Winnie

We walk into AJ's at 8pm…and by we I mean myself, Mare, and Alder. Rhett didn't show up for dinner and I haven't heard from him since we talked in my backyard a few nights ago. Knowing I was seeing him tonight I spent a little longer on my hair, doing my full curly girl routine. My thick brown almost black hair is long and hangs down my back. I applied some light makeup and took some care picking out my outfit. I decided on a sage green silky slip dress that I've never worn because it cuts lower in the front than I usually wear. I paired the dress with some nude sandals and called it good.

I'm trying to move on from the disappointment of not seeing Rhett. So I decide maybe I'll have a couple drinks and act like I'm a young 31 year old celebrating her birthday, it will be a good distraction from the constant thoughts of him. As hard as I've tried I'm still stuck on him. I look around the table, Marigold is a knockout. Long blonde hair, petite frame, she's a couple inches shorter than my 5'4", big blue eyes and a body she keeps in shape by doing all the outdoor sports you can imagine. She's my opposite in so many ways, but we work. I can't imagine my life without her in it.

"Win! My birthday girl! What are we drinking?! It's been too long since we've done this!"

"You were at my house drinking wine earlier this week."

"Like I said, too long." I laugh. "I'm thinking I'm gonna start with a beer. What about you guys?"

"A beer sounds good."

"I'll get us a pitcher," Alder says and walks over to the bar.

I take my jacket off, set it next to me and glance around. There are a few guys here tonight, some I don't recognize and a couple regulars. I check my phone for the millionth time tonight, hoping Rhett had checked in. He didn't, so I put it away for the night. Mare sees but doesn't comment. I mentioned to her this morning that Rhett was coming and now that he was a no show I looked a little pathetic. A very attractive clean cut man stops next to Mare.

"Fancy meeting you here." He smirks and she turns to glare at him.

"Grant. What are you doing out, don't you have an early shift tomorrow?" He answers yes and they start sniping at each other…ahh so this is Grant. The hot doctor from the radiology lap who steals not clearly labeled food.

"Grant, this is Winnie. Winnie, Grant."

"Nice to meet you, Winnie. I have heard so much about you."

"Yeah, I've heard a lot about you too." Mare nudges my foot under the table and shoots me a look. I shake Grant's outstretched hand and then he turns back to her.

"Back!" Alder shouts like I was timing him for a race and sets the beer pitcher and glasses down on our table.

"That was fast. The crowd is big tonight."

"The new bartender your uncle hired has a thing for me." I laugh.

"Oh yeah? And how did you discover this in the five minutes you've been here? Isn't tonight her first shift?"

"Win, sometimes you just know. And trust me, I know. She was giving me her most charming smile and she's been eyeing me since I walked in." That makes me laugh harder.

"I would not be surprised. You're a gorgeous man, Alder." He smiles and nods, agreeing with me. He's always been so good at accepting compliments, Mare is too. She's helped me get better at it over the course of our friendship.

"I think I'm going to go back over to the counter and see if I can get her number. I'll be back birthday girl." He kisses my cheek as he passes and I watch him saunter away. I shake my head at him. Grant says goodbye and moves back to his own table so Mare leans across the table and whispers.

"So, see anyone here tonight that looks like they'd show you a good time?"

"I'm not sure that"s exactly what I'm looking for tonight but I see a couple guys I could be interested in."

"Yeah you do! Alright tell me who we've got our eye on." I love when she does this. She treats situations I'm not comfortable with like it's both of ours. As someone who used to have crippling anxiety it warms my heart.

"Okay, um, what about the guy over by the pool table?"

"The one with the 5 o"clock shadow or the blonde?" she asks.

"Not the blonde," I confirm.

"Yes, Win. That guy is hot. Like meet me in the bathroom hot." I blush but laugh.

"Marigold, I am not meeting someone in the bathroom." She just shrugs.

"Fine but I'll watch the door if you change your mind." she winks and I laugh hard before taking another long drink of my beer.

"Are we drinking tonight or drinking tonight?" I think about that for a couple seconds then decide what the hell? I don't have to be up early tomorrow since we're closed.

