I shifted my weight back and forth between each foot as I waited impatiently for Wyatt and Amelia to come down the stairs. We were supposed to leave twenty minutes ago to go to Jack's Bar.

After the very uncomfortable talk with my dad this morning, I sent Grant a text to let him know where I would be tonight. When I mentioned I wanted him to come by the bar, he questioned whether or not it was a good idea since I wasn't going to be there alone. I told him not to worry about it.

I had no idea what I was going to say to him. But we needed to talk. And as nervous as I was about going, my brother and fiancée needed to hurry the fuck up. 

"Amelia! Wyatt!" No answer. I walked closer to the base of the stairs."Hey, guys! You up there?" 

When there was still no response from either of them, I grew more frustrated and started going up the stairs to search for them. What the hell were they doing up there? It was Wyatt's idea to go to the bar in the first place.

"Hey," I said when I got to the top of the stairs and saw the pair of them. "You guys ready or what?" Then I saw Amelia's outfit. "You look amazing, Amelia."

"Thank you," she replied, glancing from me to Wyatt. "Let's get going." 

The three of us made our way out of the house we all climbed into my SUV. I quickly sent Grant a text before pulling out of the driveway. 

Me: Omw

Grant: See you soon. 

Please let tonight go okay, I prayed. The opposite just wasn't an option. 

The ride to Jack's Bar felt longer than it was. My two passengers fought over the radio the whole way and for once I didn't care. Anything to keep my mind off of what was to come. 

Once we arrived at our destination, I went straight to the bar to get drinks while Amelia and Wyatt set up the pool table. 

"Can I get a Heineken, a Long Island, and a Bud Light, please?" 

"Sure thing," the bartender said before going to get my drinks. 

I glanced around the bar, looking for one person in particular. I saw the usual groups of people along with some new faces. He said he would be here and I didn't think that he would—

"Hey, you." 

A shiver ran down my spine. I glanced to the right and there he was—leaning against the bar next to me.

"Hey. I was looking for you." 

He gave me a teasing smile. "You found me." His eyes ran over me. "No jacket tonight?" 

Thr corner of my mouth lifted in a smirk. "I seem to have forgotten it somewhere." 

When I left Grant's hotel room yesterday morning, I saw the jacket hanging on the chair. I'm not sure exactly why, but my gut told me to leave it behind.

"Seems that way." He cleared his throat and looked away from me. "I sure as hell hope that you didn't leave it behind as a way of trying to say goodbye to me." 

Is that why I did it? Did I subconsciously know that I was going to have to say goodbye to him? Again?

"I'm not saying goodbye." 

"Then what are you saying, Logan?" 

The bartender came back and sat the drinks I ordered in front of me. "Here you go." 

I put some cash on the top of the bar. "Thanks." I turned to Grant again. "Meet me in the back when I can sneak away?" 

He silently held my stare for several minutes. "Okay, Logan. Text me when you can go outside."

I grabbed the drinks and headed back to the high-top where Amelia and Wyatt were waiting for me. I sat the drinks in front of them as they bickered back and forth. 

"Here's the drinks!" 

Amelia reached for her Long Island and smiled. "Thank you." 

"Thanks man," Wyatt added when he grabbed his beer. "Ready to get this party started?" 

"Let's do it!" Amelia exclaimed. She put her straw between her lips and drank some of her drink before she went to make the first shot in the game of pool they started.

I groaned in sympathy when she missed the pocket. 

"Better luck next shot, Lia," Wyatt teased. 

When Wyatt went to take his shot, Amelia came to stand beside me.  

"How are you feeling?" I asked quietly. 

She frowned at me, clearly thrown off by my question. "I'm fine. Why? Should I not be?" 

My shoulder brushed against hers when I shrugged. "I don't know. You've just seemed...different the past few days." 

"So have you," she said pointedly. 

She had a point.

"Yeah." I cleared my throat. "I think we should talk. Soon." 

"Yeah, we should." 

When Wyatt missed the shot, he walked over to us and looked less than pleased. 

"Too bad," I teased. "Maybe next time, little brother." 

"Yeah, we'll see. It's still early."

Amelia handed me the pool stick and I went to take a shot. From the corner of my eye, I saw a red headed woman come up and start chatting up Wyatt. 

Over the next half hour, I pathetically watched as this red headed woman, not only flirted with my little brother, but she tried to kiss him. Twice. I had no why he continued to talk to her. He was clearly uninterested.

As time went on, I started to worry. I've been unable to find a good time to sneak out so I could talk to Grant. I didn't know how long he was willing to wait before he left.

When I turned to Amelia to ask her a question, she grabbed both sides of my face...and laid one on me. I had no idea what prompted this kiss, but I just hoped that Grant wasn't watching.

She pulled away from me with a smile. "I'll be right back. I'm going to go powder my nose." 

Before I could say anything or ask her what was going on, she turned and walked away. Five seconds later, Wyatt walked up to me.

"Hey. I'll be right back."

Okayyyyy. What the fuck was going on? My cell phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and exhaled a heavy breath.

G: I'm smoking out back.

Me: I'm coming out now.

With both of them gone, this was the best chance I had to sneak away real quick. I leaned my pool stick against the table and headed for the back door. I stepped outside and looked to the right.

Grant was standing in the exact spot as the night I sucked him off back here. With a heavy sigh, I walked over to him. He held out a cigarette to me and I shook my head. 

"I'm trying to cut down."

"Again?" he chuckled. 

I shrugged his question off. I wasn't here to talk about my smoking habits.

As I held his stare, I couldn't stop myself from reaching out and cupping his cheek with my hand. Without saying a word, I leaned forward and kissed him. 

At first, it was slow. And soft. When I made a move to deepen the kiss, Grant softly pushed at my chest, forcing me pull away. 

There was something different in his eyes tonight. Something that caused a shooting pain in my chest. 

"Just tell me, Logan." 

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Silence hung between us and I could hear my dad's voice in my head. 

"I need to know you're serious about joining my team, Logan." The look in my dad's eye told me he meant serious. "I don't know what's been up with you lately, but I told you I have a house for you an Amelia in escrow."

I stared at my dad, trying to find the right answer. I wanted to tell him the truth and I wanted to tell him what he wanted to hear. But they didn't seem to be one and the same. 

"Yes, dad. I'm serious."

He reached out and placed his hand on my shoulder, squeezing it gently. "Good. I'm proud of you. You have no idea how much this means to your mother and me."  My dad laughed before adding, "I think she's already picking out baby names for the grandkids."

"Do you want me to leave?" 

I pushed the memory aside and exhaled a shaky breath. "No. I don't want you to leave." 

"But you need me to," he stated. 

I cursed under my breath and ran my hands through my face. "I—I don't know. Fuck. This is all messed up." 

"It's your dad, isn't it?" 

How did Grant know me so well? Even if I hadn't left my jacket at his hotel, he probably would have figured this out before I even said anything. 

I met his stare. "I just need some time. Time to figure some stuff out."

Grant looked away from me before pushing himself off the wall. He took a few steps away from me, stopping when he got to the edge of the building. 

Turn around...turn around...

Grant stopped and looked at me over his shoulder. "I'm keeping the jacket." 

Five seconds later, he turned the corner...and was gone. Again.