Sweet Southern Nights

“What’s up, ladies?” Jake said, scooting his chair back and grabbing an empty one from the table behind him. He smiled at Jenny and patted the chair. “Have a seat.”

Eva rolled her eyes, snagged another chair from behind her and sank down next to Clint. “Hey, Clint. How’re things?”

Clint shrugged but his eyes lit up at the sight of Eva. “Same ol’ same old. Nothing’s changed since I saw you three hours ago. Or from yesterday when you stopped by with those brownies for Dad. They were good, by the way.”

“You know I didn’t bake them, right?”

“Duh,” he said, flashing a smile that made Jake’s heart ache. He’d seen that smile a million times...just not from the man currently in the state-of-the-art wheelchair. That smile was like a whisper of the past sliding past him.

“What’ll you have?” Jake asked Jenny as her leg brushed his, tearing his mind away from the maudlin. She smelled good—like wildflowers or some other crap women liked to slather themselves with. She wore a push-up bra that lifted her small breasts, creating a delicious valley for his perusal. He jerked his gaze away and lifted his eyes, meeting Eva’s. She mouthed “pervert” and he grinned. Hell, if Jenny wanted to show them off, he was obligated to look.

“I’ll take a glass of white wine,” Jenny said, grabbing a napkin to spit her gum in.

A tired waitress trudged toward them. “What’ll it be?”

Jake took out two twenties. “White wine for Jenny, a Miller Lite each for Eva and Vicky and another round for me and Clint.”

“You don’t have to pay for my drink, Jake. I got my own, Bonnie,” Eva said.

“Ah, let him,” Bonnie growled before trudging back to the bar.

The place was only half-filled because it was Thursday night and just barely eight thirty. Things would pick up closer to ten, but by that time Jake usually had Clint in the car heading back to Duck Blind Bayou and the custom-built, handicap-friendly lake house where his friend lived with his father. These nights with Clint were obligation nights. Not nights to pick up women or forget the clock. He could only lay the groundwork for something more with Jenny later.

If he wanted to go in that direction.

His personal life had felt desolate lately, as if he’d reached a plateau and didn’t know what direction to walk in. Up until early summer he’d dated a lethally sexy librarian. Kate had a smoking body beneath her pencil skirts, and she even wore those nerdy black-rimmed glasses and pinned her hair up. But the woman was flippin’ wild in the sack. She’d worn him slap out, but eventually it had been sex, sex and more sex, and contrary to what most men said, eventually you have to talk to each other.

Kate tanked when it came to conversation. She couldn’t name a single National League team, thought NASCAR was stupid and ate weird food like goji berries and flaxseed. Eventually they stopped calling each other for hookups.

But dating Jenny could get complicated. She and Eva had become good friends. He didn’t need the obstacle of having to watch everything he said to Eva or having her run to tell Jenny if he’d flirted with a woman at the grocery store. So maybe he’d forgo laying that groundwork.

“You want to dance?” Jenny asked, leaning toward him, her blue eyes soliciting an invitation.

“Sure,” he said, sliding his chair back. “Let’s work up a thirst.”

Clint’s gaze moved over the two of them as they escaped to the dance floor. Jake usually didn’t dance when he was with Clint because it felt too shitty to do something his friend could not, but for some reason, he had to get away for a moment. To think.

And to hold an armful of something sweet and warm.

Jenny looped her arms around his neck. “You look good tonight, Jake. I like your shirt.”

“This old thing?” He plucked at the fabric with his thumb and forefinger. It was a gingham plaid shirt from some preppy catalog his mother favored. The blue matched his eyes and set off the tan he’d picked up fishing with his brother all summer. His jeans were tight and his boots well-worn. He skipped wearing a cowboy hat, unlike most of the guys in the bar, because he didn’t actually ride bulls or drive tractors. “Thank you, darlin’,” he said.

And then he proceeded to pull Jenny tight against him and whirl her around the dance floor to a Luke Bryan song that made him long for another day on the lake and a cold beer.

For a few minutes he lost himself in the song, enjoying Jenny snug against him. Felt good to forget about the job, the fact he needed to repaint his garage apartment and the birthday party he had to attend for his cousin Hilda on Sunday. Let go and feel.

But the song ended too soon, and he found himself leading Jenny back toward the table. Clint and Vicky sat there, silently nursing their drinks. Eva was gone.

Jake picked up his beer and took a swig. “Where’s Eva?”

“Outside. Someone called and she said she had to go out for a sec,” Clint said.

Jake crooked an eyebrow. “Who was it?”

“How would we know? But she looked kind of surprised,” Vicky said.

He sank back into his chair, glancing toward the swinging glass door that Raylan had covered with inky tint. The name Ray-Ray’s was scrawled across the front, and the parking lot light looked like the glowing tip of a cigarette through the darkened glass. “Huh.”

Wasn’t his business, but still something rose on the back of his neck. Eva going off to meet someone wasn’t his concern. She was a big girl who could handle any man, a roaring fire and a passel of second graders wanting to scale the fire truck. Nevertheless, he was her friend. Hell, he was almost her family.

“I’m gonna check on her,” he said, standing.

“I’m sure she’s fine,” Vicky said with a wave of her long-tipped fingernails. “Eva could handle anyone.”

“Let me just take her the beer,” he said, grabbing the frosty longneck and a napkin.

As he got up and left he heard Jenny say, “I love a man who looks out for a gal, but Eva hates nosy people.”

Jake passed his brother’s group, giving Matt a brusque “hey, dude,” as he continued toward the door. He pushed out into the dying day, twilight settling around him as he crunched through the gravel, looking for Eva. Cigarette butts and bottle caps littered the long concrete pad in front of the cinder-block bar. No one was in the front lot so he headed to the right, skirting the empty ice machine and weathered benches set out for the smokers. He heard raised voices as he rounded the corner.

Eva stood, arms on her hips, facing off against a pretty massive dude whose back was to Jake.

“Eva?” he called.

She leaned around the dude, her ponytail swinging out. “Oh, hey, Jake. I’ll be in in a minute.”

The guy turned and took in Jake. He had massive biceps, both tatted, and a tight T-shirt that stretched across the continent of his chest. He had a shaved head and wore motorcycle boots. Sons of Anarchy had nothing on this dude.

“You sure, Eva?”

The dude sneered. “You hard of hearing or something?”

“No. Got a clean bill of health from the doctor last month. Hearing’s perfect.”

“Then get your ass outta here,” the giant growled.

“Did someone piss in your cereal this morning or something?” Jake responded, moving toward Eva and King Kong. He shifted the beer bottles so he held them in one hand.

“It’s okay, Jake. Chris is about to leave. No big deal.” Eva gave him a determined smile and a look that said “please don’t do this.”

Jake didn’t know what to do. He could tell Eva was upset, but he didn’t want to make things worse for her. He also didn’t want to back down like a pussy. Jake wasn’t chopped liver, but the guy had a good four inches and forty pounds on him—he would likely grind Jake into hamburger meat. But at least his attention on Jake would give Eva a chance to get help.

“I’ll just stay here,” Jake said, leaning up against the steel siding replete with rust marks.

The giant’s thunderous expression told Jake his declaration wasn’t appreciated, but the man stayed where he was.

“Chris.” Eva placed a hand on the man’s arm. “Let’s just talk about this later, okay? Nothing has to be decided today.”