Chapter Three: Ezra

My head was pounding the following day when my cell phone began to ring. The two ladies from last night were wrapped around my naked body, both of them still sound asleep, tangled in my arms. The redhead—Samantha, or something—stirred a bit when my phone rang, but the brunette didn’t even stir.

I closed my eyes and cleared my throat, hoping that they’d both wake and leave if I made enough noise, but no such luck. Instead, I untangled myself completely, making as much movement as possible, grabbed my cell phone from the nightstand near my bed, and plodded across my bedroom floor to find out who in the hell was calling me at the ungodly hour of … eleven fifteen a.m.

“Yo,” I said into the phone without checking the caller ID. I could only assume it was Lacey since she was the only one who called me instead of texted me for anything.

“Yo yourself, little brother,” a familiar, deep voice said, and my brother Elijah chuckled humorlessly on the other end of the line. “Why do you sound like you just woke up?”

“Because I did just wake up.” I went to the bathroom and turned on the sink, splashing my face with cold water as the pounding in my head began to ease just a little bit.

“Long night?” he asked, and I grinned to myself.

“Exceptionally.”

“Well, I hope you’re awake now, Ezra, because I need you to be coherent for this.”

I sighed and straightened up, leaning against the sink to support myself. In a crack through the door, one of the girls in my bed stirred but still didn’t wake.

“What’s up, Elijah? No need to beat around the bush.”

“It’s about Ava and me.”

“Who?”

“My girlfriend, you jackass.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s right.” Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I leaned over and cranked on the shower to let the hot water heat up, shutting the bathroom door to keep the warm air in. “How is that hot piece of ass?” I asked. “I still think she could do better than you.”

“Yeah, well, apparently she thinks I’m just fine, thank you, because when I asked her if she would marry me, she said yes.”

The toothbrush I’d just picked up fell from my hand and clattered to the counter. “Come again?”

“I’m getting married, Ezra, one month from today, and I want you to be there.”

“Married, huh?” I shut my eyes again and shook my head, blowing a breath of air between my teeth. “What happened to our pact, man? Neither of us was ever going to get married, remember?”

“Yes, Ezra, I remember making that pact when we were twenty. And now we’re adults, and I’m marrying the love of my life, and I want you to be there.”

“God, dude, I don’t know—”

“Congratulations would suffice,” said Elijah coldly, and I could sense the irritation in his voice. My brother was not one to dally.

“Congratulations,” I said, hoping I sounded more convincing than I felt. “I’m happy for you, brother.”

“So, you will be there?”

“Where is it?”

“Hawaii. Ava mentioned a beach wedding, so that’s where we’re going.”

“Mom and Dad will be there?” I asked, trying not to openly cringe.

“Obviously,” said Elijah. “But that shouldn’t matter. You can survive a week for me, even with our parents there.”

“It’s in a week?” I repeated, feeling that headache begin to come back on. “I don’t know, man. I have a club to run here in Seattle. I’m not sure I can leave it for that long.”

“That’s what you have employees for,” said Elijah, and I knew he was minutes away from driving his ass over from the other side of town just to slap the shit out of me. “Figure it out, Ezra,” he continued. “I need you there, and you should want to be there.”

“Fine. Fine.” I rubbed my aching temple with another sigh, closing my eyes against the suddenly too-bright bathroom lights. “Can I bring a plus one?”

“Are you dating someone?” Elijah asked, sounding far too impressed by the prospect of his whore little brother finally getting serious with someone. Granted, neither of us had ever been interested in holding down a long-term relationship, but if Elijah could do it, I knew he expected me to.

“No, but—”

“You can bring someone,” he said. “But preferably not some damn bimbo. I’d rather you just come alone.”

“Relax, Elijah, I’ll find someone decent.”

“I’m counting on you,” he said. “Don’t let me down.”

“Alright, alright. I gotta go.”

“Ezra,” he said before I could hang up. “How is Lacey?”

I grinned despite myself. “She’s good. Working hard.”

“Keeping you in line?”

“Always.”

“Why not bring her?” Elijah said. “She’s a family friend and your best friend.”

I laughed. “I don’t know if I’d be able to get her to go, honestly. She’s all work and no play, man. Besides, she’d probably just bitch at me the entire time while I was out there trying to chase tail.”

“Tell her I said hello,” Elijah said stiffly, and I muffled a laugh. My older brother and I were so different that sometimes it was hard to remember that we’d grown up together under the same roof. Elijah had been fourteen when he’d joined our family, but he’d never swayed much from his true, dark self. Whatever demons haunted my brother still hadn’t faded after years of normalcy. I figured they never would.

“Will do, man.” I ended the call and dropped the phone onto the bathroom counter, then stepped into the now scalding water of the shower, ignoring the stinging sensation as the water poured over me, washing away a night with two women I barely remembered. There were a lot of nights that I barely remembered, and they seemed to come more frequently the older I got. I enjoyed it as much as the next guy, probably even more. I was a free man, refusing to be tied down to some woman. Who in their right mind wanted to wake up to the same face every day for the rest of their lives? Have sex with the same person, kiss the same woman, or have to find meaningful conversation after years and years to keep things interesting?

