Icing On The Date (The Bannister Brothers #1) Read Free

Gabby’s insides as his head brushed against her chest. “Nah—I’m good. Bane’s on his way.”
    “I called his brother, and he said he was coming right down to pick him up.” Gabby remembered Bane’s instructions to keep his brother out of sight. “We’d rather not let anyone else know that he’s in here.”
    Marjorie nodded her head. “I can assure you that I’m the very definition of discreet.”
    “Thanks, Margie,” Owen slurred. “You’re the best. And that jacket is a great color on you. Have I told you lately how awesome you are?”
    She smiled down at him, obviously used to his charm. “Yes, you have. Many times.” She grinned at Gabby. “It looks like you’ve got it handled in here. I’ll keep an eye out for Bane and let him know where you are. And I’ll alert the staff that this restroom is currently out of service.”
    “Thanks. You’re the best, Margie.” Owen laid his head back down on Gabby’s chest and closed his eyes.
    “Yes, I believe you said that before.” Marjorie gave a little wave and slipped out the bathroom door.
    Owen snuggled against her, sliding his hand around her waist and gripping her hip. “You’re soft.”
    “Thanks.” She tenderly touched the bruised knuckles of his hand. “Did you get into a fight?”
    He grimaced. “Yeah—you could say that.”
    “My brother is always getting into fights. Big jerk got arrested tonight for getting into another bar room brawl. I still have to go bail him out of jail.”
    “You sound like a nice sister.”
    “Ha. More like a broke sister. He’s taking all of my savings to bail him out—again. And I’d been saving to run a big ad promotion for my business. But it’s not like he cares. He gets in trouble and calls me, and I go running.”
    Why did she just tell him that? She didn’t usually air her grievances about her brother. Or talk about her own financial struggles. She’d been taught a long time ago that family problems stayed in the family.
    Oh well, this guy was drunk and it’s not like she was ever going to see him again anyway.
    He opened his eyes and gave her an appraising look. “Sounds like your brother is taking advantage of you. Why don’t you save your money and your business and let him cool off in jail?”
    “Because he’s my brother. And I love him. And it’s what I do. I can always make more money. But he’s the only brother I’ve got. And he’s not a bad guy. In fact, he’s a great guy. Charming and funny and sweet, most of the time. He just gets drunk and loud, and sometimes I think he likes to fight.”
    “Sometimes I think I like to fight, too.”
    Somehow she didn’t have any trouble believing that to be true. “Is that what got you into trouble tonight?”
    He laughed. “Yeah. You could say that. And because I’m an idiot.” His laughter faded, and he sighed. He pushed himself up, supporting himself with his arm and bringing his face within inches of hers. “Let’s not talk about that. Let’s talk about you. What’s your name, angel?”
    His face was close enough to smell the hint of whiskey on his breath, but she was too captured by the crystal blue color of his eyes to pay attention. She swallowed. “Gabby Davis.”
    “Nice to meet you. I’m Owen.” He grinned, and her insides did another funny flip. Sliding his finger through a spot of frosting she’d failed to wipe away, he glanced at her before licking the chocolate into his mouth. “So tell me, Gabby Davis, why are you covered in amazing tasting chocolate frosting?”
    “Because someone bumped into me and smashed a platter of cupcakes against my chest.”
    “I love cupcakes.” His eyes sparkled with mischief as he somehow made the simple statement sound sexy.
    She tried not to look at his lips. “I do, too. So much so that I have my own cupcake shop. It’s called Simply Sweet.”
    He smiled. “Simply Sweet? I like it. That’s cool. It seems right for you. Do you make anything besides cupcakes?”
    “I