Page 36 of The Ex Next Door (Charming, Texas #8)

On the day he signed and accepted the offer, Declan went into work early so he could speak to Cole Kinsella, who was one of the three owners of the bar.

Declan hated to leave them short-staffed the way they’d been just a few weeks ago when a cocktail waitress quit.

But with the turnover in the industry, they wouldn’t be surprised.

At three years, Declan was practically a veteran.

The only staff member who outranked him was Debbie.

Declan busied himself with inventory behind the bar until Cole waltzed in, his yellow Lab named Submarine hot on his heels. Though rarely seen in public anymore, Sub had been a fixture around the boardwalk and particularly the Salty Dog since the days when Cole and his friends took over the bar.

Cole waved at Declan on his way to the back office. “Hey, you’re here early.”

“Yeah, boss, can I talk to you for a minute?”

Cole stopped in his tracks and so did Sub, panting happily in Declan’s direction. Whoever said dogs couldn’t smile probably hadn’t met Sub.

“Sure, come on back.”

Declan followed him into the wood-paneled office.

He hadn’t been back here since he was hired.

A surfboard still stood in the corner of the room but now instead of the office of a bachelor, there were touches of family everywhere.

On the bookcase behind him were at least ten framed photos of Valerie, and his and Valerie’s son, Wade.

On the desk sat a photo of him and Valerie by the beach smiling into the camera.

Sub found his corner on a comfortable dog bed where he had toys. He would also be in on this meeting.

“What’s up?”

“I hate to do this to you, but I’m going back to teaching and coaching. I’ve got an offer at the local high school and it’s a good one. I’ll be coaching the varsity baseball team there starting in the fall.”

Cole leaned back in his chair. “Well, it’s about time.”

“I’m sorry to leave you short-sta—what?” Declan wasn’t sure he’d heard right.

Cole laughed. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m going to miss the best bartender I’ve ever had but hate to see a talent like yours wasted. You should use those coaching skills where they can really make a difference.”

“Ah, you heard about my late-night ‘inspirational’ talks?”

“Are you kidding? Debbie couldn’t stop talking about it when you first came on. She said I could learn a thing or two from you.” Cole smirked. “As you know, Debbie doesn’t hold back.”

“No, sir.” Declan chuckled.

“She’s definitely going to miss you. The rest of us will, too, by the way. I appreciate the notice.”

“I would offer to work part-time until you find the right fit, but if I do that, I’ll only see Amy at work.”

Cole quirked a brow. “You two are in a relationship?”

“It’s new,” Declan admitted, not sure why he’d even brought up the subject. He and Amy had been nothing but professional at work, often leaving separately and deciding it was nobody else’s business. “And very serious.”

“Good. I’d expect nothing less from you,” Cole said. “My mother was a single mom. If you aren’t serious about a single mom, you have no business being with her.”

Declan nodded. “This time I won’t screw things up.”

“This time?”

“Amy and I are high school sweethearts, believe it or not. I know, weird! When does that ever happen?”

“Not so weird.” Cole pushed the framed photo of him and Valerie at the beach toward Declan. “That’s me and Valerie quite a few years ago.”

Declan picked up the frame and examined it closely. They both looked young. The two were fresh-faced, young enough to be teens, with a dreamy gleam in their eyes and a love that seemed palpable enough to seep through time.

“I thought you two have only been married since shortly after she got back from Missouri.”

Cole nodded. “We were kids, too, the first time we fell in love. I joined the navy, she went off to college and married someone else. I was engaged to another woman. Fast-forward and after her divorce, she came back to take care of her grandmother. You better believe I wasn’t going to ruin my second chance. ”

“I never knew that. Glad it worked out the second time.” He set the frame down. “That’s inspirational.”

“It’s called compromise. You’ll find you’re much better at this when you’re both grown-ups who are able to put someone other than your own wants and needs first.”

“That’s what I’m hoping. It’s complicated, of course, because she has the kids, and they have to come first.”

“Well, as my wife will tell you, it’s important for a woman to put herself first once in a while.

Valerie learned that the hard way after we had our son.

Suddenly, her life became teaching and all that goes along with being part of the com munity, me, our baby, her grandmother, the restaurant, our friends.

She was about to tear her hair out by the roots, and you know she has a lot of hair.

” Cole chuckled. “One night she was upset about a conflict, and I point-blank asked her…what do you want to do? And she said she just wanted to stay home with me and Wade, so that’s what she did.

She called up the friend asking her to be part of a fundraiser and used a word she’s using more often. No. Sorry, but no.”

“You know what? That’s pretty good advice.”

Cole grinned. “Well, don’t forget I was a bartender, too.”