Ivy walked over and kissed her husband on the cheek. “Last week, being the key word.”
Pule held up his hands for peace. “I’m just happy to help some friends. Now, you can help me. Where’s Asher and how long is he going to be?”
Ivy frowned. “He left about ten minutes ago to get a few things Becket thought we needed. He should be back very soon.”
Becket narrowed his brown eyes at him and crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned up against the counter. “What’s up? Why are you trying to find Asher?”
Pule whistled a few tuneless notes and looked at the ceiling as he tried to look innocent. “Can’t a man just want to spend a few quality moments with one of his closest friends?”
Becket snorted and Ivy’s eyes turned into lasers as she stepped closer to him. “You’re right, Becket. Something is up. Come on, Pule. We’re your closest friends. Tell us what’s going on.”
Pule glanced over his shoulder and shrugged. Why not? Maybe they could actually help him fix this for Meredith. “So here’s the deal. Asher made a play for Meredith but Meredith turned him down flat because they’re business partners now.”
Ivy grinned. “I heard about this. They’re starting this really fun dating website. It sounds amazing. Too bad it wasn’t up when I was single. I would have been all over that,” she said, sighing loudly.
Becket grabbed Ivy around the waist and began tickling her. “Oh really,” he said, his deep voice so low it sounded gravelly.
“I was teasing!” she squealed, trying to escape.
Becket let her go and then grinned at him, his eyes bright and full of light. “So what? What does this have to do with you?”
Pule walked over and grabbed a chair and flipped it around before sitting down. “I stupidly offered to fix things between Meredith and Asher. She’s all torn up about hurting him and she wants everything to go back to the way things used to be between them.”
Ivy frowned and joined him at the table. “But how can it? If Asher has feelings for Meredith and she rejects him, how could it?”
Pule pointed at her. “You rejected him and you two are friends now.”
Becket laughed at that and joined them. “Well, I wouldn’t call things the same between them. But I do think Asher is maturing. Poor guy has had to deal with a lot of rejection lately. First Ivy, then Cleo and now Meredith? Maybe instead of fixing Asher, we should work on Meredith. Sounds like if she’s that torn up about it, then part of her wants to be with Asher.”
Ivy nodded her head and leaned forward on the table. “I totally agree. Asher deserves a little love and happiness. I say we turn the tables on Meredith and get her to go out with him.”
Pule frowned, not liking this plan at all. “Actually, I think convincing Asher that he should just give up and be good friends with Meredith is the best course of action. And besides, that’s what Meredith wants.”
Ivy waved her hand in the air. “Psh. Don’t believe it for a second. Let’s do this.”
Pule swallowed sickly. Why hadn’t he just kept his mouth shut? “Okay, but can she really have a relationship with a man she’s in business with? She’s worried that if they go out and then break up, that it will ruin their business. She’s terrified of being a failure.”
Becket rubbed his face and smiled. “The best small businesses are run by families or couples. Besides, they have Brogan in this deal, right? He can run interference if things go bad. Problem solved.”
Pule rolled his eyes. “I’ll think about it,” he said, secretly swearing that he never would.
Ivy shook her head. “Not good enough. We’ve got to actively plan a way to get those two together. I can talk to Rayne and Garrett. They might be able to help too.”
Becket nodded his head. “The more the merrier. I’ll talk to Brogan about the situation and give him a head’s up. Maybe he can help us figure out a way to get those two together?”
Pule groaned and leaned his head in his hands. This was not turning out the way he’d planned. When he’d first thought of confiding in Ivy and Becket, he’d never imagined that they’d want to push them together. Ivy and Rayne hadn’t exactly bonded with Meredith when Cleo moved in with her. He better remind her of that.
“Ivy, you and Rayne don’t even get along with Meredith. Do you really want Asher in a relationship with her? You’d be seeing her a lot more than you already do. Think about that,” he said in a serious voice.
