Slow Burn by Starlight by Jennifer Bernard

Author:Jennifer Bernard [Bernard, Jennifer]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781945944772
Publisher: Jennifer Bernard

Seventeen

“Hey, hey, hey. Calm down and take a breath.”

Alastair guided Ruthie to a stool in the corner of the brewery kitchen. He moved the stainless steel bowl that overflowed with lush local collard greens, each leaf bigger than an elephant’s ear.

She plopped down on the stool, then burst into tears again. “I hate it when people tell me to calm down. I’m freaking out for a reason! A good one!”

“I’m sure you are, buttercup. But I’m afraid you’re going to burst a lung at this rate. Just stay right here, I’ll get you some water.”

“I don’t want water. I want alcohol. Strongest you have.”

He eyed her with caution. Ruthie asking for alcohol—that was a clear sign of danger. “I think Jessica left some Everclear here for her tinctures, but I don’t recommend—”

“Gimme,” she demanded. “Just a quick shot. Down the hatch. Please.”

“Okay, but promise me you’ll stay right where you are and try to take a breath now and then.”

“Just get it.”

Taking his time, he got the bottle of Everclear from the cabinet, along with the tiniest shot glass he could find. Even a single swallow of this stuff would probably be too much for Ruthie. But she was a grown woman and it wasn’t his job to police her alcohol intake.

His job would be to keep an eye on her once she downed it, which she did in one quick gulp.

“More.”

“How about you tell me what this is about first?” he suggested gently, setting the bottle out of reach. “This stuff can knock you out and I want to get the story before I have to carry you to bed.”

That sounded sexier than he’d intended.

She blinked at him from reddened eyes. Something truly terrible must have happened.

“Did you finally read the Facebook page?” he asked her. “Is that what started all this?”

She drew in a long hiccup of a breath. “I did read it, but that’s not why I’m losing it. Wow, I’ve never had Everclear before. Is it supposed to set your entire esophagus on fire and turn everything pink?”

“Sounds like it’s already working its magic.” He pulled up another chair and took hold of her hands. Hers were cold, so he gently rubbed them between his palms. An intense feeling of protectiveness flooded through him. Whoever had upset Ruthie like this was going to answer for it. “Do you think you can explain what’s going on?”

“It’s…Ralphie.”

He dropped her hands and was on his feet before he knew it. Of course it was about Ralphie. Everything was about Ralphie. “I thought you’d decided that was just a childhood fantasy.”

Her puffy eyes widened as she looked up at him. “Are you mad? Or were you getting a cramp?”

“No. No.” He scrubbed a hand through his hair. “Not getting a cramp. Just a bad reaction to hearing the name Ralphie for the seven thousandth time. When are you going to wake up, Ruthie? The wanker doesn’t deserve you.”

“Don’t call him—”

“I will call him a wanker. He made you cry. That makes him a wanker in my book.

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