Why didn’t that answer surprise him? He scratched behind Jock’s ear, feeling bummed all of a sudden. “Go out with me, Wes. We’ll call Noah and Coop and have them go, too. I’ll kick your ass in a few games of pool. We can check out the bar that used to be Rowdies. I can’t remember what it’s called now. The new owner just opened her back up. It’s opening weekend, actually. I heard they have dollar beers.”

“Braden—”

“I’m driving Jock crazy. He’s practically shoving my ass out the door. I’m bored. I haven’t gone out in too long.”

There was a pause, and then Wes said, “No one’s keeping you from going out. I told you if watching Jessie interferes then you didn’t have to do it.”

Braden groaned. “That’s not what I mean and you know it. There’s nothing wrong with having a little fun once in a while. It’s okay to go out. You know Lydia wouldn’t mind watching her.”

“Not your call, man. Lydia already helps me watch her during the week. She has her own kids. It’s not right to push Jessie off on her on the weekends, too.”

He closed his eyes, trying not to get too annoyed. He just wanted Wes to have a good time. What was so wrong with that? “That’s not what it is and you know it. I’m not asking you on a date. Don’t worry, I’m not going to try and get past your defenses, Wes. Christ, I want to go have a fucking beer and hang out with a friend. Stop using Jessie as an excuse.”

“Fuck you, Braden. Did you ever think maybe today was a bad day for her? Not everything is about you.”

The line went dead. Braden struggled not to throw his phone across the room. He hadn’t even thought of that.

Open mouth, insert foot.

***

“What do you guys think of the place?” The bartender crossed his arms, his eyes going from Coop, to Noah, then Braden. He waited for Braden to reply.

Braden looked around the building. They’d obviously done a lot of remodeling. Everything was brand new, modern, and the place was packed as hell. A band played up front, the dance floor busy. They’d doubled the amount of pool tables, and he didn’t get a splinter when he sat down like he used to. That was a plus. “Looks good. The place needed a revamp.” Braden took a drink of his beer and the bartender grabbed him another one.

“I’m Mason.”

“Braden.” He pointed next to him. “This is Noah, and that guy at the end is Cooper. He likes running into burning buildings without any gear or backup. That explains the sling.”

Noah laughed loudly and Coop shook his head. “Fucker. Don’t tell me you wouldn’t have done the same thing.”

Coop had him there. “Except the getting hurt part. I would have avoided that.”

Both Mason and Noah laughed this time.

“I’m glad you like it,” Mason told Braden. “Let me know if you have any suggestions. Figured the locals would know more about what you guys are looking for than me.”

He’d heard about Mason moving to town a few months ago, when he bought the bar. He hadn’t seen him before tonight, though. “Sure thing.”

Mason stalled a minute before walking away. Both Noah and Cooper started laughing again as soon as he did.

“What?” Braden asked.

“Tell me you’re kidding,” Coop said. It was obvious he didn’t plan to elaborate, so Braden turned to Noah.

“Your boyfriend is pissing me off.”

“Mason has had his eyes on you all night. He’s definitely interested. You didn’t notice?”

No. “Yeah. Just not in the mood.” He leaned back in the chair. “I was an asshole to Wes. I didn’t mean to be, but fuck, I just wanted the guy to have a good time. You can’t blame me for that.” But as usual, he didn’t think before he spoke. Didn’t think about the fact that because Braden had always just got up and gone when he wanted, others didn’t have it so easy.

“All he does is work and take care of Jess. I mean, I respect him for it. Jesus, he’s a good guy. I don’t know if I could handle that shit. But hell, he needs to get out of the house a little, too. What the fuck are you guys looking at?” Both Noah and Cooper had their eyes trained on him.

Neither of them spoke for a minute before Cooper pushed to his feet. “Come on, buddy, go play a game of pool with me.”

“You’re wearing a sling.” He drank more of his beer.

“I started rehab and I’m allowed to take it off and work it a little. I’ll be fine.”