Looking toward the back bar, I watch a very handsome man step out from behind the counter and come toward us, smiling huge with his arms out at his sides.
“Colton.” Evan smiles, and my eyes go back to Colton.
Holy hotness.
I mean, I have my very own hot guy, a man that is the definition of hot, but this guy is gorgeous. Tall and lean with dark hair and even darker eyes, surrounded by thick lashes, his jaw is square and shadowed with stubble accentuating his full lips and straight white smile. Seeing him and his smile, I do not even understand how his bitch of an ex could stand to walk away from him.
“Good to see you, man,” Evan mutters, letting me go so he can hug his friend.
“Fuck, man, it’s been too long,” Colton rumbles, patting Evan’s back hard as they embrace. When they release each other, Evan’s arm goes around my shoulders, tucking me close to his side.
“Want you to meet June,” Evan says in introduction, and Colton’s eyes move between Evan and me.
“Nice to meet you.” I smile, and then his smile broadens and he tugs me from Evan’s grasp, picks me up, and hugs me so tight that my sides hurt from the pressure.
“Shit, man, you did not fucking lie. She’s pretty as hell.”
Okay, that was sweet and felt really good.
“You can stop touching her now,” Evan grumbles, and I bite my lip, trying not to laugh.
“Aw, I see you’re still a selfish bastard.” Colton laughs, setting me on my feet.
“With her, always,” he says, tucking me back to his side. “You got time for a beer, or are you working?”
“I got time.” He grins, patting Evan’s back once more and shaking his head before turning toward the bar, where we follow him. “What do you guys want to drink?” he asks, as we take a seat on two barstools.
“Whatever’s cold for me,” Evan says. “June’ll have a Miller Lite.” Giving his waist a squeeze, I lean deeper into him. I know it’s not huge, but I love that he remembers what I drink, how I take my coffee, what foods I do or don’t like, all of those unimportant things that end up being important in the end, because they tell you the person you’re with cares enough to pay attention to the small things about you.
“Gia, baby, come here,” Colton calls, looking to his right, and I follow his gaze toward the open door to an office, where a very pretty, petite girl with loads of curves, long, dark, wavy hair, olive-toned skin, and startling green eyes is standing next to an older woman who looks a lot like Colton.
“One day, I’m going to kill your son,” I hear the girl, who must be Gia, mutter. The woman she’s standing next to laughs loudly, saying something I can’t hear before shoving her our way.
“You rang,” Gia says when she’s close, and Colton grins at her.
“Gia, this is Evan. We were in the marines together, and this is his wife, June,” Colton says, and my heart contracts, and not in a good way. I’m not his wife anymore, and even though I’ve known that for a very long time and felt like I came to terms with it ages ago, hearing what once was kills me.
“Nice to meet you guys.” She smiles, showing off two dimples, one in each cheek.
“You too.” I smile back, as Evan lifts his chin and asks, “This your girl?”
“Yeah,” Colton says, smiling as Gia states, “No,” turning and tilting her head way back to frown up at him.
Giggling, I look between the two of them then watch Colton smirk down at her, as he mutters, “Babe, we’ve been through this.”
“That’s my point!” she cries, tossing her arms in the air. “We’ve been through this, and you’re still not listening.” In a flash, his hand is on the back of her neck, pulling her close, and then his mouth is on hers and he’s kissing her deeply, with tongue. By the time he rips his mouth from hers, her hands have moved from pushing him away to holding him closer.
“Oh my,” I whisper, once again wondering what the hell his ex was thinking.
“I told you to stop kissing me,” she breathes, blinking up at him, as her cheeks turn pink.
“And I told you, baby, that’s never gonna happen,” he whispers back, kissing her once more, this one swift and just a touch of his mouth to hers.
“Don’t mind them,” the woman who looks like Colton says, coming to block our view of them as she leans over the bar and pats Evan’s cheek. “I miss you, kid.”
“Miss you too, Ma Rose,” Evan says, sliding his arm around my shoulders. “I want you to meet June.
“June,” she speaks quietly, moving her gaze to me.
“Nice to meet you.” I smile, and her eyes move between us before she focuses on Evan once more.
“You got your girl back?” She smiles a soft motherly smile that makes me like her even more.
“Pulled my head out of my ass,” Evan replies, and she laughs then shakes her head.
“Kirk’s gonna be happy,” she mumbles, still smiling.
“Where is the old man?”
“Home, he was at the bar late. He should be here in a couple hours, if you two want to stick around. If not, you can ride over to the house. I’m sure he’s up puttering around the garage, working on his bike.”
“We’ll be here for a while,” Evan says, and she smiles and pats his cheek again. I know he and his mom are closer than he is with the rest of his family, and by close, I mean they talk, but his mom isn’t around unless she wants something. So, I’m happy to see he’s built relationships with people who are healthy and normal, relationships that are two-sided, where he’s not the only person doing all the work.