by Sara Rider
“When you crawl under the covers and touch yourself while thinking about that kiss, make sure to call out the name Eli Hardin.”
3
“So…” Jake drew out the single syllable like a bridge over the Pacific.
Eli grabbed another pint glass and scrubbed it clean. “So what?”
“This is normally when you spill a few nasty details about last night’s date that make me want to cover my ears at the same time I call you my hero, and then you come up with a million excuses why you’ll never see the woman again.”
Eli tossed his friend a dishtowel. “No, this is normally when I tell you to quit cleaning that same stain on the bar that’s been there for the last three years. It’s never coming off.”
“Actually,” Julia said, coming from the back office, and pulling up a stool at the bar. She dropped her chin into her hand with a grin. “This is usually the time when we discuss the upcoming season’s events schedule, but you haven’t been on a date in a long time and I’m in the mood for some gossip. Spill it, big brother.”
He filled three sleeves with his Spiritual Imperial Porter, figuring it would be easier to give in to the inevitable than to keep fighting it. The truth was, he loved these quiet moments with just the three of them at the Holy Grale. It was easier to appreciate the beauty of the old church-turned-brewpub in these early, empty hours before they opened to the public. He’d initially thought Jake was nuts for suggesting they buy this place, but it only took one step inside to see the potential of the high vaulted ceilings, exposed brick walls, and colorful stained-glass windows.
He sipped his porter, unashamed of appreciating his own work. The bold flavors of caramel and roasted malt danced a perfect tango in his mouth. “The date was fine. We decided it made more sense to be friends.”
Julia and Jake exchanged a look. “You sound like a sad greeting card,” his sister said.
“I’m serious.”
“So am I. You usually sound a lot happier when a date ends without a second one.”
“That’s because he’s usually the one spouting the ‘let’s be friends’ line,” Jake said. “I’m guessing this time around your neighbor did the rejecting. And judging by your mood, you didn’t have that conversation this morning.”
Eli set his beer down and looked at the other two. Jake and Julia were the people who knew him best in the world. His business partners. His family. The people he would throw himself in front of a bus for, no questions asked. And yet they were talking about him like they didn’t know him at all. He hadn’t been on a date in almost a year, much less messed around with one-night stands. Yeah, he’d acted out after his mom’s death for a few years, but that was a long time ago. He’d matured a hell of a lot since then.
Enough to know that a woman like Nora was a whole lot more special than he initially realized, and enough to know that he had to respect her when she told him she wasn’t interested in more after their date.
He reached for his sister’s clipboard on the bar and spun it around. “Back to business. I’d like to introduce a new wheat beer into our lineup. Maybe a session ale, too.”
Jake frowned. “Our current wheat ale is selling really well. In fact, all of our beers are doing amazing. I think we should limit ourselves to one seasonal brew.”
“We need to keep things interesting. If we’re stagnant, customers are going to go to any of the other dozens of brewpubs in this town.”
“I’m not saying we shouldn’t shake things up, but we don’t want to mess with perfection, either. Financially, it doesn’t make sense to do more than one seasonal brew.”
Eli glanced at Julia, hoping for a little sibling solidarity. She winced apologetically.
“So what am I supposed to do? Sit at home being useless while you two run this place? Watch infomercials all day and yell at the television to pass time while I wait around for the mailman to show up?”
Fuck. He knew he sounded like an immature asshole as soon as the words left his mouth, but he couldn’t squelch the frustration churning inside of him. Yeah, the Holy Grale was a business, but creating beer was his passion. For the last three years, he’d slaved away in the brewery perfecting the recipes that would make their brewpub completely irresistible amidst a sea of competition. But now they were on the other side of the curve. Disasters were a rarity now instead of a daily occurrence. Their customers were loyal and thirsty. But most importantly, Jake was right when he said their beer was perfect. Eli was basically useless at this point.
“Well, you could just stay home and come up with more ways to torment your neighbor,” Jake said, barely holding back a chuckle.
“Not funny.”
Julia slammed her clipboard onto the counter. “Wait, back up a minute. Did you…like her? Like, actually really like her? I thought you hated her.”
He ran his hand through his hair, feeling more exhausted than he should have considering how early he’d gone to bed last night. “Fine. Yes, I liked her. She’s smart, funny, and pretty. We had a nice date but she’s not interested in more. Now, can we please talk about business?”
“When I told you this date would backfire, I didn’t think it would be because you’d fall for her and then get rejected,” Jake said before clapping him on the shoulder. “Her loss, buddy.”
Eli tapped the clipboard. “The SPCA fundraiser. Why is there a big red ‘X’ next to it?”
“Because I don’t think we can take it on,” Julia said. “Their outreach coordinator decided to retire early, and they haven’t found anyone to replace her yet. I thought about volunteering to do it all myself, but our events schedule is so busy this fall, I just don’t have the time. I know business is still tight, but I was hoping we could make a donation on behalf of the Holy Grale to the organization, at the very least.”
“I think that’s reasonable,” Jake said, before looking to Eli for confirmation.
“Yeah, make a donation. But we can still host the fundraiser. I’ll organize it.”
His sister’s mouth fell open before twisting into a confused pucker. “You?”
