“I can tell you’re related,” she said, and I nodded.
My brothers and I definitely looked alike. Frank and I shared the same skin tone and jet-black hair, while Ryan and I had the same blue eyes. Other than that, Ryan had sun-bleached hair and a light dusting of freckles that neither Frank nor I had. Frank used to tease Ryan that he was adopted or that the mailman was his dad. When I was a kid, I didn’t know what he meant, but I always laughed anyway.
Even with our differences, it was impossible to pretend we weren’t related. We resembled one another in build, stature, and mannerisms.
Jess looked at my brothers a little more before turning back to me. “You ever think about getting tattoos?”
My lips formed a devilish smile; I could feel it on my face. “Yeah. I want them but didn’t think my old man would like it, so I haven’t worked up the nerve yet.”
Her face twisted a little as she tilted her head. “I dunno. I can’t picture you with tattoos like him.” She nodded her head in Frank’s direction.
“Oh, you can’t, can you?” I lifted her into the air and held her against me, slowly lowering her as I kissed her sweet lips.
“Brother!” I heard Ryan shout through my Jess-filled haze.
I lowered her to the floor and turned my head to find him.
“Everyone, this is our baby brother, Nick. Everyone say, ‘Hi, Nick!’”
Hi, Nick rang out in unison from the crowd, and I offered a small wave before meeting Frank’s eyes. He beckoned me over. I found the one empty seat at the bar and placed Jess in it.
“Don’t move,” I told her before hopping behind the bar with my brothers.
“Hi there, sweetheart.” I flirted with Jess as I handed her a menu. “What can I get for you?”
She laughed as she looked at the menu, the smile never leaving her lips as she read the names of some of the menu items out loud. “No Bad Days? Guy Hater? Adios Pantelones? What are these?”
I smirked. “They’re the drinks.”
“Hysterical.” She grinned as she ran her finger down the ingredients listed for each drink.
“Great names, right?”
“They’re awesome.”
Pride soared within me. I’d not only designed the drink menu she was holding, but I’d also helped name the drinks.
I had to convince Frank that fun drink names would inspire conversation between customers, and would eventually lead to them ordering more and sticking around. He’d shaken his head, unable to believe the gimmick would actually work, but had promised to give it a try.
Ryan, on the other hand, was on board the second we’d started tossing out crazy names, even calling one “the Friendship Bracelet.” I hated it, but Ryan and I had been right, the cocktails with the silly names were the most popular drinks in the bar, and did inspire lots of conversation and repeat clients.
“Which one do you think I’d like the best?” Jess squirmed on her bar stool as I leaned close to her, my elbows on the bar.
“Guy Hater is whiskey based,” I said, and she winced. “And I don’t think you’re a whiskey girl, so that one’s out. Adios Pantelones is obviously—”
“Tequila based!” she shouted, finishing my sentence, and I high-fived her. “I love that you have a drink called Good-bye Pants. Rachel will freaking die when I tell her.”
“Well, you know what they say about tequila . . .”
“It makes your clothes fall off,” we both said in unison, laughing.
“I don’t really like tequila, to be honest,” she said quietly, as if she might offend the tequila gods. “One bad tequila night and I was ruined forever. Can’t even handle smelling the stuff.”
“So I guess that leaves us with No Bad Days, which is vodka based, and honestly one of the best drinks in the bar. You’ll love it.”
She bit at her bottom lip. “Okay. Do you know how to make it?”
I wanted to impress her so fucking bad, but knew that I’d probably ruin the damn drink if I tried making it myself.
“I want to tell you yes, Jess. But it’s like a ten-step drink, so it’s pretty complicated. Ryan makes them best, and I haven’t practiced enough.”
“Aw, you can practice on me,” she suggested, and I smiled so big, I thought my face might split.
Ryan came to my side and tossed his arm around my shoulders. “She’s way too pretty for you, baby brother.”
I nodded in agreement as Jess’s cheeks turned pink. “I’m well aware.”
“I’m Ryan, sweetheart. Anytime you want to get rid of this guy and date someone more your caliber, you know where to find me.” He reached for her hand and placed a kiss on top of it, and I thought for a second about knocking the baseball hat right off his head.
“I might be younger, but I will fight you,” I said, staking my claim.
“And you’ll lose,” he teased. “What are you having?”
“I would like a No Bad Days, please,” she said with a soft giggle.
“Coming right up.” Ryan winked at her, and I growled under my breath.
I knew he was only flirting, turning on the charm even more to get a rise out of me and make Jess feel special, but I didn’t like it. Go flirt with the other thirty women in this damn bar, I wanted to yell at him, but I didn’t.
We both watched as Ryan grabbed ingredients, measuring and pouring them into the chrome shaker. He put a lid on the canister and shook it with both hands, the muscles in his arms flexing as women at the bar swooned and took videos of him to post on social media sites. This kind of thing was gold, and I encouraged patrons to film us, talk us up, brag about the hot brothers at Sam’s bar. Word of mouth was the best thing for any business, and a bar was no exception.