While Brett had been nice to Charles during lunch, she didn’t want to push her luck. One incident of Brett controlling himself was hardly what she considered proof that he had changed his ways. He might’ve just been on his best behavior earlier. Who knew? But if he was inside drinking, that might make things a little more tense. Alcohol always had a way of complicating things.

Still, it was a small town, and they wouldn’t be able to avoid each other forever. The lug nut incident proved that already. They would both eventually have to get used to seeing each other around, even if they were with someone else…

Oh, dear God. She hadn’t even considered that before since she’d been so busy avoiding him. But now that she had, the thought of Brett with another woman made her chest ache. She peered up at the bar again and bit her lip, wondering if he was inside with a date at that very moment.

Unfortunately, there was only one way to find out.

She sighed. “All right, let’s do it.”

Chapter Five

Brett hadn’t planned to stay long.

He’d stopped by the bar only long enough to tell Logan and Valerie all about the used car lot that he’d checked out earlier in the day. Beyond needing a new paint job and a little fixing up, Brett couldn’t dream of a better place to open his garage. And that alone had him dying to rush home and fill out the loan application. But his sister and her husband insisted that he hang out and tell them more about it. So he had.

Although he was still worried about not getting approved for the loan, they both seemed genuinely happy for him and said that, if he didn’t, they would be happy to cosign for him. His chest swelled with emotion. It was nice having family in his corner who believed in him and had his back. The only thing that could make his night any more perfect was—

As if on cue, the entrance door to the bar swung open, and Sidney stepped into view. Brett’s gaze flickered over her, and his throat tightened. She was wearing black slacks paired with a white button-down. He didn’t know how she did it, but she always managed to look like she’d just come from a business meeting. Maybe it was strange, but something about that always aroused him.

But that problem corrected itself when he noticed the guy behind her. His stomach dropped, and the awesome mood he was in went to shit. The last thing he wanted to do was spend the rest of the night watching the woman he loved canoodling with some other guy. Fuck that.