"We're drinking!"

"Woo! Hell yes we are!" she hollers and we raise our beers before downing them. "I'm getting us shots! Tequila!" I feel someone at my side and look over. It's the guy from the pool table.

"Tequila shots? Are we celebrating or commiserating?" His blue eyes twinkle and he has a cute grin on his face.

"Celebrating! It's her birthday!"

"No kidding, Happy Birthday! Do you mind if I join you?" He gestures to the empty stool and I look at Mare who is smiling and nodding.

"Sure, but only if you take a shot with us." I try for flirty…I think it comes out more stern than I wanted but he smiles widely at me.

"Count me in. I'm Nathan." He holds out a hand and I reciprocate.

"Great, I'm Winslow, but you can call me Winnie."

"I'll be right back with them," He says and makes his way toward the busy counter to order. I look at Mare who is already looking at me.

"Win, that was smooth. Who knew you had game?" I roll my eyes.

"Please, I have no game."

"I have to disagree with you there. You just got the hottie you had your eye on to buy us shots in less than two sentences. I'm impressed." I shake my head as Nathan makes it back with the shots and limes on the rims.

"Alright here we go."

"Three, two, one, go!" We all take our shots and grab for a lime wedge.

"I don't know why I ever think tequila shots are a good idea." I say as I pour myself another beer. "So Nathan, where are you from?"

"I'm actually from the Denver area, just here for the weekend, passing back through. We went rafting here last week before heading out to Rattlesnake Arches and our guide recommended this place."

"Oh yeah? Was your guide Colt Parker?" He looks surprised by my guess.

"Uh yeah, how did you know that?" I smile.

"Colt is my brother and the best rafting guide in Colorado." he laughs.

"Small world. Do you raft as well?" Mare can't stop her snort as she tries to hide her laugh in her beer.

"Uh no, actually. I'm not as big into outdoor sports as my brother. I'm not what you would consider athletic." I cringe…not really how I want to describe myself to a guy I'm trying to impress, but he catches me off guard when he laughs.

"You're adorable. So, what do you enjoy doing if not outdoor sports?" I blush at his compliment and am thankful for his interest.

"I bake. I actually own the bakery in town."

"You own it? That's amazing!" And it sounds like he really thinks that.

"Thank you, I've only been open a few months but it's going well."

"It's going fantastic," Mare interjects.

"So, what"s your favorite thing to bake?"

"Ohh, that's a hard one…" I think about it. "I think my favorite thing to bake is chocolate croissants."

"You're kidding…those are my favorite to eat."

"Really?" I eye him skeptically.

"Honestly. You could have said anything and I would have said it was my favorite. I just want to keep talking to you." I blush.

"Well you don't have to fabricate favorite pastries. I'm enjoying talking to you, too." He smiles wide at that and I decide that maybe I could move on with someone like Nathan. He's handsome, charming, funny and maybe the most important quality is that he seems interested in me.

"So, how long have—" he's interrupted by my brothers booming voice.

"Win! Goldie!" Great. I turn and see him waving a beer pitcher in the air, somehow not spilling it everywhere, and coming our way…and then I see who's trailing him. Even better. I'm trying to forget about my embarrassing fixation with Rhett and that even when it shouldn't have, it hurt when he didn't show up for dinner. I need to let hope die. But he's walking towards me, looking so good, to be fair he always looks like that. He sees me and then he sees Nathan and I swear he looks annoyed. Winnie…I inwardly groan at myself.

"Hello, brother," I say in greeting as he sets the beer down.

"Happy Birthday, Winnie!" He wraps me in a hug.

"I hope that beer is for us," Mare chirps.

"It's for the birthday girl, but maybe stop being so bossy, Goldie."

"I'm not being bossy, Colt. It was only a question. You're always so defensive," She says innocently.

"I'm not being defensive." They're in a staredown now.

"Rhett." I nod at him then look away. I'm not sure if I should be but I'm mad at him. He basically admitted that he wanted to touch me the other day and then blew off my birthday dinner that he asked to come to. Mixed signals weren't something I handled well. They made me anxious. I liked to know the plan. I needed to know where things stood.

