Page 5 of Trick or Tease

SAbrINA

T ension crackled between the two brothers, suddenly feeling like we’d made a terrible mistake. Garrett seemed more upset about going home than about getting pranked by his brother. The man was as confusing as he was hot, and he was definitely hot, looking tasty in that suit.

The years had been kind to him. Too bad his jaw was set in that stubborn line I remembered from when he’d made up his mind about something. Billy’s easy grin was starting to look forced around the edges.

“Come on, man,” Billy said, his voice losing some of its earlier lightness. “Mom and Dad are officially retiring. It’s a big deal.”

“I told you I can’t make it,” Garrett replied, his tone clipped and professional. “I’ve got work.”

“You always have work.”

I shifted uncomfortably, wishing I could disappear behind one of the concrete pillars. Lucy caught my eye and grimaced, clearly thinking the same thing. We should have stayed in the truck.

But even as awkwardness crawled up my spine, I couldn’t stop staring at Garrett.

Shit. The lanky farm boy I remembered had filled out into something that belonged on a magazine cover.

His dark hair was perfectly styled, not a strand out of place despite whatever he’d been doing all day.

His suit probably cost more than my entire wardrobe.

The boy who used to show up to help with hay bales in torn jeans and work boots had transformed into someone I barely recognized.

Someone who made my heart do stupid things just by existing.

“Look,” Garrett said, running a hand through that perfect hair, “I appreciate you driving all the way down here, but?—”

“But nothing,” Billy interrupted. “You’ve missed the last three Christmases, Garrett. Three. Mom cried after you called to cancel last year.”

Garrett’s expression faltered just for a second. There was the boy I used to know, the one who couldn’t stand disappointing anyone. But then his professional mask slipped back into place.

“That’s not fair,” he said quietly.

“Neither is abandoning your family,” Billy shot back.

They used to be inseparable, despite their age difference. Billy had worshiped his big brother, followed him everywhere until Garrett got too cool for a tagalong.

“I didn’t abandon anyone,” Garrett said. “I built a career. I have responsibilities here.”

“Responsibilities?” Billy laughed, but there was no humor in it. “What about your responsibilities to us? To the family?”

“I told you I’m too busy to make it home for a party,” Garrett said.

“It’s just for a couple days. The world won’t end if you step away for a couple days. You’re not that important.”

I knew I had to step in before this got completely out of hand. The echo of their voices was bouncing off the concrete walls. The last thing we needed was to attract attention.

“Okay, that’s enough,” I said, moving between them with my hands raised. “You’re both causing a scene. This is a public parking garage, not the back forty where you can duke it out like you’re twelve years old again.”

Both brothers looked at me like they’d forgotten Lucy and I were even there. Typical.

“You need to talk to each other like adults,” I continued, giving them both my sternest look. “Whatever issues you have about the retirement party, we can discuss later. But right now, you’re acting like children.”

Billy opened his mouth to argue, but I cut him off with a sharp look. “Later, Billy.”

Before either of them could respond, footsteps echoed through the garage. A security guard rounded the corner, his hand resting on his radio. He was older, probably in his sixties, with the kind of tired expression that said he’d seen everything.

“Everything okay here, Mr. Hogan?” the guard asked, his eyes scanning our little group.

I felt my cheeks flush with embarrassment. Of course they knew Garrett by name. Of course we looked like trouble. Garrett in his nice suit and us looking like the hillbillies that got lost in the big city.

“Yeah, everything’s fine, Marcus,” Garrett said, his voice instantly shifting back to that polished, professional tone. “This is my dumbass brother and some friends from home.”

Marcus nodded once and headed back in the direction he came from.

“Look, I’m sorry you guys came all this way,” Garrett said. “Let me take you idiots out to dinner. I’m sure you must be hungry after that drive.”

“I’m not driving around this shithole,” Billy muttered. “It’s Mad Max out there.”

“There’s a place within walking distance,” Garrett said.

The restaurant Garrett led us to was exactly the kind of place that made me want to crawl under a rock and hide.

Not black-tie fancy, but fancy enough that I felt like every waiter was judging my flannel shirt and worn jeans.

The kind of place where they probably charged twenty dollars for a side salad and five bucks for a glass of tap water.

The other diners spoke in hushed, cultured tones, their clothes probably worth more than my monthly rent. I tugged at the hem of my shirt, wishing I’d at least thrown on something that hadn’t been washed a hundred times.

Meanwhile, Garrett looked like he’d been born to sit in places like this.

He moved through the restaurant with easy confidence, nodding at the hostess who looked like she had seen him naked or wanted to.

His expensive suit fit him perfectly. And yeah, he looked like he fit in, but he wasn’t the guy he presented to the world.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t really him.

Or maybe it was, and the boy I’d known was the fake version.

The Garrett I remembered would have been just as uncomfortable as me in a place like this.

He would have cracked jokes about the pretentious menu descriptions and probably would have asked if they had any normal food.

This Garrett? He studied the wine list like he actually knew the difference between a Merlot and Chianti. They were red. That’s all I knew and I only knew that because of the heading.

Billy and Lucy were having the time of their lives, like this whole thing was some grand adventure instead of an increasingly uncomfortable situation.

While I sat there feeling like an idiot in my farm clothes, they were treating the fancy restaurant like their personal playground.

