Shifter Country Bears: The Complete Collection
Page 48
“Okay,” Cora said, holding up her glass. “Here’s to Quinn and Julius and Hudson. May they always… have good stuff happen to them!”
Everyone laughed.
“The best stuff!” Olivia joined in.
“And may the best stuff get you through the worst stuff,” Austin said.
Sloane lifted her glass, trying not to cry again. Then she tilted her head back and let the tequila burn down her throat, shaking her head just a little as she did.
As everyone went to put their shot glasses on a tray, Sloane saw Trevor, out of the corner of her eye, put a hand on Olivia’s shoulder.
“Hey,” he said, tentatively.
Don’t eavesdrop, she told herself as she eavesdropped.
Olivia looked up at him and smiled.
“Hi,” she said.
Trevor swallowed and folded his hands in front of himself, cracking his knuckles.
“I just wanted to say I’m sorry,” he said. “I should have done better when you were in that cage.”
Olivia looked down for a moment, like she was considering something, and then looked back up at Trevor.
“You were the only bright spot I had those days,” she said. “Honestly, I barely remember anything else, but I remember that you were the only one who was nice to me.”
Trevor looked down now.
“I wish I’d let you out,” he said. “I’m sorry I didn’t.”
Olivia just sort of shrugged, then half-smiled, sort of laughed, and looked at the floor again.
“If you had, who knows if any of this would be happening,” she said.
She reached out and, very tentatively, put a hand on his arm.
“I’m glad Austin picked you,” she said, quietly. “I wish I’d known sooner.”
“Olivia!” someone shouted. Then a middle-aged woman in a purple dress bustled through the crowd and took the girl’s elbow. “Find Jasper and Craig,” she said. “It’s picture time. And the rest of you,” she said, pointing at the cousins, “Get your drinks, you’re on deck for photos.”
“Yes, Aunt Lydia,” Hunter shouted.
Aunt Lydia looked at him. He had a drink in each hand, and she raised her eyebrows.
“One is Ash’s,” he said, just a little defensively. “He went to the bathroom.”
“Sure,” said Lydia, as she hustled off.
“Lush,” teased Austin.
He put one hand one Sloane’s back, rubbing her shoulders, and the other on Trevor’s.
“You want drinks before pictures?” he asked.
Sloane and Trevor exchanged glances.
“Are we in the pictures?” Trevor asked, slowly. “I mean, we’re not…”
“I barely know Julius and Hudson and Quinn…” added Sloane, letting her words trail off.
Austin hugged them both tight.
“You’re mine, so you’re family,” he said. “That’s how this works.”
Sloane looked at Trevor again, and couldn’t help but notice that his eyes were a little too bright.
“Now,” Austin said. “What do you want from the bar?”
THE END
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Jackson Cody nearly ruined my life.
I was dumb, drunk, and eighteen. He was a rodeo star with a smile that could melt steel, and I was this close to giving him everything.
I learned my lesson, grew up, and moved on. Now I’ve got my first huge assignment as a photographer, and if I play it right, this rodeo shoot could make my whole career.
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Also by Roxie Noir
Standalone Novels:
Loaded: A Bad Boy Romance
Ride: A Bad Boy Romance
Series:
North Star Shifters: The Complete Series
Shifter Country Wolves: The Complete Series
Copper Mesa Eagles: The Complete Series
About Roxie
I love writing sexy, alpha men and the headstrong women they fall for.
My weaknesses include: beards, whiskey, nice abs with treasure trails, sarcasm, cats, prowess in the kitchen, prowess in the bedroom, forearm tattoos, and gummi bears.
I live in California with my very own sexy, bearded, whiskey-loving husband and two hell-raising cats.
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