Page 84 of Falling With You

I love you. Always.

-Sienna, today.

Sienna

“I really want a beer,”I said, leaning against Aiden’s chest.

“You had your last painkiller this morning. Meaning tomorrow, you can have a beer. Today, you’re just going to cuddle with me and use me as your liquor.”

“That was a horrible line,” Brendon put in. “Like ahorribleline.”

“I can’t help it, I’m cheesy now. It’s a thing.” I laughed against Aiden, but I didn’t wince this time, so I counted that as a win. It had been a week since the attack, and things were getting back to normal. Whatever normal was.

The attack in the alley when I had been mugged was a one and done thing, something I would probably never get answers to, much like a lot of things in my life it seemed. But we hadn’t been able to find the attackers, and I didn’t think we ever would.

I was finally going to take another set of self-defense courses, but that didn’t start for another two weeks. I still had to heal. Putting it off before because I had been busy was stupid. And it’d almost cost me my life. I never wanted to be that person again.

Jefferson was facing charges of assault, but not attempted murder. He didn’t even have to face stalking charges because those wouldn’t do anything to him anyway. And while I didn’t blame him fully for what had happened, I knew he needed help. And physical therapy wasn’t enough for him. He needed help beyond that, maybe even seeing a therapist every week.

He needed help that I couldn’t give him, and honestly, the thought of being near him again scared me.

So, he was no longer my client.

I didn’t think he was really going to serve time, but he was likely going to be admitted somewhere for help.

And maybe that was the silver lining in this. Because he needed help. I just hated the fact that it had taken what it had for him to get some.

“So, like whose turn is it next?” Violet asked, snuggling into Cameron’s side.

I looked around at the bar, confused. We were pretty busy, and the fact that I just saidwemeant how much I thought of the Connolly Brewery as my own. But considering it was a weeknight and the rest of the staff was working, it wasn’t too bad. I still didn’t know what Violet had meant.

“Huh?” I asked.

“Well, Cameron and I are together, Brendon and Harmony are together, and now you and Aiden are nice and sweet and have that lovey-dovey face. Who’s next? Dillon?” We all looked at each other and then up at the bar where Dillon was wiping it down before going to bus tables.

“I think he needs a little more time, don’t you think?” I asked Aiden.

He shrugged. “I think that kid’s probably better at understanding women than any of us. Women excluded, of course.”

“You know, one day, he’s going to get knocked on his butt, and he’s not going to see what hit him,” Cameron said.

“And I can’t wait for that,” Brendon said, and the three men clinked beer glasses while us women just rolled our eyes.

“I think next should be your bartender,” Harmony said before kissing Brendon’s cheek.

“Beckham?” Brendon scoffed. “He’s going to have to stop brooding and making fun of us if he wants to actually settle down.”

I met Violet’s gaze and then Harmony’s, and we just smiled at each other as the guys looked confused.

Oh, we had an inkling of when and who Beckham might settle down with. It was just going to take time. And lots of planning.

But we could do that. We had time. And Beckham deserved a happily ever after.

And so did a certain friend of ours.

But tonight was just about us.

The Connolly brothers were officially in the deep black when it came to the bar. Violet’s new paper was being published. Harmony had gotten a huge check for her charity, and I was going back to work next week.