their mares. “She’s ready to foal any day now.” Wyatt checked his cell phone. “He’ll call me if she does. ’Course I can’t hear it over the noise in this place. I put it on vibrate.”
“I hate cell phones,” Jack said.
“Since when?”
“Since this morning. I’ve been playing phone tag with Maya all day. Either the reception is bad, the messages she’s left me are garbled, or she doesn’t answer and it goes straight to voicemail.”
“Trouble with the Heartbreaker, bro?”
“No, smart ass.” At least, he didn’t think so, but since he couldn’t talk to her he didn’t know. “Stop calling her the Heartbreaker, or I’ll break your face.”
Wyatt laughed. “You and what army?”
Jack considered it briefly, but even though punching Wyatt would be satisfying, he couldn’t do it. His patients would hear about it without fail, and every single one of them would disapprove of Jack punching one of his brothers, no matter how much said brother deserved it. “Ha. You’ve forgotten what happened last time.”
“Probably, since I haven’t been in a fist fight with you since you went to medical school.”
“Some of us are responsible professionals.”
“Yeah. Must be a drag sometimes,” Wyatt said. “Now me, I don’t have to worry about my image. Or women either.”
He had a point. “I’m not worried about women,” he said, focusing on Wyatt’s last comment.
“Obviously, or you wouldn’t be dating the—”
Jack glared at him, daring him to complete the sentence.
“Maya,” he said with a grin, as Jack sank the eight ball.
“Add it to your tab?” Jack asked, racking the balls to start a new game.
Wyatt shrugged. “When’s the wedding?”
Caught in the act of breaking, Jack’s shot went squirrely. “Damn it, you did that on purpose.”
“It’s a logical question. You sure as shit haven’t been sleeping with any other women since Brianna died. Figure that means you’re serious.”
Jack felt a pang of guilt at the mention of Brianna, but brushed it aside. He opened his mouth to explain that his sex life hadn’t been quite that dismal, but thought better of it. His sex life, or lack thereof, was his own business. “Who said anything about marriage? We’re just getting to know each other again.”
Wyatt smirked at him. “Whatever you say, bro.”
After that, Jack’s game went to hell. He couldn’t stop thinking about Maya. Maya and the M-word. Marriage.
*
If Jack hadn’t been so preoccupied, he’d have cared more that Wyatt was cleaning up at the pool table. Where the hell was Maya? he wondered for the hundredth time. If just one of those calls had been more clear, he would know. As it was, he missed being with her. One night and he already missed her. And he didn’t like it.
Since Maya had returned to Marietta and she and Jack had gotten together, everything had been going great. Blue skies all the way, baby. Jack knew what could happen when everything seemed too good to be true. Great times, right up until everything went to shit.
Brianna’s death had taught him that. They hadn’t had the perfect marriage, but they’d had a damn good one. They’d loved each other, loved their child, they’d believed in their marriage and that they’d grow old together. Instead, Brianna had been hit by a car, while crossing the street. Sudden, shocking, devastating death. She’d lived long enough to say goodbye to Jack and Gina. And then she was simply . . . gone.
God, he didn’t want to dredge up those feelings again. He’d pulled himself together and soldiered on. He couldn’t fall apart. He had his daughter to think of. He had to be strong. He had to deal. Over time the pain had lessened, fading from razor sharp to a dull ache. But he’d never forgotten it. Never forgotten that first surge of grief, the feeling of the bottom dropping out of his world, when the woman he loved had left him.
“Your shot,” Wyatt said. He took a swallow of his beer, then
“I hate cell phones,” Jack said.
“Since when?”
“Since this morning. I’ve been playing phone tag with Maya all day. Either the reception is bad, the messages she’s left me are garbled, or she doesn’t answer and it goes straight to voicemail.”
“Trouble with the Heartbreaker, bro?”
“No, smart ass.” At least, he didn’t think so, but since he couldn’t talk to her he didn’t know. “Stop calling her the Heartbreaker, or I’ll break your face.”
Wyatt laughed. “You and what army?”
Jack considered it briefly, but even though punching Wyatt would be satisfying, he couldn’t do it. His patients would hear about it without fail, and every single one of them would disapprove of Jack punching one of his brothers, no matter how much said brother deserved it. “Ha. You’ve forgotten what happened last time.”
“Probably, since I haven’t been in a fist fight with you since you went to medical school.”
“Some of us are responsible professionals.”
“Yeah. Must be a drag sometimes,” Wyatt said. “Now me, I don’t have to worry about my image. Or women either.”
He had a point. “I’m not worried about women,” he said, focusing on Wyatt’s last comment.
“Obviously, or you wouldn’t be dating the—”
Jack glared at him, daring him to complete the sentence.
“Maya,” he said with a grin, as Jack sank the eight ball.
“Add it to your tab?” Jack asked, racking the balls to start a new game.
Wyatt shrugged. “When’s the wedding?”
Caught in the act of breaking, Jack’s shot went squirrely. “Damn it, you did that on purpose.”
“It’s a logical question. You sure as shit haven’t been sleeping with any other women since Brianna died. Figure that means you’re serious.”
Jack felt a pang of guilt at the mention of Brianna, but brushed it aside. He opened his mouth to explain that his sex life hadn’t been quite that dismal, but thought better of it. His sex life, or lack thereof, was his own business. “Who said anything about marriage? We’re just getting to know each other again.”
Wyatt smirked at him. “Whatever you say, bro.”
After that, Jack’s game went to hell. He couldn’t stop thinking about Maya. Maya and the M-word. Marriage.
*
If Jack hadn’t been so preoccupied, he’d have cared more that Wyatt was cleaning up at the pool table. Where the hell was Maya? he wondered for the hundredth time. If just one of those calls had been more clear, he would know. As it was, he missed being with her. One night and he already missed her. And he didn’t like it.
Since Maya had returned to Marietta and she and Jack had gotten together, everything had been going great. Blue skies all the way, baby. Jack knew what could happen when everything seemed too good to be true. Great times, right up until everything went to shit.
Brianna’s death had taught him that. They hadn’t had the perfect marriage, but they’d had a damn good one. They’d loved each other, loved their child, they’d believed in their marriage and that they’d grow old together. Instead, Brianna had been hit by a car, while crossing the street. Sudden, shocking, devastating death. She’d lived long enough to say goodbye to Jack and Gina. And then she was simply . . . gone.
God, he didn’t want to dredge up those feelings again. He’d pulled himself together and soldiered on. He couldn’t fall apart. He had his daughter to think of. He had to be strong. He had to deal. Over time the pain had lessened, fading from razor sharp to a dull ache. But he’d never forgotten it. Never forgotten that first surge of grief, the feeling of the bottom dropping out of his world, when the woman he loved had left him.
“Your shot,” Wyatt said. He took a swallow of his beer, then
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