Last came a slightly older guy. Not as tall as the other two, but built and very good looking, in an I’ve-seen-some-life way. Gray streaked his short spiky hair and the stubble on his jaw and cheeks. In one hand he carried a guitar, in the other he balanced a couple of big pizza boxes.
“Andre.” In a rush, Vaughan got to his feet. “Fuck, man. Good to see you.”
“Thanks for letting me know you were back.” Andre thrust the guitar at Vaughan, all the better to grab the pizzas with both hands. “Joe had to tell me.”
“Sorry.” Vaughan took the guitar under one arm, holding it ready to play. Then he strummed a chord. “She still sounds sweet.”
“Course she does. Martins only get better with age.”
With a wry smile, he handed the instrument back, taking charge of the pizza. “I don’t want to go falling for something I can’t afford.”
Andre laughed, shook his head.
“Lydia,” said Vaughan. “Want you to meet some old friends of mine, the one with the Gandalf-length beard is Pat. He owns that tattoo parlor next to the bar.”
“Hi.” I raised a hand in greeting and the man gave me a chin tip.
“And this here is Andre.” Vaughan gave the man’s shoulder a squeeze. “He’s the one who taught me to play. Bought my first guitar off him when I was ten. He’d just opened his store.”
“Yep,” said Andre. “Took all your Christmas and birthday money.”
“Typical.” Joe set his growlers down on the dining table. “Ripping off small children. Should be ashamed of yourself. Bet you stole their candy too.”
Ever so discreetly, Andre flipped him off.
“Oh, it cost me,” agreed Vaughan. “That secondhand Epiphone had taken some hits, but you were right. She had a beautiful sound, did the job and then some. I’ve still got her.”
“No shit?”
“Haven’t played her in a long time. But I couldn’t bring myself to let her go.”
They both smiled.
“Anyway,” said Vaughan. “I used to work in his shop sometimes after school and stuff.”
“The music shop near the Dive Bar?” I asked, sipping my wine. Excellent quality, Rosie was right.
“That’s the one,” answered Andre, setting the acoustic down on a chair. He wandered my way, looking me over. “Good to meet you, Lydia.”
Then he came closer, dropping his voice to a murmur. “Delaney’s a dick. That was a lucky escape on your part. You can do a hell of a lot better, honey.”
I huffed out a laugh. “Thank you.”
The man leaned in, giving me a kiss on the cheek, smiling. Damn, he was smooth. He also wore a very nice aftershave.
“Hey,” came a cranky voice. Vaughan was instantly by my side, shooting laser beams at his old friend. “Go easy, man. You only just walked in the door.”
“I’m sorry, Lydia,” said Andre. “Did I make you uncomfortable?”
“No.”
The laser beams and frown turned my way.
“Good.” After a pat on Vaughan’s shoulder, Andre walked away. Next he went to Nell, kissing her on the cheek, and then Rosie. Clearly, it was just his way of being friendly with women he liked. As if I’d suddenly be catching the eye of every hottie.
“You have a lot of good friends in this town,” I said, moving the conversation along.
A grunt.
“It’s great to get to meet some of them.”
“Yeah,” he said. “Listen, Andre is a bit of a player and I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
I covered his mouth with my hand. “Stop right there. You think I’d take up with one of your friends?”
His worry didn’t seem to ease.
“I wouldn’t—especially after today,” I lowered both my voice and my hand. “Remember the part where you kissed me?”
His gaze dropped to my lips. Ye gods, this man. “I remember.”
“And the part after when we talked about crazy at first sight?”
“Yeah.”
“That wasn’t a commitment on either of our parts. I know that. But it was a statement.”
His hand slipped beneath my low ponytail, thumb stroking the back of my neck. Shivers ran down my spine. Just that easily he got me all stirred up. Stupid me for not dragging him to the closest mattress earlier.
“Forty-eight hours,” he muttered.
“What?”
“I’ve known you for forty-eight hours.” He lowered his face, bringing us closer.