Page 83 of Something’s Brewing

“Here?” Garrett said. “Yeah. I do. You don’t get to walk into our place, talk down to her, and stay.”

Our place? Though she liked the sound of our, she wasn’t part of the brewery. Not officially. But somewhere between the setup, inside jokes with the staff, and days spent serving and mingling with customers, Northern Lights had started feeling dangerously close to home.

“I don’t take orders from you,” Harrison said.

Garrett folded his arms across his chest, broad shoulders squared as he held Harrison’s gaze without flinching.

Harrison turned back to Madison. “Is this really what you want? To tie yourself to the same mistake your brother made?”

“Yes.” Madison lifted her chin. “How dare you call Garrett a mistake. He and Mason built something from nothing. They took a risk and created a thriving business people actually care about. They brew award-winning beer and employ people in this town. They’ve built a place that matters to this community.” Her voice sharpened. “You see a small-town brewery. I see people who love what they do and treat each other like family.”

Harrison’s expression hardened almost imperceptibly. “Fine,” he said. “When you’re ready to think beyond this . . . phase, you know where to find me.”

He turned, the woman at his side following quickly, her heels clicking against the floor.

The door shut behind them, and the tension in the room subsided. Sound rushed back in.

Madison stood there unmoving, as if her body hadn’t caught up to the fact that he was gone. Beside her, Garrett shifted closer.

“You okay?” he asked.

The question cracked something open. Madison let out a breath, her shoulders loosening—then she leaned heavily into Garrett, and his arm slid around her.

“Yeah,” she said automatically. Then, quieter, “I don’t know.”

She stared at the floor for a second before looking up. “You didn’t have to do that.”

His brow rose slightly. “Yeah,” he said. “I did.”

“He’s . . . a lot.”

“That’s one way to put it.”

She glanced at him. His jaw was still tight.

“You didn’t deserve that,” he added.

“I’m used to it,” she said softly.

“Doesn’t make it okay.”

Something shifted in her chest. She let out a slow breath. “Thank you.”

Garrett nodded once. “Always.”

She looked around the brewery. The patrons were suddenly very interested in their drinks, and conversations began again, though more than one person threw her a sympathetic glance. The laughter picked back up, and when Chloe glanced over with quiet concern, Madison realized this life had somehow become hers.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

The evening had settled into that perfect in-between, the warm air tempered by a soft breeze coming off the lake that made the day feel complete. Madison leaned back in her chair on the small patio outside the condo, her legs stretched out, a half-finished iced tea resting on the table beside her.

Garrett sat next to her, watching the sunset.

They weren’t talking, because they didn’t need to. This had become her favorite part of their relationship: the comfortable silence of being together.

Her phone buzzed against the table, but she didn’t look at it right away.

She already knew. It buzzed again.