He gave her a small smile, rinsed out his mug, and kissed her on the cheek. “Love you,” he said gruffly.
Her whole face lit up like it always did when he told her he loved her. That’s why he did it as often as he could. “I love you too, son.”
* * *
“Okay, you haven’t flirted with one customer or Jo this evening, so I have to ask . . . what is going on with you?” an American voice said from behind him.
Craig shot his colleague, fellow bartender, and friend, Joss Butler, a wry look over his shoulder. “I remember getting my head bitten off the last time I asked you that. There might have been a finger involved, and not in a good way.”
She rolled her eyes at his teasing. “Forget I asked.”
“Well I want to know.” Jo sidled up to them.
It was a Friday evening, and they were having a weirdly quiet lull.
“Plus”—Jo shot Joss a teasing smile—“if Joss is using this time to talk to us instead of canoodling with Carmichael then she really must be worried about you.”
Joss glowered at Jo and they laughed.
Across the bar, sitting in their usual seats were Joss’s boyfriend, Braden Carmichael, and his sister, Ellie, and her boyfriend, Adam. Sometimes they visited the bar on nights Joss was working. Craig had never seen a man as smitten as Braden, although it could be said his best friend, Adam, was a close contender.
Craig didn’t blame them. Although he wasn’t really a relationship-type guy, he could see the attraction. Ellie was a tall, very pretty, and very sweet blonde. And Joss . . . Well, Joss was another matter entirely. She was sexy as hell.
He didn’t know if it was the fact that she was gorgeous as fuck with her seductive gray cat eyes and the best pair of tits he’d ever seen, or if it was more than that. Craig had known her a good few years now, and yet he felt like he hardly knew anything about her.
He compared her to his other colleague. Jo was tall, built like a supermodel, and was probably technically the most beautiful woman he’d ever met, and ever slept with. But he knew all he needed to know about Jo. She was a nice enough girl, but he couldn’t fully respect a woman who would open her legs for the richest fucker who came along just so she had a few nice pairs of shoes in her wardrobe. The only reason she slept with him was because they were drunk and she’d just been dumped by the latest wealthy asshole.
However, Joss . . . Joss was a mystery. She was sharp, quick-witted, and rarely gave anything away about her life. She intrigued him. Maybe it was because he hadn’t had her, but he’d always fancied her and saw her as the ultimate challenge. She had the kind of charisma that was rare—it made her stand out to him, made her that wee bit more special than most of the women he’d known. Craig reckoned she was the kind of woman who might have changed his one-night-stand ways . . . But they’d never know because there was one thing he did know about Joss:
She was completely in love with Braden Carmichael.
The lucky fuck.
Craig smirked at the thought. The only reason he wasn’t put out by this fact was because Braden felt the same way about Joss, and . . . honestly, Craig wasn’t exactly unhappy in his pursuit of women. He had it free and easy. Life was good.
Except for one thing.
“My mum joined an Internet dating site.” He saw Joss’s mouth twitch with amusement and rolled his eyes. “Why do I bother?”
“No, I’m sorry.” She held up her hands in placation. “I’m not going to laugh. I swear.”
He shot a look at Jo, who was also trying to contain her amusement.
“Why did Alistair have to be sick tonight?” he groaned and leaned on the bar, lowering his head into his hands, referring to their other colleague who Jo was covering for.
“Are they torturing you, Craig?” Braden’s familiar voice drew his head back up.
Braden leaned against the bar, staring at Joss in amusement.
It had taken Braden a few months to stop looking at Craig like he wanted to rip his balls off—he was pissed at Craig for the time he’d kissed Joss at the bar during a shift. Craig had actually done it partly because he’d always wanted to and partly because he wanted to piss off Braden. He’d assumed Braden was just some rich arsehole who thought he could get anyone he wanted. He’d watched him play Joss that night, hanging on to some pretty brunette’s every word, attempting to make Joss jealous. So Craig had delighted in showing him that Joss didn’t belong to him, that two could play that game.
It worked out in a way he never imagined, but Braden turned out to be a decent guy.
He also eventually got over Craig and the kiss.
“Joss thinks it’s funny that my mum has joined a dating site.”
Braden’s gaze darted to him and he winced sympathetically. “Fuck.”
“Thank you.” Craig slammed his hand down on the bar. “That right there! That is the appropriate reaction.”
“Okay, so obviously I don’t get it.” Joss seemed to unconsciously lean across the bar toward her boyfriend. Braden automatically linked their hands together.
Craig ignored their lovey-dovey shit. “Do you know how dangerous dating sites can be?”
“They’re not too bad,” Jo said.
It was not lost on him that he was a lucky man who got to work alongside two stunning women he had a laugh with, but right now they were being deliberately obtuse and annoying. “Not too bad?”
She shrugged. “My friend found her boyfriend on a dating website.”
“This isn’t your friend. This is my mum.”
“I didn’t realize you were a momma’s boy,” Joss teased.
“Jocelyn,” Braden murmured in warning.
She sighed. “What? What am I not getting?”
“It’s weird for a man to think of his mother being a woman. It’s even stranger for your mother to be dating. It’s concerning for your mother to be dating via the Internet, where there are millions of fucking weirdos pretending to be people they are not,” Braden said.
Her eyes lit up with understanding. “Oh. Right. I see.” She patted Craig on the shoulder. “She’ll be fine.”
“Aye.” Jo patted his other shoulder. “Don’t worry about her. Just make sure she tells someone where and when she’s going if she decides to meet up with a guy.”
He nodded. “I’ve already told her to tell me.”
“Well there’s nothing more you can do, I’m afraid,” Joss said in her usual straightforward manner. “She’s a grown woman and she has a right to make these kinds of decisions. Has it been a while since she’s been on a date?”
“Ten years.”
“Oh hell yeah.” She scrunched up her nose, “You are going let your mom do this.”
“Ten years,” Jo whispered, her eyes wide. “God, I hope I never have to go ten years without getting some.”
“Right,” Joss murmured, shooting Braden a look.
Braden grinned at her. “You have nothing to worry about on that front, babe.”
The thought of his mother doing what they were talking about doing and using the Internet to find men to do it with . . . “Okay, subject change. You bastards just made it worse.”
Braden shot him an amused but apologetic look. “What would you like to talk about instead?”