The hem is shredded in places, along with one of the knees. That silver ring around his neck is out of sight, but the chain is still visible.
Sidney snaps at him as she releases me. “Shut up, Trystan. Anyone that’s had to put up with Sean—”
He drops his feet to the ground, leans forward and grabs my hand, thrusting it toward Sidney so she can see my ring. “No, not put up, tamed—this chick tamed the jackass known as Sean Ferro.”
Sidney’s jaw drops and she takes my hand from Trystan and then looks up into my face. “Oh my God! He asked you to marry him?”
I can’t help it. For a moment, I forget about all the horrible things that have happened and smile at her. “Yes, he did.”
“When?”
“Tonight.”
Sidney squeals and jumps up and down. Since she’s holding my hand, I jump with her. Trystan has his arms folded over his chest and watches us. There’s no one else around, but I hear voices. I glance about and ask her, “Why are you here?”
“Because Peter’s here. His brother bought this place and shouldn’t have—at least that’s what Pete said—so Sean did something to make it like it never happened. Jonathan just has to sign some papers, but he doesn’t want to.”
We step apart and I look over at Trystan, not understanding why he’s here. He leans his chair back on two legs and raises a finger, “Best friend of the accused. And for the record, I think Jon should do whatever the fuck he wants. God knows Sean does.”
“So, you know Sean?” I ask. From the way Trystan speaks, it sounds like they’ve met more than once.
He glances up at me from under those dark eyebrows and nods. “Yup. He hates my guts.” My lips part to say that can’t possibly be true, but Trystan smiles and shakes his head, making his long, dark hair fall in his eyes.
He pushes it back and lets the legs of his chair slam down. “It’s okay, the feeling is mutual. You don’t have to apologize for him. It’s just the way things are, besides, you impressed the hell out of me. Anyone that can domesticate Sean Ferro deserves a statue and a holiday named after them.” Trystan jumps up and crosses the room to the bar, grabbing shot glasses, and a bottle of amber liquid. He walks it over to our table and sets it down. “Let’s celebrate.”
Sidney looks back at the closed door at the back of the room. “But, they could be done at any moment.”
Trystan shakes his head. “Nah, they’re going to be in there for a while. Cassie’s back there, and there’s no way in hell that Jon is going to sign the papers. I’ll be shocked if he caves in, especially in front of her. It’s going to be a long night. Drink up.” Trystan pours three shots and slides glasses towards Sidney and me.
“To the impossible.” He holds up his drink, waiting for us to clink his glass.
Fuck it. God knows I could use a drink. My nerves are frayed beyond belief and if I think too much, I’m going to turn into a weeping mess. I pluck the glass from the table and look over at Sidney, knowing that she doesn’t drink very much. “Knock it back fast.”
Sidney sucks in way too much air, and lifts the glass. She’s nervous. The three of us tap our shot glasses together and throw back the liquor. Trystan acts like it’s water and gulps it, expressionless. My nose scrunches up as the liquor burns its way down my throat, and poor Sidney doesn’t slam it back fast enough. The alcohol must have grabbed her tonsils, because she makes the most god-awful face and chokes, but somehow the little cup is empty. She hacks up a lung as I pat her back.
When Sidney looks up at me, she’s laughing. “Yeah, I tried to sip it.” The way she acts brings back memories of the first time I met her. There’s something about Peter’s fiancée that is so sweet and innocent. I envy her in that moment and assume she’s had an easy life, but the thought stumbles. There’s been something dark there, too—a reason why Peter asked Sean for help, and it had something to do with Sidney.
Trystan pushes his hair out of his face and pours another round. “You guys are going to be sisters-in-law, which makes me your new best-friend-in-law.” He glances at me and pushes my drink my way, as his lips take on the amused smirk that he wore at the door. “So, tell me, how’d you get Sean Ferro wrapped around your little finger?” That’s when things start to get interesting.