Ivy stared at him as if he lacked intelligence. “Are you insane? Asher and Meredith would be perfect for each other. He needs a strong woman to keep him on his toes. The man gets bored way too easily which is why he’s dated just about everybody in the Pacific Northwest. She’s the only girl that’s kept his interest.”
Pule glanced at Becket with a raised eyebrow. Becket grinned and held up his hands as if to say he was staying out of this one. “With one exception,” he said, shaking his head and pointing a finger at Ivy.
Ivy blushed and flicked non-existent crumbs off her pants. “That was just because he saw me as a challenge. When I didn’t automatically fall into his arms he was intrigued. Give us two weeks of solid dating and the man would be running for the hills.”
Becket rolled his eyes at that and Pule decided to change the subject. “Regardless, you and your sister don’t click with her.”
Ivy shrugged and walked over to the fridge, opening it and glancing around. “Rayne and I talked about Meredith the other day and we think we have her figured out. Rayne is positive we can win her over. She just loves Cleo so much that she sees Rayne and I as threats to her friendship with her. As soon as she realizes that Cleo isn’t the cliquey type and likes to have as many best friends as humanly possible, she’ll relax and get to know us. Layla was telling Rayne that she thinks Meredith actually has a very tender heart and that’s why she puts so many walls up. She only allows a few people inside and she gets nervous when people get too close. That woman needs more friends and you know what? She needs love. She’s been burned by Kam and that guy, Dane, she was engaged to who died. She’s used to getting burned. She needs to experience what it feels like to be in a relationship and not be burned. Simple as that,” she said and closed the door.
Pule began to say something but stopped when he saw how Ivy’s eyes were large with horror. “Crap,” he muttered and turned around to see Asher standing in the doorway with a hard look in his eyes that didn’t bode well for any of them.
“There you are,” Pule said easily and smiled as he went to stand next to Ivy.
Becket sighed in exasperation and took the bag Asher had in his hands and glanced at the receipts. He took a few bills out of his pocket and handed them to Asher before clapping him on the shoulder.
“Thanks, Man. You saved me a trip to the store. Luckily, Pule showed up and fixed the problem while you were gone. No more leaks.”
Asher nodded his head as he continued to stare at Ivy. “Who exactly were you talking about just now?” he asked in a soft voice that had Pule blinking worriedly.
Ivy cleared her throat and looked at the ceiling. “Me? Oh I was just talking about Rayne and Layla. I’m so glad you’re back, Ash. Pule showed up and was talking about taking you out for a boys night on the town. Sounds like fun to me,” she said heartily and turned to walk out of the room.
Faster than he could imagine, Asher was right there blocking her way. Pule glanced back at Becket, but he was cleaning up the mess from the sink, clearly unworried.
“Try again,” Asher said, putting his hands on his hips.
Ivy played with her hair nervously and glanced at Pule who lifted his shoulders helplessly. This was not good but what could they do?
Ivy sighed miserably. “Fine, here’s the deal. Pule’s really here to fix things between you and Meredith. She’s broken up over hurting you and wants Pule to make it right. She hates being at odds with you and just wants things to go back to normal. We’ve all been talking and we’re in agreement that it would actually be best if we work on
Meredith instead and help her to see the fact that you two would be perfect together.”
Asher’s head lowered as he stared at the floor. Pule watched him carefully and could see his chest was rising and falling quickly as if he was trying to control a powerful emotion.
“And why would Pule want to bother himself?” he finally asked, lifting his head to stare at him with his piercing blue eyes.
Pule cleared his throat but looked back. “I care about Meredith and she asked this favor of me. I couldn’t turn her down. She’s in pain, Ash. She hates that she hurt you. It’s eating her up,” he admitted, watching the pain wash through Asher’s eyes. Pule felt sick to his stomach. Here he was supposed to be working on making Meredith his girl and instead he was being forced to fix things between her and Asher. Ridiculous.
Asher shook his head and gnawed on his lip. “She made her feelings abundantly clear the other night. She chose our business over our relationship. She only wants to be friends. Period. Meredith is the most stubborn woman I’ve ever met. There’ll be no changing her mind,” he said dourly, turning and walking back to the table where he promptly collapsed on a chair and laid his head on his hands on the table.