"Winnie. Happy Birthday."

"Thanks," I say without looking his way again and focus on Nathan. Colt grabs a stool from another high top and they crowd around our table. Colt squeezes next to Mare, so that puts Rhett right next to me. It wouldn't be so bad except his thigh is touching mine and his shoulder is brushing against me every time he moves.

"Hey, Nathan right? You were in my boat last week!"

"Yep, good memory. I decided to take your suggestion for a place to get a drink…imagine my surprise when it's your sister I find here." He throws me a wink and I know I must look like a tomato now. We all chuckle…except Rhett. He stays silent by my side. Nathan goes to stand and turns to me.

"It was really nice meeting you ladies but unfortunately I gotta head out. We've got a guided fly fishing outing planned for early in the morning. Winnie, I'm in town just a couple more days and I would really like to see you again. Would it be alright if I stopped by your bakery?" I'm disappointed that he's leaving already. That is not how I imagined my night with Nathan turning out, but hopefully I will see him again.

"Please do." I decide to wink at him this time and he grins.

"Looking forward to it." I grin back. He looks at Colt and Rhett. "Have a good night guys." Then he turns to go. I turn back to the table to see Mare and Colt looking stunned but smiling.

"What?" Mare laughs.

"Game! You absolutely have it, Win!" Colt laughs then too.

"Baby sister, it's a good thing I came in when I did. I think that poor guy was about to fall in love with you." I throw my head back at that.

"Oh, come on. I just met the guy. He was very sweet though."

"I don't know if the thoughts he was having were sweet but sure, he was sweet."

"Marigold!" I laugh loudly again and she and Colt join in, but when I glance to my right I see Rhett looking incredibly tense, jaw set in a hard line and eyes on the table. Not sure what his problem is but I refuse to ask. Tonight isn't about him, well it's kind of about not thinking about him…that's going great. Colt pours me a beer still chuckling.

"How was your week at the bakery, Win?"

"Good, we actually had someone in right at open one day." I smirk and look at Rhett again. He is now sitting up straight and looking at me with an anxious expression. Ookay…I'm assuming that look means "Don"t tell your brother it was me…?" I give him a confused look and am about to ask why it matters but Colt starts talking again.

"No shit! That's awesome! I knew you'd be kicking ass right out of the gate. I'm so proud of you, Win."

"Oh, and congratulations on the house closing, Rhett!"

"Thank you."

"You closed on it so fast. You've been in town, what, a week?" Colt asks.

"I feel like you're underestimating how fast I can close a deal when I set my mind to it," he says it like he says most things, with a slight innuendo.

"Oh, I don"t think anyone here is ever that surprised by how fast you close a deal…" I say. His grin drops a little.

"I've actually had my eye on this one since I was a kid and it just so happened to be for sale."

"Win lives right next door in the little white cottage directly behind there." Colt muses.

"Really?" he says and I know he already knows this. He spent all night talking to me in our adjoined backyards a couple nights ago. I go to say something about it but I see Mare look over my shoulder and turn just in time for a cute guy with light brown wavy hair to reach us and he's looking at me.

"Hey there. I saw you earlier but you were talking with someone else and I didn't want to interrupt. Do you think I could buy you a drink?" I blush and am flustered. I don"t know what I'm going to say till I hear the words come out.

"Um, sure. That would be great." I smile and he holds out his hand.

"I'm Jared. Do you wanna come with me to the bar so we can get to know each other?" I look back at the table and Mare is nodding yes and waggling her eyebrows. I roll my eyes and Colt tips his head letting me know he's fine with it. I don't look at Rhett, I'm sure he disapproves. I just take Jared's hand and slide off the stool.

"I'm Winnie." He grins and leads me to the counter.

After spending about 12 minutes with Jared, it's obvious that we are not a match, but not wanting to face Rhett again just yet I stick it out for another 20. First of all, he doesn"t eat sugar. He also keeps checking out every other woman in this place. I make an excuse about needing to get back to my friends. He doesn't put up a fight, obviously he isn't feeling it either. Before going back to the table I hit the bathroom.

