Page 19

maggie

A fter dinner, I race across the pavilion to hug some of my dearest found family, who I am shocked have made the journey to the Caribbean.

“Walt! Johnny!” I stand behind their chairs squeezing my head between the two of them as I wrap my arms around their shoulders as tight as I can. “I still can’t believe you’re here!”

“Hey sweetheart,” Walt replies, squeezing me back.

“We can’t believe we’re here either. Hayes and Liv invited us since our place is where they first met, but we had to turn them down.

We couldn’t figure out who could run the bar while we were gone, and we definitely couldn’t afford to close.

Then, an envelope showed up at the office with enough cash to cover the cost of being shut down for the week. ”

I shake my head, my eyes wide in disbelief. “Seriously?! Who was it from? Hayes?”

Johnny looks at me. “I have my suspicions, but I don’t think it was Hayes. I’m keeping my guesses to myself, but you know there isn’t much that gets past me. I know these Riders inside and out. ”

“Come on, Johnny—You can’t hold out on me like that! Who do you think it was? Zack? EJ? Bougie? You can’t be all ‘I have my suspicions’ and not tell your favorite girl.”

“I’m pretty sure they donated it anonymously because they wanted to remain anonymous,” Walt chimes in, giving me his standard side eye, letting me know I should mind my own business. Even though he knows I never listen.

I give him a snarky look and stick my tongue out.

“Fine. Keep me in the dark. But…God, do I love you two. I’m so glad you’re here!

” I say, squeezing them close to me once again.

“It’ll be nice to not have to take a break from spilling my guts to you while you have to serve other people at the bar.

Now I can have your undivided attention.

What are you two going to do all week since you don’t have to work? ”

“Relaxing is priority number one,” Walt hums, reaching over to grab Johnny’s hand. “We’ve worked really hard for a long time, and I wouldn’t trade a minute of it. But we’re getting old and tired. It will be nice to unwind and rest our old asses in the sand.”

Johnny smiles at his partner, giving his hand a little squeeze. I swear these two are the sweetest couple in the entire world. I close my eyes, just for a second, as something tight twists in my chest. I want that.

“So, Maggie, I hear you and Vladi are sharing a room this week?” Johnny says with a knowing smirk on his face.

My jaw drops. “How the hell did you hear that?!”

“I told you, Mags, I know these Riders inside and out.” He settles into his seat, taking a sip of his water. “What’s the latest with you two, anyway?”

I look at Walt, who has a raised eyebrow and an expression that says ‘I have nothing to do with this.’

I sigh, hanging my head between them. “Nothing. I can’t stand that dark-haired Thor-looking piece of shit, but somehow my reservation got cancelled. So, yes, we are sharing a room. Reluctantly.”

Johnny flashes me a smirk, his eyes twinkling with some deeper knowledge he hasn’t filled me in on yet.

“You keep tellin’ yourself that, honey. I see the tension between you two.

And it’s not because you hate one another.

I know he hurt you, but there’s something more in that man. I know you see it too.”

I fessed up to Johnny a while back. I couldn’t talk to Liv, and Kennedy was traveling a lot and, well…aside from my hairdresser, a bartender who is basically family is the best therapist there is.

“He doesn’t want a relationship, Johnny. That’s what I want. What I need. I refuse to open myself up to getting hurt again.”

“Have you talked to him about a relationship since that night?”

I shake my head in disappointment, feeling my sigh through my whole body. “No.”

“And why not?” He places a comforting hand on my shoulder.

“Because I’m hurt, dammit! I just…I can’t take a second rejection.”

Walt loops his arm around my back, “You know I don’t like to get into this stuff, not like this one who gets his nose into everyone’s business,” he nods his head toward Johnny, “but I can tell you from experience, sometimes people like Vladi are just scared. Often they just need a little push in the right direction.” He turns, giving a knowing look to Johnny, both of them smiling like teenagers in love.

My God these two cannot get any cuter. Why can’t I have this?

Why can’t my brain focus on anything but the jackass they insist is scared and needs a push?

I scrunch my nose, biting the inside of my cheek. Fuck that.

“A push? A push off a cliff maybe…” I grumble as they both turn to glare at me, the lovey-dovey look now gone.

“Sorry! But you are trying to tell me that guy is scared?” I point to Vladi who is eyeing Bougie like he’s going to strangle him.

“That giant goalie, full of muscle and currently looking like he’s going to murder someone, is scared ? ”

“He’s right, sweetheart,” Johnny chimes in, “People hide their emotions in a lot of ways. Some get defensive, some run and hide, and some portray anger as a way to choke down what’s bubbling under the surface.

Maybe he just needs the right person to help him deal with that.

Someone who can dish back as much chaos as what he’s serving up. ”

“Dammit you two! Do you just sit in a tree like wise-ass owls all damn day?” I say with a laugh. “Stop giving me good advice. Just tell me to hate him.”

“We would gladly tell you to hate him, Maggie, but something tells me that’s not really how you feel.”

My eyes roll back, not wanting to acknowledge that maybe it’s not hate. Maybe it’s something else. “All right, enough words of wisdom for the night. You two get some sleep, and I’ll see you on the beach in the morning.”

“Get some rest Maggie.” I kiss them both on the cheek, feeling better about being trapped on an island with him if these two are around. “And don’t let that big wolf hog the bed!” Johnny shouts as I walk away.

“Mind your business, Johnny. Bartending therapy hours are over!”

Walking out to the beach to watch the water crash along the shoreline, this long as hell day plays on repeat in my mind.

I’m so damn stubborn, but… What if everyone is right?

What if I gave him another chance? What if he’s open to a relationship now?

My heart sinks, the remnants of that night still floating around in my veins like shards of glass.

One wrong move and I’ll bleed out. Being around him all day, and now rooming with him all week?

My stomach twists caught in a damn war between being hopeful and protecting myself.

I’m not sure my heart can take another blow .

Besides, I have other things to focus on.

I can’t afford any distractions. Things could really take off with my side business, turning it into a full-time gig.

Or it could all blow up in my face. Just like things with Vladi.

With my job, at least I can just pick myself up and be back where I am now and work for people like Bill and have no creative control.

It would suck, but I could survive. But with Vladi?

Glancing back at the crowd of people, I find the man almost immediately.

How does he tower over literally everyone else?

I shake my head kicking a foot in the sand.

I don’t think Melissa Joan Heart would be able to recover from that.