9. Peyton

PEYTON

A fter Brodie drove away, Peyton pulled out her phone and saw she had two voicemails and several texts. She hadn't looked at her cell since they left Big Sky Café, and that wasn't like her. It wasn't responsible either. What if her boys needed her? Her heart raced as she looked at the texts first. Both were from Alex, saying she was checking in. If anything had happened to them, Alex was her emergency contact; she wouldn't have just "checked in."

She didn't recognize the phone numbers from the voicemails and was irritated when she listened and discovered they were sales calls.

"Well, hello there. Where on earth have you been?" asked Alex when she answered her cell.

"Wait, what? You didn't want to run."

"Settle down! You're right. I didn't want to run. That doesn't mean I don't want to know where you've been."

"I'll tell you later." Peyton wasn't ready to admit she'd spent the day with Brodie Butler, even to her best friend.

"You've got to be kidding. First, you give no clue as to why you canceled something you nag endlessly about, and now, after I haven't talked to you all day, you're still holding out on me?"

"I said I'll tell you later. I have to leave to pick the boys up from school."

"When will you be home?" Alex asked.

"I don't know, fifteen minutes?"

"I'll see you in twenty, and have a bottle of wine open."

"Alex…"

"Are you hungry? I can pick up takeout on my way over."

"I'll ask the boys what they want and let you know."

"Sounds good, and I'll see you soon. I'm warning you, though. You'll pay for torturing me like this."

"I'm rolling my eyes."

"As if you wouldn't react the same way if the situations were reversed. In fact, you'd be worse."

Peyton laughed and disconnected the call. Alex was right. She would've been relentless if Alex disappeared for an entire day. Unfortunately for her friend, she would be making her wait even longer. There was no way she'd tell her about her day with Brodie if either of her boys were still awake.

"I'm seriously craving seafood. Too bad the Sea Chest is closed," Peyton said when Alex called again.

"I'll drive by and see if Stormy is there. If she is, I can probably talk her into letting me have some chowder, maybe some oysters too."

Stormy Blue, her given name, was the manager of the Sea Chest and had gone to high school with her and Alex. Peyton hoped their friend was there, because no one else in town compared when it came to clam chowder.

"If not, I'll swing by the market. Can you wait that long?"

"I can wait. I'll nibble on a piece of the pizza I ordered for the boys."

"Don't forget the wine," Alex teased.

"As if. I have a Skyrider white chilled."

"Perfect. I'm getting wangry. See you soon."

Peyton and Alex knew wangry well. It's how they referred to customers who came in grouchy from their day and barked their order.

"I forgot how much I like this wine," Alex said when she came in the front door, picked up the glass, and took a sip. "Do we have any of it at Stave?"

"No, they're sold out."

"I didn't think we had it. How'd you get it?"

Peyton grinned. "I know a guy."

"All right, enough with the mystery. What did you do today?"

She motioned in the direction of the family room, where the boys were doing their homework. "I'll tell you after they're in bed."

Alex got up and went to the doorway where she could see both of them. "Jamison? Finn?"

When she didn't get a response, she plopped into the chair next to Peyton. "Headphones on, can't hear a thing. Now, talk."

"I'd rather wait until I know they're asleep."

"Not a chance. I've been way more patient than you would've been with me."

"All right."

Peyton told Alex she spent the day in San Luis Obispo, about having breakfast, then going to Avila Beach and driving back through See Canyon. The only thing she hadn't admitted was who she'd done it all with.

Given Alex glared at her with her arms folded, her omission hadn't gone unnoticed.

"I was with Brodie," she whispered, glancing in the direction of the family room, hoping her boys were still wearing their headphones.

"Oh my God."

"Shush! The boys were asking about him last night, and I don't want them to get the wrong idea."

"What's the right idea?"

"I don't know. It's weird."

"When are you seeing him again?"

"I'm not. At least not intentionally." She'd already been trying to figure out a way to "bump into him," but so far, hadn't come up with anything that wouldn't be obvious.

"Does he want to see you again?"

"Too much."

"What does that mean? What did he say?"

"That he wished he'd met me under different circumstances."

"Do you feel the same way?"

If there was anyone she could admit her feelings to, it was Alex, but something stopped her. Two days ago, she wouldn't have known Brodie Butler if he'd walked into her house uninvited. She would've known he was related to Kade though; no one could miss it.

"Peyton? I asked if you feel the same way."