Honestly, who wanted that? My parents had that before they put Elijah and me through a gnarly divorce filled with hate, venom, and hard feelings all around. No thanks. I’ll pass.

Turning off the shower, I wrapped a towel around my midsection and stepped out of the bathroom and into my bedroom, where both girls were still asleep. I rolled my eyes, went back into the bathroom to grab my phone, and texted Lacey.

Hey, can you stop by the apartment for a minute?

Feeling smug about my plan, I waited a few minutes for Lacey to show up, then opened the front door and ushered her inside, still dressed in nothing but a towel and damn hair.

“Jesus Christ, Ezra,” she said, eyeing me with annoyance. “You couldn’t have at least put some clothes on?”

“Why?” I asked. “You seem to be enjoying the show plenty.”

She blushed furiously, folding her arms over her chest in anger, and I felt my prick begin to stiffen again just looking at her. “What do you need? I’m working. You know, like you should be doing?”

“Those two girls from last night are still here, and they won’t leave,” I hissed, running a hand through my hair. “I need your help to get rid of them.”

“Oh, no,” said Lacey, taking a backward step towards the door. “I’m not your woman repellent, Ezra, and it is not my job to get rid of each girl you invite into your bed.” Her hands went to her hips as she glared at me, plump lips sticking out in a pout. I always thought it was so damn cute when she did that, but I’d never told her that.

“Please,” I begged, taking her hands in mine. I thought she’d pull away for a moment, but she didn’t, and I knew we were headed in just the direction I needed. “Help me out here.”

I expected her to deny me, even though she never had been able to in the past. Still, she dropped her hands to her sides with a sigh, gave me a look that should have buried me six feet under, and then whirled around and marched into the bedroom, swinging the door open dramatically for effect.

“Ezra!” she yelled, stopping dead at the foot of the bed as both women woke with a start, sitting up abruptly to yank sheets and blankets over their naked breasts. Lacey wheeled around on me as I followed her into the bedroom, playing the cheater who had just been caught. “How could you?” she screamed, falling into my arms as she pounded against my chest. “You swore after the last time that you would never betray me like this again.”

“Lacey, baby,” I begged, trying to pull her against me in a hug. “I’m so, so sorry. I—I had too many drinks, and I—”

“Do our children mean nothing to you?” Lacey sobbed. “Our marriage?”

“You’re married?” the redhead asked, jaw-dropping as she clambered out of bed, followed closely by the brunette. They both glared at me in between shooting sympathetic looks at Lacey, who was playing this up to an impressive extent.

“Yes, he’s married,” Lacey cried, shoving me away from her more forcefully than necessary. “With children and a baby on the way.”

“My God,” said the brunette. “We had no idea.”

“It’s not like it sounds,” I added, feeling the need to defend myself for some strange reason. But it was too late. The redhead—Sadie, I finally recalled—slapped me once, hard as she stormed past me and out the door. Julie did the same to the other cheek, and I stumbled back, stunned, obviously not expecting that.

“We’re so sorry,” Sadie said to Lacey, looking genuine. “We had no idea.”

“Neither did I,” said Lacey with a dramatic sob. Before I could speak, she, too, reeled her arm back and slapped me hard, right across the face, leaving me stunned and standing alone in the middle of my bedroom as all three women stormed out the front door, slamming the door behind them, leaving my head spinning and my face red and stinging.

Well, I guess that worked.

After dressing, I headed downstairs to where I knew I’d find Lacey doing inventory. It was early yet, so the club was closed, and it was just the two of us, which just so happened to be the best part of my day.

“Thanks, Lace,” I said, finding her behind the bar making notes on a paper pad. “I owe you one.”

“You owe me more than one.” She straightened up. “But I’m serious, Ezra. I’m done being your gatekeeper. If you want to fuck random girls, leave me out of it.”

“Oooh, spicy this morning, are we?” I teased, going to the mini fridge for a bottle of juice. It was still a bit early to mix it with vodka, though I wanted to. Instead, I chugged it down to ease the hangover and tossed the empty bottle in the trash. On the bar counter, Lacey’s cell phone buzzed, and she reached for it, reading a text, and her lips curled up in a small smile. At once, my curiosity was piqued. “Who’s making you smile that isn’t me?” I asked, trying to peer over her shoulder to read the message. Glaring at me, Lacey pocketed the phone, turning away.

“That’s none of your business.”

“I’m your best friend. Everything is my business.”

“Not anymore.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

With a sigh, she stopped counting inventory and looked back up at me, placing her hands on her hips in frustration. “It’s Carl,” she said. “After my shift last night, we went out for drinks and had a really good time.”

“Carl?” I repeated. “You mean like douchebag Carl?”

“No, Ezra, I mean Carl, the guy I’ve been seeing.”

“Yeah, I know who you’re talking about. I’m just letting you know that he’s a douchebag.”

“And why do you say that?” she demanded. “Because he has an interest in me?”

