Page 97 of Cash

I tell myself I’m relieved as I belly up to the bar. Tallulah pops the top off a Shiner Bock and slides it across the counter.

“Thank you,” I say. “Can I get a shot of tequila too?”

Tallulah raises a brow. “Bad day?”

“No.” I tip back the longneck. “Yes. Kind of.”

She wordlessly pours me a shot of Casamigos Añejo, which I swallow in a single gulp.

The burn feels good.

The band starts. A Johnny Cash cover, which has the already-crowded bar hollering and stomping their feet. Everyone is smiling. Everyone is dancing, having a good time.

Except me.

“Wanna talk about it?”

I glance to my right and see Wyatt standing at the bar. “Talk about what?”

“Dude, don’t play dumb with me. You like Mollie.”

I could deny it. I should deny it.

Instead, I sip my beer. Most people are on the dance floor anyway. No one’s paying us any mind.

“Something happen between y’all when you took her to your cabin earlier this week?”

I run a hand over the back of my neck. “How do you know about that?”

“Duke can’t keep a secret to save his life.”

“I didn’t sleep with her.”

“That’s good.”

“Trust me, no one knows better than I do how bad me sleeping with Mollie would be.”

“But something did happen.”

“We talked.”

“About?”

I tilt back my head, the tequila making my skin feel buzzy and warm. “Nothing. Everything. Garrett, mostly. Mom and Dad.”

His eyebrows pop up. “You talked about Mom and Dad with Mollie?”

“What? She asked, so I told her.”

“Youopened up toher. The girl you hated so much, you could barely stand to look at her.”

I glance toward the door. “I did, yeah.”

Wyatt leans his elbows on the bar. “I take back what I said. I kinda like this for you. You’ve been in an awful good mood lately, and now I know why.”

Shaking my head, I hold up my hand for another beer. “Doesn’t matter. She’s Garrett’s daughter. Our boss.”

“Bet she wants you to boss her around, don’t she?”