"I don't know."

She missed Kade, and while Brodie reminded her of him, there was more to it. If she'd met him under different circumstances, she would've felt the same attraction. It was too powerful.

"What would people think?"

"Who gives a shit, Peyton? What do you think? That's all that matters."

"This goes beyond that, Alex."

"Tell me what he said."

"I already told you," Peyton responded.

"No, you told me he wished you'd met differently. He must've told you why he felt that way."

"It was a nice day. We enjoyed each other's company."

"Tell me more," Alex pressed.

"Before I do, tell me what you know about him."

"Brodie?"

"Yeah, Brodie. Duh."

"Okay, okay. No need for snarkiness. Brodie Butler, hmm. Not much. It's weird that you were so close to Kade, but you'd never met his brother."

"I don't know much about anyone in their family. I learned more in one day with Brodie than I did in all the time I was with Kade."

"Tell you what, every one of the Butler boys is hotter than hot and terminally single."

"That reminds me. I have something to tell you on that subject, but I want to circle back to it."

"O-o-o-kay. I know Maddox better than the rest of them. I felt like I knew Kade, but I never did. I knew your version of him."

Peyton thought about Alex's comment. "I get it. I didn't think Kade was secretive, but I'm realizing how little I knew about him."

"Mad has always been the charming one. Naughton is all dark and broody Scottish guy. Brodie, well, he never wanted for women, if you know what I mean."

Peyton raised a brow. "But not the charming one?"

"I don't think Brodie ever required charm. He's all that and more, ya know?"

Peyton tapped her lips with her finger.

"Did you kiss?"

Peyton's eyes opened wide. "Have you lost your mind? Of course we didn't."

"All right. Don't get your panties in a wad. You said you had a nice day. It was easy. Isn't that how you described it? How many people would you refer to in the same way?"

"Not many. But is that how Brodie is?"

"I didn't say that. I do think he's easygoing, hotter than shit, and very sure of himself. Confidence is pretty damn sexy, don't ya think?"

"Yeah, I do think."

Kade was hot, in a big, tough, teddy bear sort of way. There was sheer power in every step he took. It was weird that Brodie reminded her so much of him, because describing the two, she realized he was so different.

Brodie was taller than Kade, probably six-foot-three to Kade's straight up six. He held himself the same way, but Brodie sauntered across the room. Kade strode.

At first glance, Brodie didn't appear as muscular as his older brother, but after brushing up against him more than once, she knew he was.

By the time she met him, Kade was already bald, and it hadn't bothered her. Brodie, though, had a thick head of dark auburn hair she longed to run her fingers through. And while all the brothers shared the same piercing blue eyes, Brodie's seemed more intense.

She probably would've described Kade as attractive. Brodie, on the other hand, was gorgeous enough that she didn't doubt women stopped on the street and drooled after him when he passed by.

"Here's the problem—I don't know if I will ever stop comparing them." Peyton shook her head. "Honestly, it doesn't matter. I can't see him again."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What just happened?"

"It's too much, Alex."

"Peyton…"

"Can we change the subject?"

Alex burst out laughing. "To what ?"

Peyton laughed too. "Shut up."

Alex yawned and stretched her arms over her head. "Better call it a night, girlfriend."

"Do you want to skip our run again tomorrow?" Peyton asked.

"No way, Peyton. I plan on grilling you the entire time, until I pry every last detail out of you."

"It isn't that interesting, I promise."

Alex smirked. "Brodie-the-booty is very interesting. I assure you."

"Good Lord, do people call him that?"

"Nope, not people. Women."

Peyton cringed. "See? He's a player. I don't have any interest in guys who are."

"Did he make you feel that way today? Like he was playing you?"

"No, but isn't that what they do?"

"I think you know when you're being played, and you make the conscious decision to go along."

Peyton stood. "Okay, that's enough dating philosophy for one night. See you tomorrow, Alex."

"Get some rest, and I'll see you around nine." Alex hugged her and went out the door.

After turning the lights off in the rest of the house, Peyton closed her bedroom door and picked up the remote for the TV. She never went to sleep without it on. It was too quiet otherwise, and she'd spend too much time in her head. She also heard every noise the old house made, her imagination ran amok, and she couldn't sleep. She hadn't had a decent rest since the night before Kade left for the last time.

Alex had invited the boys over for a slumber party so she and Kade could be alone. They'd made dinner, which neither ate. Instead, they'd made love until Peyton fell into a coma-like sleep.

