Page 46 of Fiancé for Hire
Drevon petted Rocky behind the ears before the dog ambled away to his doggy bed.
“I assume tequila is okay,” Jet said and pulled three shot glasses from the cabinet. He lined them up on the granite before grabbing the liquor bottle. Based on the label on the bottle, it was the good stuff.
Great. Dre wasn’t in the mood for any watered-down crap.
Once the glasses were filled, they all grabbed one and held it up. Neither said a word, just clinked them together and tossed the liquor back.
They all cringed as the alcohol slid down their throats, coughing and grunting as they slammed the glasses on the counter.
“Damn, man. That stuff seems stronger than usual,” Montez choked out, then cleared his throat. “What did you do, add gasoline to it?”
As they laughed, some of the tension eased from Drevon’s shoulders. Small talk flowed easily as they discussed everything and nothing. They’d all had a couple of busy weeks, but somehow found time to spend with the women in their lives.
“I think I’m in love with Antika,” Drevon said without preamble, and threw back another shot of tequila.
He slammed the glass down and pointed for Jet to refill it. He wasn’t planning to get drunk, but it was probably a good idea that he had used a car service to get to Jet’s place. He needed to knock the edge off, because the emotions swirling inside of him were driving him nuts.
“On top of that, this stupid engagement feels like I’m stuck in a straitjacket with no way of getting out of it without breaking my arms.”
Montez’s eyebrows dipped into a frown. “What the hell does that even mean?”
“Antika insists that after her company’s event in a couple of weeks, she wants us to call off the engagement. I’m not sure if I’m ready. It’ll be a lose-lose for both of us in one way or another. The plan is to tell people the engagement is off because we realize that we’re better as friends and so we decided not to get married.”
Jet shrugged. “Does that mean you gon’ have a broken engagement party?” Jet asked just before he threw back a shot, and Drevon and Montez glared at him.
Their friend was always the type to use jokes to mask fear, pain, and even insecurity, and sometimes that same humor showed up at inopportune moments.
“Man, what’s wrong with you?” Montez asked. “Did you not hear him say he was in love with Antika?”
“Yeah, I heard him.” Jet propped his hip against the kitchen counter and folded his arms across his chest. “But if she doesn’t love you back, you need to walk before you’re the one getting hurt.”
Drevon studied his friend, who really did look as if he hadn’t slept in a few days. He watched as Jet poured another drink. “Are we talking about me, or you?”
Jet stared down at the counter for the longest time, then huffed out a breath before looking up. “We’re talking about you.”
Drevon was fairly sure he was lying. He didn’t know what was going on with his friend, but he’d figure it out before they parted ways.
“Do you think she loves you?” Montez asked.
“I think she has strong feelings for me, but we’re both afraid to be vulnerable. I’ve always said that I’ll never get married. Bachelor for life. But…I’m not sure about that anymore. And Antika’s been hurt one too many times. She doesn’t want anything serious for fear she’ll get hurt again. What if we give our relationship a try and I hurt her?”
“What makes you think you will?” Jet asked. “If you love her and you think the feeling is mutual, why are you holding back? Why not go for what you want?”
“I’ve never been in love before. I might screw it up. Or what if I pour my heart out to her, and she turns me down?”
Jet and Montez didn’t respond. Instead, they both looked deep in thought. Especially Jet who appeared lost in his own issues.
Yep, they were absolutely going through the same thing…at the same time.
“This is going to be a long night,” Jet muttered, and refilled their glasses.
“You need to tell her how you feel, and then beg her to give you a chance to prove that she’s the one for you,” Montez insisted. He started to say more but his phone vibrated in his pocket, and he pulled it out, then smiled. “Well, fellas, I need to go.” He headed to the door.
“Where you going?” Jet called out.
“To see Desiree. Unlike you two, I don’t have woman problems. So think about what I said—both of you. I’m out.”
“I hate to admit it, but Montez’s advice might be on point.” Jet lifted one of the glasses and Drevon did the same. “Here’s to proving our love to the women in our lives.”