I'm a tiny bit buzzed and looking at myself as I wash my hands. I sigh. Tonight wasn't a complete waste. In just under two hours I had some good conversations and possibly a follow up with a cute guy. I dry my hands and check myself in the mirror one more time, feeling confident, then push the door open. I make it two steps when I catch my sandal on the floor. The floor that is completely flat. We've been here before, many times. I brace myself for impact on the hard wooden surface but instead of the bruised hip and elbow I'm expecting to feel tomorrow, I feel strong hands grip my upper arms and then land face first into a very warm, very muscular chest.

"Oof! I'm so sorry! If you knew me, you would know that it's really not something I can help…" I'm babbling but trail off and stop talking when the smell of cedar and citrus hits me. I look up and see two green gemstone eyes looking back into my own. I forget how to breathe. Rhett. I swallow. Hard. He's looking at me with a level of intensity that is usually reserved for when he's on the ice. I take a shaky breath and try to regain composure. It's absolutely ridiculous to feel like this just because I'm close to him…why does it feel this good to be so close to him?

"Hey, Rhett. Just tripped. Sorry, I'll let you be." He doesn't release me though, instead his grip tightens slightly. He's still staring at me…glaring at me, really. "Everything okay, Rhett?" I see his jaw tick and he opens his mouth, then closes it. He sighs heavily and his hands slip down to my elbows. "Okay, well I'm gonna head back out there." I try to lighten the mood and move backward but it doesn't feel like it's working. He's stone faced and I'm starting to think maybe I should get a glass of water for my dry throat.

"Rhett? I think maybe I need to get some water, I'm feeling a little light headed. I don't drink very much and I'm remembering why right about now, I decided it would be okay since it's my birthday and all but yeah—I don't think I'll be doing this for awhile." He stops my rambling, thank goodness because I wasn't feeling capable but when he speaks I have a hard time understanding his words…

"Winnie, if I have to see you making eyes at another guy in this bar tonight, wishing to God it was me, I'm gonna lose my damn mind." His admission stuns me. I reach my right hand over to my left forearm and pinch myself. "Ow, shit!" So, he really did say that.

"What the hell, Winnie?! Why would you do that?" I stare blankly, trying and failing to absorb his words. He opens his mouth and I think maybe I'll get a longer explanation when I hear footsteps approaching and Rhett's hands fall away from my arms.

"Hey, there you guys are! Win, I settled our tab, are you ready to head out?" I nod and side step Rhett.

"Yeah, I'm ready to get home." My voice is off but luckily Mare seems to also be a bit buzzed and doesn't notice. Rhett clears his throat and I feel him move away.

"Can I stay at your place tonight? I'll just get my car in the morning."

"Of course, you know you don't even have to ask. Let's go." I try to stop myself but can't fight the pull so I look back to where Rhett was just standing, only he isn't standing there anymore. Had I imagined that…? That's more likely to me than him actually saying what he did. Wishing to God it was me…yes, surely my imagination has finally jumped off the deep end tonight, but I look at my forearm and see the red mark from pinching myself.

I say goodnight to Colt as we pass the table. He already has two girls sitting at the stools beside him. Not surprised by that—although I am a little surprised that Mare doesn't look in his direction, actively ignoring him. Honestly those two are always fighting about something.

We talk about the guys at the bar as we walk home arm in arm. Laughing at the guy that hit on Mare tonight and called her sweetheart. She hates being called sweetheart more than she hates being called boring. We make it home just after 10. Mare crawls in my bed after removing only her shoes but I have to do my nighttime routine and change into pajamas or I won't be able to sleep. I throw my hair up in a bun, wash my face and then crawl in beside her. She already has some bad TV on and we settle in.

I'm halfway to sleep when I hear a husky voice repeating words I thought may have been a drink induced hallucination… "…I'm gonna lose my damn mind…" I try not to get ahead of myself though. I was better off not knowing what he meant or reading too much into it all. I guess it's time to see how easy it was to avoid someone in a small town.