Why did he always say shit without thinking it through first? “Why not? I’m not a kid. I’m a responsible adult and, technically, your boss. I can handle this.”
“I know you can handle it, but you’ve got a lot going on right now. Do you want to take this on?”
He shrugged. “I don’t want those animals to suffer because no one else was willing to do it. Besides, we’ve hosted the event before. How hard can it be?”
“Give him a chance,” Jake said.
“All right,” Julia said slowly, sounding anything but convinced. “I’ll get the files from last year’s event.”
“You know,” Jake said as soon as Julia went back to her office, “if you were looking for a distraction from your neighbor, you could have just gotten a subscription to Netflix.”
Maybe Jake did know him a little better than he thought, because Nora had been on his mind a lot more than he’d expected since last night. The taste of her lips. The strange but adorable dimple that formed at the top of her right cheek when she smiled. The way she’d made him laugh and forget everything that had been going on for the last few weeks. She’d been right they didn’t have much in common. Hell, even he could agree they weren’t right for each other. But that didn’t change the fact he’d liked her. A lot.
“It’s not just her. I’ve got a lot on my mind lately, and not a lot to occupy my time since my best buddy moved out.”
“What can I say? Clem’s a lot more fun to wake up with.”
“Too bad for her you’re a grumpy SOB who doesn’t know the meaning of the words ‘lazy Sunday morning.’”
“Make fun of me all you want, as long as you’re sure you’re not taking on more than you can handle.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re my best friend, Eli. We’ve been like two burrs stuck to a donkey’s ass since we met fifteen years ago. I know how you get when you’re stressed about something. Do you remember
that time in undergrad when you were worried about your student loan papers and decided to organize the midnight toga party? You nearly got us arrested after we were the only two idiots standing in the quad practically butt-naked after you forgot to distribute the invitations.”
“This is different. It’s a fundraiser. We’ll sell some tickets, cook some burgers, and have a good time while helping out a good cause. It’s not going to be that hard.” Eli lined up the last of the glasses and inspected the shelf for dust.
“Okay, here it is,” Julia announced as she came out from the back office. She dropped a folder three inches thick on the bar.
“What is this?”
“The file for the SPCA fundraiser. Everything you need to pull it off.”
He sucked in a breath. Yeah, he really needed to start thinking before opening his mouth.
“Get your purse. We’re going out.”
Nora looked at the three women standing at her front door, still not quite comprehending why they were there. “We are?”
“Yes, silly,” Gemma said with a harsh laugh. “We need to hear all about your date last night.”
Nora bit back the urge to ask Gemma to repeat herself. She’d heard the words just fine—she just couldn’t understand why they were coming out of her biggest frenemy’s mouth. Gemma and Rose had been outright cruel to her two nights ago at their last book club meeting. Nora had been practically in tears after the whole incident with Eli, and barely spoke for the rest of the evening. Why would they show up here out the blue now?
Maybe they really did want to hear about her date, she reasoned. What was the harm in saying yes? You need friends. “Sure. Just let me change first.”
A few minutes later, she was in the back of Annie’s VW Golf with a clean sweater and her blond hair pulled back in a neat ponytail. Her stomach lurched with unease when they drove up to an old church, but one quick glance at the sign in parking lot assuaged her paranoia.
The Holy Grale. Clever name for a pub.
“I’ve been wanting to try this place for a while,” Annie said as they stepped inside the impressive space. Huge stained-glass windows lined the walls, but the warm wood décor made the space feel inviting instead of intimidating.
“It might be quieter on the second floor,” Nora said while they scanned the busy room for a table.
Gemma shook her head. “Nah, let’s stay down here where all the action is.”
“There’s a spot,” Rose said, pointing to a high, round table near the back.
The conversation started off fine, not that Nora contributed much. They were talking about a superhero movie that had just come out and she hadn’t had the chance to see it yet. She hated watching movies in the theatre with the soda-slicked floors and God-knows-what fluids and bacteria festering in the seats. It was so much easier to watch them at home where she could cozy up on her clean couch with her fresh, air-popped popcorn with real butter, and a big mug of tea. No interruptions. No kids throwing candy or kicking the seat behind her. Just a nice, lonely way to have a night of fun.
Yeah, she was going to have to work on her no-movie-theatre stance.
She scanned the menu while Gemma went on about the size of the star’s biceps. Beer. Beer. More beer. Nerves made her left leg shake like a jackhammer against her stool. Usually she could find something else to drink, but this place was entirely beer. Even the food menu was mostly beer-based. Yam-and-ale enchiladas. Chocolate stout cake. Before she finished reading the menu, the server had come by for their order.
“Let’s just get a round of the lemon ginger radlers,” Rose insisted. “I bet they’re delicious.”
Nora was too grateful to have the decision taken off her hands to argue. She had no idea what a radler was, but she liked lemon ginger tea, so it couldn’t be that bad.
As soon as Gemma gathered up the menus and handed them to the server, they all zeroed in on Nora. “Okay, time to spill. How was the date?”
“It was nice. Eli’s more of a gentleman than I expected.”