When she got into bed and closed her eyes, she expected to see Kade, like she usually did. She saw Brodie. It was the second time it had happened. Brodie-the-booty, that was what Alex had said women called him. Understandable, given how amazingly he rocked a pair of jeans.

The barn jacket he wore had covered his "booty" most of the day, but at Big Sky, he'd taken it off. When he left the table to use the restroom, her eyes had followed his behind the whole way. Between his saunter and perfect ass, Peyton's mind wandered, wondering if the rest of him was as perfect. She'd never know, because she had no intention of seeing him again, let alone his naked body.

She drifted off, but woke when her phone vibrated. She looked at the clock near the television and saw it was after one in the morning. Worried it was something to do with her mom or dad, Peyton grabbed the phone. It was hard to focus, so she picked up the reading glasses that sat on the nightstand—Kade's reading glasses.

The text was from Brodie, and in it, he apologized if she thought he was an asshole, but he wanted to see her again. He told her he had to go out of town tomorrow but wanted to know what she was doing Thursday.

Peyton sat up and read his message more than once. After an hour of being unable to fall asleep, she picked up her phone again.

I'll be at Stave in the afternoon , she wrote. Now that it was after two, she doubted he'd respond, but he did.

I'll be in.

Peyton studied the words and wondered what in the hell she thought she was doing. More, what was Brodie thinking?

She set the phone on the nightstand, then it vibrated again.

I can't stop thinking about you , Brodie wrote.

He couldn't? She couldn't stop thinking about him either. Jesus. They were both out of their minds.

Every time Peyton heard the tasting room door open Thursday night, she vacillated between hoping it was Brodie and praying it wasn't. She checked her phone every ten minutes to see if there was a text from him, saying he needed to cancel.

Soon Alex would return from the bank run, and Peyton would have to explain why she was hanging out so late on her day off. She couldn't act like it was a surprise when Brodie showed up.

It wasn't unusual for Peyton to come in Thursday morning to help Alex get the tasting room organized for the weekend, but she was usually out of there by one at the latest, and it was getting close to two. The only thing she had left to do today was put together the list of the ten vintages they'd serve tomorrow during happy hour.

Every Friday, between four and six, Stave offered a new-release tasting. The place would be packed, and sales would be good. It was also the most fun night to be at Stave, outside of when they hosted the wine dinners.

If they knew their wines were being served, winemakers often came, which gave them the opportunity to see firsthand what customers thought about the new release. Peyton closed the door of the chiller and was about to take case inventory of what she'd picked, when she heard the rear door open and close.

"I'm here," Alex shouted from their office.

"Hey," Peyton answered.

"How's it goin'? Can I see what you chose?"

Peyton handed her notes to Alex and looked out the front window.

"This looks good. I see you've got a new one on here from Butler Ranch."

Maddox had sent an email a week ago, before her run-in with Brodie at Louie's Market, listing their releases for the next ninety days. Peyton had decided then that she'd add their first, a Sauvignon Blanc, to the tasting this Friday.

She'd stayed away from Butler Ranch varietals since Kade died, but as a member of the collaborative, her excluding them wasn't fair. They deserved to have their wine featured as much as anyone else in the group.

"By the way, I heard from Brodie Tuesday night. He said he would stop in today."

Alex raised a brow.

"Please don't give me shit about this, Alex. I'm doing that well enough on my own."

"I'm glad you said that, because you're right. The other night, I told you that you shouldn't give a crap what anyone else thought, and that includes me. However, I'm going to tell you what I think anyway. It's great. Kade died over a year ago, Peyton. You didn't know Brodie when you were with him. You didn't even spend time with their family. I say go for it."

"Maybe he's stopping in to tell me he's thought it over and changed his mind about wanting to see me."

"Yeah, you're right. He's stopping by to see you to tell you he doesn't want to see you." Alex rolled her eyes.

"Do you realize how often you so that at things I say?"

Alex laughed and set the tasting notes down on the bar. "I'll make myself scarce when he gets here."

"By scarce, do you mean you'll hide in the storeroom and listen to every word we say, or will you leave?"

"Tell you what—you make yourself scarce instead. It's your day off."

"Okay, but you gotta start going easier on me, Alex. I'm freaking out."

"I heard you, and I will. I'm now the captain of team Peydie, or should it be Broton?"