“No, of course not.”

“Then why?”

“I just know those types of guys,” I said, feeling like an idiot suddenly. “And he’s a douchebag.”

“So, guys like you,” said Lacey, and her comment stung. “What makes you any different than him?”

I didn’t have an answer to this, so instead, I shrugged, wishing I hadn’t said anything at all. The truth was, I didn’t know this Carl guy well enough to have an opinion like that, but whoever thought they were good enough to date my best friend had another thing coming.

“Just be careful,” I said finally. “Guys like that take advantage of girls like you.”

Lacey straightened up from the box she’d been unloading, setting a glass mug down on the counter with unnecessary force as she glared at me.

“Girls like me?” she repeated. “What does that mean? Am I not good enough to date a guy like Carl? Am I not pretty enough? Or hot enough?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“Do you think I can’t take care of myself?”

“I didn’t say that, either.”

Holy shit, Ezra, quit while you’re ahead.

I could practically see the smoke coming from Lacey’s ears, but I stood my ground, knowing that she might just hit me with something heavy from behind if I turned away now.

“Ezra,” Lacey started, puffing herself up like an angry bird. But instead of ripping me a new one, she shook her head, blew out a breath of air between her teeth, and turned away from me. “Never mind. Can you just go? Go find something to do so I can get this work done, please.”

“Lace,” I said, but she put a hand up, cutting me off.

“Please, go before I lose it on you.”

Knowing that she was giving me an out that I’d better take, I reluctantly turned away and headed upstairs to do my own work. While I had a fantastic team to handle the hard stuff—mainly Lacey, if we’re being honest—I still had business partners to contact and contracts to write up. Ah, the life of a businessman.

The truth was, I hated the thought of Lacey out spending time with some random dude that might or might not be some jerk just trying to take advantage of her. After all, we’d had each other’s backs for years, ever since childhood, and she should have known that it wouldn’t just stop as we found our way into adulthood. I knew she was a big girl and could handle her own, but I still felt protective of her, as any best friend should. She was too good of a person to allow anything to happen to her, but I knew it annoyed her. She wouldn’t ever date anyone again if it were up to me.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t up to me, and she made sure I knew that.

The absolute truth of the matter was that I was jealous. I was jealous of any man she had an inkling of interest in. I was jealous every time someone else made her smile, made her laugh. I wanted to be that man for her, but not just as her best friend … as so much more. I wanted to be the man she woke up to in the mornings, the man she kissed every night before bed. Sure, I was a frequent bitcher when it came to those relationships. I made it clear to anyone and everyone who asked that I had no interest in a long-term, committed relationship. And that was still true. I’d seen enough marriages in shambles that the thought of falling for someone and going through that one day scared me more than anything else. Lacey wanted to settle down. She wanted a marriage, and a family, too. And I knew I could never provide that for her.

With a heavy sigh, I grabbed my laptop and sat down on the couch to get some work done. Before I could get too deep into it, however, my cell phone rang, and I glanced at the ID briefly before putting it to my ear, rolling my eyes.

“Hi, mom.”

“Ezra,” my mother, Tabitha, said breathlessly. “How are you?”

“Better than ever,” I said. “How are you?”

“Did your brother get a hold of you?” she asked as if I hadn’t spoken.

“Yes, Ma, he did.”

“And you’re coming to the wedding, right?” she sounded rushed like she always did. Ever since my parents’ divorce, they seemed to be living the happy, carefree bachelor and bachelorette life, as if once upon a time they hadn’t been madly in love and crazy about each other.

“Of course, I’m going to the wedding,” I grumbled. “I have to, don’t I?”

“Who are you bringing?” she asked, and I started to rub my temples as a migraine slowly crept up.

“I don’t know yet,” I said. “Does it matter?”

“As long as it’s not one of your club whores,” she snapped, and I rolled my eyes again, tilting my head to stare aimlessly at the ceiling.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks, Mom.”

“What about Lacey?” she asked hastily. “Have you asked her?”

“No, Mom, I haven’t.”

“Maybe you should.”

“I’ll take note of that,” I mumbled, and before she could say anything else, I continued on. “I’m working right now, Ma. Talk later?”

“Fine,” she said with a huff. “Send Lacey my love.”

I almost laughed. For years, Lacey and I had always joked that my family loved her more than they did me. That wasn’t hard, though. She was very loveable, and I had always been considered a difficult child by my parents.

“I will.”

I ended the phone call and tossed the cell aside, pushing a big breath of air through my teeth. Little did my family know that Lacey was the only person I wanted to go to Hawaii with me. Unfortunately, getting her okay would be more difficult. Ever the workaholic, she’d insist that someone stay back and manage the club. Or she’d make up some silly excuse about having too much to do during the wedding week. I hesitated to ask her because I didn’t want to be turned down flat. Besides, could I really restrain myself from the temptation of her on a weeklong vacation to a romantic island? I could barely contain myself every day just seeing her at work. But none of that mattered. I had to get past my hesitation and ask if I wanted Lacey to go. That was the only way I would get a straight answer.