Ivy made a sound of distress and rushed to him, patting his back as Becket went to the fridge and got him a Coke. Pule rolled his eyes and walked over too, pulling a chair over and sitting next to Asher.
“She doesn’t know what she wants. She doesn’t want to be out on the streets. She wants the respect of her peers and her community and she wants to make enough money to pay her bills and have a good life. All we have to do is show her that she can have what she wants and be with you too. She just needs her eyes opened,” Pule said as Asher lifted his face and stared at him with just a touch of hope in his eyes.
“So how do we do this then?” Asher finally said, sitting up and looking at Ivy and Becket. “How do we convince her that she loves me and that she wants to be with me?”
Ivy smiled nervously and looked at Becket. “Beck, you were so romantic with me, what do you suggest?”
Becket raised his eyebrows in surprise. “I’m the most unromantic man I know. I’m the last man you should ask,” he said, backing away from the table.
Ivy shook her head and frowned at him. “I disagree. Just last night you brought me home flowers and fixed me dinner and then we went out on the front porch and watched the sunset. Romance. You’re an expert.”
Becket blushed bright red and turned and looked at Asher and Pule who were looking at him with stark interest. “That’s just me loving you. Big difference. When a man truly loves a woman, he goes out of his way to do things for her that he knows will make her happy or take a burden off of her shoulders. That’s not being romantic. Romance is stupid and shallow and dumb,” he scoffed.
Pule shook his head as Asher laughed at him. “Every woman I know would disagree with you, Becket. Let’s face it. You’re romantic,” Pule said.
Asher nodded his head in agreement. “You could do Youtube videos for men on how to be romantic with their partners. Think about it.”
Becket growled low in his throat and looked like he wanted to wrap his hands around Asher’s throat. “One more word….”
Asher grinned and turned back to Pule and Ivy. “Well, the fact is, I love her. I think maybe this is the first time I’ve truly been in love. It feels like I’m sick with it. It’s taken over my body and mind and it’s all I can think about. She’s all I can think about. Just being with her, everything’s right with the world. We click so perfectly, we can look at each other and know exactly what the other one is thinking. It’s just right. And so when she told me no, it felt like I was dying. I don’t know how to handle a life where I can see and have a relationship with a woman I’m in love with, but at the same time know that I’ll never have the chance to truly love her or be loved by her. It’s torture.”
Ivy groaned and reached over and hugged Asher. “I know exactly what you mean. When I broke up with Becket, it felt like part of my soul had died right along with the relationship. Not fun.”
Becket let out a sigh. “Agreed. When Ivy dumped me I felt completely dead inside. There was no joy, no light, no happiness.”
Pule sat up. “I swear you’re describing Meredith,” he said with a light laugh.
Asher’s eyes went wide as he stared at Pule, then Ivy and then Becket. “Do you think….?”
Ivy clapped her hands and jumped up, pumping her fist. “She’s totally in love with you, Ash!” she yelled as she turned and grabbed Becket’s hands and began jumping with him in a circle.
Becket laughed at his wife’s antics before grabbing her and hugging her tightly. “You’re the biggest romantic, Ivy. Now, let’s leave these two fine gentlemen alone so they can figure out how to win Meredith’s heart.”
Pule laughed at Becket’s bluntness. That was their signal to take off.
Chapter 13 – Man-tastic Bro Bond
Ivy protested loudly, wanting to stay and brainstorm with Pule and Asher, insisting they needed a woman’s input. Pule couldn’t hear Becket’s response as they disappeared down the hallway so he turned and looked at Asher.
“Let’s get out of here. You hungry? My brother makes the best gnocchi in Fircrest. Let’s go get some.”
Asher smiled for the first time since he walked in as he stood up. “Best idea I’ve heard today. Let’s go.”
They arrived at The Iron Skillet ten minutes later and were immediately seated since it was only four o’clock and the dinner crowd hadn’t shown up yet. Kam came out from the kitchen and took the menus out of their hands.