They had no shame. They didn’t care that they were dressed just as casually as I was.

Billy reached for the bread and tore off a chunk, slathering it with butter before holding it out to Lucy’s mouth. “Try this, babe. It’s probably artisanal or some shit.”

She bit into it and let out an exaggerated moan that made the couple at the next table turn and stare. “Oh my God, that’s incredible. What do they put in their butter?”

“Probably costs more than our weekly grocery budget.” Billy grinned, feeding her another bite.

I watched them with a mixture of affection and envy. They made everything look so easy, so natural. Even here, surrounded by people that were judging them, they were just themselves .

Meanwhile, I was trying not to touch anything for fear I’d break it and have to do dishes in the back for a month.

“Okay, what the hell is ‘escargot foam’?” Lucy asked, squinting at her menu. “Is that like snail bubbles?”

Billy made a face like he’d just smelled something rotten. “Sounds like someone sneezed on a snail.”

“And venison tartare,” Lucy continued, her voice getting louder with each ridiculous menu item. “That’s just raw deer, right? Like, they’re not even cooking it? Is that healthy? Can’t that give you worms?”

“Maybe they’re too fancy to use fire,” Billy suggested, earning another burst of giggles from Lucy.

I glanced over at Garrett and saw his jaw tighten. His fingers drummed against the white tablecloth. It was a sure sign he was getting annoyed.

“It’s a very well-regarded restaurant,” he said stiffly. “The chef trained in France.”

Billy looked up from the menu, eyebrows raised. “Did he forget to learn how to cook the meat while he was there?”

Lucy snorted, covering her mouth with her napkin to muffle her laughter.

Garrett’s expression grew even more pinched.

He reminded me of Hollow Hank with a stick up his ass, minus the straw.

I could practically see him calculating how much this dinner was going to damage his reputation with the staff.

God forbid his country bumpkin family embarrass him in front of the people he was trying so hard to impress.

The waiter came by, a thin man with the kind of condescending smile that made me want to accidentally spill something on his pristine white shirt, and I panicked. All those fancy French words and pretentious descriptions swam together on the page. This menu can escargot fuck itself.

“I’ll just have the house salad,” I said quickly, handing back the menu before I had to admit I didn’t know what most of the dishes were.

Everyone else ordered and the waiter quickly walked away. Lucy tried talking to Garrett, searching for that easy back and forth we all used to have. The conversation was stilted and uncomfortable, though. No one would believe the four of us were once the closest of friends.

We all seemed determined to talk about anything except the elephant in the room. Billy seemed hesitant to bring up the retirement party he had driven five hours to convince Garrett to attend.

Thankfully, the service in the restaurant was excellent and our food was delivered quickly, giving us something less awkward to focus on.

“So, I just closed the biggest deal of my career,” Garrett said after a few minutes. “One-point-two-five billion dollars.”

Billy looked up from his steak. “Billion? With a B?”

Garrett’s face lit with genuine excitement, and my heart somersaulted in my rib cage. He looked so much like the boy I’d fallen for back when I was still figuring out what love was.

“I know, right?” he said to his little brother. “Fucking crazy, isn’t it?”

Billy nodded. “That’s wild. What the hell kind of deal was it?”

“Real estate,” Garrett said, sighing. “You ever wonder how much one of these skyscrapers cost? That much. I’ve been working on it for six months, and we finally got everything signed today.

” He paused, his fork halfway to his mouth.

“If I play these next few months right, I might have a chance at making partner.”

Billy’s shine dimmed a little at that. “Sounds like you’ll be even busier.”

“Well, probably,” he said, frowning. “Success requires sacrifice.”

“If that’s what makes you happy,” Billy said, “I hope it all works out.”

“It sounds like things are going well,” I said. “You must be on cloud nine.”

“Yeah,” Garrett said, but his smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Making partner has always been the goal. Everything I’ve been working toward.”

Billy perked up and seemed to force some cheer into his voice. “Just make sure you get out into the sunlight every so often. You’re so pale, I’m going to start calling you Casper.”

“In a few years, when I can afford my yacht, I’ll get plenty of sun. And I might let you on for a ride.”

Billy snorted. “Fine, but I’m not calling you captain. I don’t care how rich you get.”

When we finished dinner, Garrett glanced at his watch and frowned. “It’s already eight-thirty. You guys have a five-hour drive ahead of you.”

“We’ll be fine,” Billy said, though he didn’t sound entirely convinced. “We can take turns driving.”

“Absolutely not,” Garrett said, his tone leaving no room for argument. “You’re staying at my place tonight. Leave in the morning when you’re rested and it’s light out.”

I felt a flutter of excitement in my stomach that I tried to suppress.

I was curious about how Garrett lived now, what his apartment looked like, whether any trace of the farm boy I’d known still existed in his space.

At the same time, the thought of staying overnight felt intimate in a way that made me nervous.

We used to camp out together all the time, but that was a long time ago.

A lifetime ago.

“We don’t want to impose,” Lucy started, but Garrett waved her off.

“It’s not an imposition. I’ve got space, and I’d rather not worry about you idiots falling asleep at the wheel and ending up in a ditch.”

Billy rolled his eyes but didn’t argue. “Fine. I mean, if your butler doesn’t mind.”

Garrett laughed. “I don’t have a butler. I haven’t changed that much.”

“If you say so,” Billy said.