“Hmm. A gentleman in the streets, but how was he in the sheets?” Gemma waggled her eyebrows while the others laughed.
She knew the question was coming the minute she answered her door, but it still galled her. “It wasn’t that kind of date, but even so, those aren’t the kinds of details I’m comfortable sharing.”
“Borrrring,” Rose said.
The server came by at that moment and set a pint glass filled with a pale gold liquid in front of each of them.
Annie leaned over the table, cupping her hot-pink-tipped fingers around her glass. “I can’t believe you had a chance to do it with your hot neighbor and you didn’t take it.”
She needed to come up with a new topic of conversation. Think of something interesting, Nora. Anything. “Did you know that the graphite in a pencil is made entirely of carbon, just like a diamond?”
Her comment ricocheted off their blank stares like a bullet. Okay, maybe her favorite Chemistry 101 factoid wasn’t the best conversation piece. She grabbed her drink and took a sip to mask her embarrassment.
“I did not know that,” Gemma finally said. “But I do know that when a man is showing all signs of being hung like a horse, you need to cowgirl-up and ride him.”
Nora coughed and spit out the sip of beer she’d just taken.
Gemma laughed. “Not much of a cowgirl, are you?”
“No,” Nora said between coughs. The strangely sweet, tangy flavor still invaded her mouth. Was this really what craft beer was supposed to taste like? “This is really awful.”
“So you don’t like his body, and you don’t like his beer. Does that mean he’s up for grabs?”
Nora looked at Gemma, feeling one step behind the plot, and the smirk on her face only made the sinking feeling in Nora’s stomach worse. She followed the line of their gazes to the bar and—
Oh shit.
Eli.
Even in his own bar, there was no way to not feel creepy while standing outside of the women’s washroom, but Eli hunkered down with his back against the wall and waited. Nora had gone in there almost ten minutes ago. He had to admit the strangled, panicked look on her face when she finally caught his eye had dented his self-esteem just a little. And the way she’d almost choked on her first taste of his radler? Yeah, that wasn’t doing his ego any favors either.
He almost couldn’t believe his eyes when she walked in here. It wasn’t the first time a woman he’d gone out with the night before had come in the next day angling for a second date, but Nora had been more than clear she wasn’t interested. Of course, seeing her with those women from her book club explained some of the confusion. He’d told Nora he worked at a brewpub, but there were more than a half-dozen scattered around this town. She’d been set up.
The door finally swung open and Nora came out looking pale.
“Of all the brewpubs in this town, you’ve got to walk into mine, huh?”
She gasped and stuttered to a stop. “I didn’t know—”
“I know.”
She looked at her feet. “I should go back—”
“I told them to get lost and that you’d found another ride home tonight.”
This time she actually looked up at him. “Why?”
“Because it’s clear you didn’t know they were bringing you to my pub. What isn’t clear is why you agreed to go anywhere with them.”
“I don’t know. I thought maybe they were sincere when they wanted to know how our date went. I didn’t know they were going to bring me here so I would look like some crazy stalker.” She let out a rush of breath. “God, this is so embarrassing.”
“No, what’s embarrassing is the way you spit out a perfectly good radler.”
He enjoyed the way her cheeks pinkened. “I’m not much of a beer drinker. I wasn’t expecting it to be so sweet.”
“I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Radlers aren’t exactly beer. They’re beer mixed with a citrus-based soda. I think they’re disgustin
g, but they are popular, so I’ve created a perfect one and allowed it on the menu.”
“A little full of yourself, huh?” That was the grin he was hoping for. The one that made her checks bunch up like little apples and the corner of her eyes crinkle.
“I’m overcompensating after a harsh but understandable rejection by a beautiful woman last night.”
“We’re still friends, right?” Her eyes met his like it was the gravest question in the world.
He sighed exaggeratedly. “I don’t know. Can I really be friends with a heathen who doesn’t like beer?”
“Hey, if I can be friends with someone who listens to weird disco from the seventies, I think you can put my drinking habits aside.”
“Deal. But for the record, I only listen to that stuff because my mom loved it. It reminds me of her.”
“Oh.” The smile drifted off her lips, leaving a behind a look of pity.
Shit. What was it about her that made him say stuff like that? The stuff that was supposed to stay quiet? “Want a tour? I’ll show you all the off-limits stuff.”
“Yes, please!”
Instinct almost made him reach for her hand, but he wasn’t going to be the jerk who didn’t take no for an answer. She’d been clear that last night’s date had been nothing but an experiment. A failed one. Instead, he led her toward the back rooms with the lightest touch on the back.
“Hey, Eli?” Julia popped her head out of the hallway as he and Nora walked by. “Oh.”
“Julia, this is my neighbor, Nora. Nora, this is my sister, Julia. Also known as the one responsible for all the décor and event listings you see around here.”
“It’s very nice to meet you.” Nora offered her hand. Julia shook it firmly.
“I’m just giving Nora a tour of the brewery.”
Julia’s eyebrows shot up. “Interesting.”
He shook his head and ushered Nora forward.
She glanced at him over her shoulder as they walked, curiosity lighting up her pretty eyes. “What’s interesting?”
“I wasn’t lying when I said the brewery is off-limits to the public.”