Page 40 of See It Through
I swiped the tears from the corners of my eyes and grinned at him. “I may have implied Remi’s a big fan of poetry. Tina and Teller apparently took that little tidbit and ran with it.”
Hands on his hips, he shook his head at me. “I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but I can’t in good conscience leave Remi alone with those two—not when you set him up like that.”
“What?” I swiped my hair from my face and waved to Kayla. When she finally looked away, I turned back to my brother. “Come on, Maccie. If he didn’t like the sonnets, he wouldn’t be sitting with them. Besides, he’s got good ol’ Brady over there with him. Surely his tales of glory on the football field have balanced out all the Shakespeare.”
“Nope. Nothing you can say will convince me he’s at that table by choice. I know a hostage when I see one.” He straightened and ran his hand down his front, smoothing out his tee. “I’m going in.”
Cormac was too nice for his own good. Andmine. As kids, if I thought up a devious little prank and he found out, he’d always rat me out. Not because he thought it was wrong. It was because his empathy well was too deep to see someone even mildly uncomfortable.
I peeked around the column, displeased to find Cormac had extricated Remi. They were now at the bar together, ordering drinks. I was so busy watching them, I failed to notice Tina and Teller approaching until they were in front of me, looking pretty damn put out.
“You think you’re so funny, don’t you?” Teller hissed.
“Yeah.” Tina stomped her foot. “You’ve been jealous of us since high school. Like we can help that we’re prettier than you.”
Teller raked her beady little eyes over me. “Maybe if you made an effort, you wouldn’t be so bad. But then you’d be like other girls and little Miss Tomboy can’t have that, can she?”
I looked down at my fitted black tank, jeans, and favorite cowboy boots. I’d showered and changed after work. Had even swiped on lip gloss and mascara.
“I thought I looked cute.” I snapped my fingers. “Dammit. I’ll have to try again next time.”
These women were out of their minds if they thought I should get frilly to play a round of pool with my damn brother. Then again, I wasn’t sure either of them would be caught dead outside without being fully made up. Lip gloss and mascara were so far below their bare minimum they couldn’t even see it.
Tina stepped into my space, poking her finger at me. She was a good eight or nine inches shorter than me, so it lost some of its threat, but I sure didn’t appreciate her aggression. If she didn’t back her ass up, I would have no problem putting her in her place.
“You’re a bitch, Hannah Kelly. Someone’s going to teach you a lesson one of these days.”
Teller grabbed Tina’s bicep, pulling her back. “She’s not worth it, T. She thinks she’s funny, setting us up to make fools of ourselves, but she’s the one who looks foolish.”
I folded my arms over my chest. “If you’re here expecting an apology, the possibility of that flew out the window when you called me a bitch. Why don’t you move along? I’m not interested in reliving high school with you.”
Teller’s eyes narrowed on me, spite pinching her mouth into a pucker. “Tell Watt hi for me. Oh, that’s right, he dumped your ass, didn’t he?”
Tina snorted, her eyes raking over me. “No wonder he stepped out on her. Sleeping with her has to be like sleeping with a dude.”
My mouth fell open as her words landed in my chest. Damn her for hitting me exactly where she knew it would hurt. I couldn’t give a shit about her insulting my style, but I hadn’t quite recovered from the way my ex had screwed me over, so this didn’t roll off my back as easily as I wished it would have.
My fists balled at my sides, though I couldn’t say what I’d planned to do with them since I didn’t get the chance to figure it out.
“All right, all right.” Remi slid in front of me, blocking me from view. “You said what you had to say. Time to move along.”
Tina huffed. “I don’t know why you’re sticking up for her. She did this, you know.”
Teller crowded Remi, poking her stubby finger around him. “You’re a bitch, Hannah.”
“You already said that,” I replied.
A low, guttural squeal emanated from between her gritted teeth. “God, I’m gonna—”
A thick arm banded around her middle, dragging her backward. “That’s enough, Tell.” Her husband, Brady, held her firmly in front of him, a scowl crinkling his doughy face. “Let’s go.”
She tipped her head back, her painted lips pursed. “But, babe, Hannah—”
“Don’t care, babe. You’re not makin’ a scene in the bar I frequent. Time to go home.” He jerked his chin toward the other angry blonde. “Tina, you too. Out of here.Now.”
Brady had never been good for much, but he cleared Tina and Teller out of Joy’s in less than thirty seconds. Only when they were out the door did Remi turn around to look me over. He reached out like he intended to run his hands down my arms, but I stepped away and swiveled my head, trying to spot Cormac.
“He had to leave.”