“It’s so slow. Don’t worry about the menu. I’ll make you something delicious,” he said, crossing his massive arms over his chest and smiling at his younger brother.
Pule held up his hands. “You had me at, It’s slow,” he said making Kam and Asher laugh.
Kam grinned and then glanced at Asher. “You still treating Meredith good?” he asked, his eyes careful and watching.
Asher’s smile faded and his shoulders slumped. Pule sighed. “We’re working on that, Kam. That’s actually why we’re here.”
Kam frowned darkly at Asher and sat up, making Asher scoot back in his chair nervously. Pule grinned and put a hand on Kam’s shoulder.
“Dude, no. It’s not like that. Meredith, Brogan and Asher started this online dating business together and now that she and Asher are business partners, she says she can’t have a romantic relationship with him. He’s miserable and now so is she. She made me promise to help her fix things between them but Ivy and Becket think we need to fix her. She’s choosing business over love. She needs help, Kam. That’s why we’re here; to strategize.”
Kam’s shoulders relaxed and his eyes softened as he leaned over and clapped Asher on the shoulder. “Dude, you should have said so in the first place. You make Meredith unhappy, I have to make you unhappy. But if all you’re trying to do is love her, then I’m your best friend,” he said laughing as Asher grimaced.
Pule rolled his eyes. His big brother Kam could be formidable to even the bravest of souls. Rob Downing was the only man cocky enough to have thought he could go up against Kam, but that was only because he’d been a professional baseball player. Needless to say the man now knew it was the dumbest of notions to get on Kam Matafeo’s bad side. Now they were probably the two closest brothers-in-law that he knew of.
“We are open to suggestions, Kam. But you know Meredith. The woman is hard headed, stubborn and determined to do what she wants to do. How do we work with that?” he asked, realizing just how impossible their task really was.
Kam rubbed his chin. “I will think about it. Maybe I’ll ask Bailey. But right now, I’ll go make you something delicious to give you the strength you need to win Meredith’s heart,” he said, hurrying away with a happy smile on his face.
Asher looked after Kam and blew out a breath. “For a moment there I was wondering exactly what it would feel like to have a few broken ribs.”
&
nbsp; Pule laughed. “Just ask Rob. It’s not fun.”
Asher shook his head. “Hey, I’ve seen all the pain Cleo’s been through because of her broken bones. Not something I want to experience. Have you seen the size of your brother’s fists?” he asked, sounding horrified.
Pule shrugged and held up his own fist which was almost as big as his brothers. “You mean a fist like this?”
Asher stared at Pule’s fist and frowned. “Dude, remind me to never tick you off.”
Pule grinned and grabbed a roll out of the bread bowl. “We’re friends, Ash. You have no worries.”
Asher smiled and nodded his head. “Thanks, Pule. Thanks for being my friend. I mean, I have my brother who loves me no matter what and I have my bandmates and even Becket, but right now, … you’re my best friend.”
Pule blinked in surprise, not realizing just how close their relationship had become over the last few months. But it had. “You know, I think you’re right. All my boys from the clubs are just idiots. I’d never call them if I needed help. I’ve got my brothers and cousins of course, but if anything goes down they immediately tell my mom and dad. There are no secrets in my family. Yeah, I guess you’re my main man now.”
Asher grinned and stood up, holding his arms out. “It’s time for a hug, bro.”
Pule looked at him askance and then glanced around the restaurant. There were only a few people surrounding them and they were engrossed in their own conversations and their meals. Fine. He could hug Asher. Jeez.
“Weird, man,” he said and then grabbed Asher in a big hug he’d give Kam or his dad, holding on for at least fifteen seconds. When he finally let go, he was horrified to see tears in Asher’s eyes.
“Friends for life, Pule,” Asher said in a raspy voice.
Pule cleared his suddenly tight throat and nodded. “Friends for life,” he said, realizing that there’s no way he could go against Asher now in his bid for Meredith.
My One and Only: Book 1 in the Love and Weddings Trilogy Page 10