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Then again, she’d had a rough day yesterday. The reminder of the role Olivia played in it made Bram see red all over again.
    He knew part of the reason Olivia had been such an insensitive bitch was because she’d always been jealous of the tight friendship he and Lacey shared. One night when she’d gotten stupid drunk, Olivia had slurred accusations about Lacey lusting after him. God, if only Olivia knew the truth. The only one guilty of a major case of lust was him. For Lacey.
    Sometimes he wondered if he hadn’t made a huge mistake agreeing to the pact with Ry about keeping their distance. With the bombshell Lacey dropped yesterday about dating again, this more than qualified as one of those times. How could he stand by and not do everything in his power to convince her to make him one of her eligible candidates?
    There’d been more than one occasion when he’d debated the wisdom of him and Ry not just pouring their hearts out to Lacey and letting her decide if she could see herself with one of them. Yeah, it’d kill him if she picked Ry. But eventually one day he’d get over her, right?
    Sure, maybe in my next lifetime . Blowing out a heavy breath, he cracked open the door of his Subaru Outback. An arctic blast buffeted the side of the vehicle, making the door rattle in his grip. Concerned the gust might decide to take off with part of his car, he clambered out and slammed the door shut. He reached the Dockside’s entrance just as Ry did. Bram wedged his key in the lock and pushed the door open. He let Ry take care of hitting the lights in the main section of the restaurant and went to check things in the kitchen. The astringent smell of disinfectant and industrial-grade floor cleaner announced that the janitorial crew had been through and worked their magic. A note was taped to the cooler door. More than likely the supply list from Kevin, the head chef.
    Bram strode to the cooler and grabbed the note. He’d give it to Lacey so she could add the items onto their weekly shopping list.
    The reminder of Lacey brought his thoughts spinning back around to her adamancy about dating again. Yeah, wanting to keep her safely out of reach of some faceless dude certainly made him a selfish bastard. She deserved to find her happily ever after.
    He wished to hell it would be with him.
    His fist tightening on Kevin’s note, Bram stalked toward the office he shared with Ry. The lights were already on and Ry was busy clearing some boxes of ornaments off his desk. Bram tossed the list on top of a stack of unopened mail and stared at the back of Ry’s head. “We can’t let her do it.”
    “What choice do we have?”
    It came as no surprise to Bram that Ry knew precisely who and what he’d been referring to. When it came to Lacey, they’d always been of the same mind. Well, mostly. “We can damn well tell her how we feel.”
    Ry pivoted toward him, his eyes hot and his features haggard. He looked like shit. Probably hadn’t slept an iota last night. That made two of them. Ry slammed his arms over his chest. “Brilliant idea, Colton. I’m sure she’d love having to choose between her two best friends. Assuming she’d want either one of our asses.”
    “True, but what if she ends up dating another dickwad like Dan? Are we supposed to stand by and let her get hurt all over again?”
    Ry glared at him, obviously pissed by the question. “You damn well know I’d cut off my own arm before letting that happen.”
    “There’s an easier, less drastic option than that.”
    “We’re not making her choose.” Ry bit off each word with deadly precision.
    In the back of his mind, he knew Ry was right. It wouldn’t be fair to foist that kind of decision on Lacey. And he valued her friendship too much to risk losing it. Still, the idea of watching her with another guy—someone who wasn’t him —made him sick inside. “It’s killing me, man.”
    “I know.”
    He stared Ry down, knowing full well that the anguished