Coming Home(48)

“Alabama Slammers all around,” she said with a wink before she walked away, and Danny’s smile fell.

“Who ordered these?” he asked flatly.

Everyone reached for a shot as if he hadn’t spoken, and Danny pushed his to the center of the table.

“I’m good, if anyone wants that.”

Tommy lowered his shot, looking at Danny over the top of it. “Bro, you have to take it. It’s for Bryan.”

The words took the air right out of his body. Danny stared at his friend from across the table, concentrating on taking his next breath.

He had no idea what expression he was wearing, but it must have been something truly special because the color instantly drained from Tommy’s face before his eyes flitted away.

He could see that Leah was watching him, and he reached across the table, pulling the shot back as his jaw tensed. His knee began bouncing under the table, and all he really wanted to do in that moment was pick up the glass and throw it against the wall.

From across the table, Jake lifted his shot up high, glancing up at the ceiling before he took it, and that gesture pushed Danny over the edge.

He tossed the shot back before placing the empty glass on the table. “Excuse me,” he mumbled before he slid out of the booth and walked toward the stairwell.

Danny quickly pushed his way through the crowd on the lower level, yanking the door open and stumbling out into the frigid January air.

As soon as he was outside, he bent at the waist, bringing his hands to his knees as he dropped his head.

“Tommy, what the f*ck,” he muttered as he straightened, running both hands down his face.

Why the hell would he have done that?

Because he’s Bryan’s friend too.

Danny dropped his head back, leaving his hands over his mouth as he blinked up at the sky.

Because he’s dealing with it his way.

He closed his eyes, shaking his head. He was such a f*cking hypocrite. How could he begrudge someone his method of dealing with everything, when both Tommy and Jake had been nothing but accommodating to him?

And his methods weren’t always as diplomatic as ordering a round of drinks.

Just let it go.

He rubbed his hands over his face again before he exhaled.

He really needed to push all this shit aside right now, because he had dragged Leah into his night, and the only thing he should be focusing on was having a good time with her.

Let it go. For one night, just let it go.

With a tiny breath to steel his resolve, he turned and opened the door, reentering the bar. By the time he made his way back upstairs, he could see the empty shot glasses had already been cleared. Tommy looked up, catching his eyes as he approached, and Danny gave him a nod. He nodded in return, holding his hand up in understanding just as Leah’s head turned in Danny’s direction.

“Hey,” she said gently, fiddling with one of her earrings as she looked up at him. “Where’d you go?”

Danny rubbed the back of his neck. “Just needed some air for a minute.”

She kept her eyes on him for a moment before she nodded. “Yeah, it’s definitely hot in here,” she said, scooping her hair off her neck with both hands.

He could tell she didn’t buy that story for one second.

And yet she smiled up at him as she released her hair, scooting over a few inches to make room for him in the booth again.

He had no idea how she managed to do that—to erase his discomfort with a simple look. And when he sat down beside her, the remaining tension drained from his body as if her presence alone had siphoned it out of him.