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that Dane handed Trinity a twenty-dollar bill. “What was the bet?” Vivi inquired.
    “That you would kill him within the first five minutes,” Trinity answered.
    “I gave you twenty minutes,” Dane replied.
    “I appreciate the faith, man.” Joel looped his arm loosely around Vivi’s shoulders and studied the group. “We have come to an understanding, and we’re friends now. No more bickering.”
    “Are we talking about the type of friends that might kill one another?” Ben inquired.
    “Not unless it becomes necessary,” Vivi replied. Turning slightly, she bumped her hip against his. “Let’s hope that doesn’t happen.”
    The room erupted in laughter. “Let’s go to the house, and I’ll fix supper,” Vivi said loudly. She stepped over to Uncle Buck and helped him out of the chair. “Come on, old man, you started all this nonsense. I expect you to provide the bourbon.”
    Holding on to Vivi’s arm, he grinned. “Sweet girl, we’re going to drink the good stuff tonight.”
     

CHAPTER FOUR
     
    Joel, Ben, and Dane stood on Buck’s front porch and stared into the bright morning sun. The temperature was hovering around eighty, and the humidity was making their T-shirts stick to their backs. There was a large oak on the front lawn, and it was offering only a small amount of relief for the three men.
    “I can’t believe that old man drank us under the table. Did you see how happy and chipper he was this morning?” Dane slid his sunglasses on his face and grimaced. “I don’t want anyone to know about this. It’s embarrassing.”
    Ben wiped his face with the bottom of his shirt and sat down on the front step. “The girls are going to take one look at us and know what happened.”
    “Let’s go eat a greasy breakfast and drink a gallon of coffee and then lie our asses off when we see them,” Joel responded. Shoving his cap on his head, he slowly descended the stairs. “A seventy-year-old man has put us to shame, and I don’t want to advertise it.”
    Dane drank down a bottle of water and followed Joel to the car. “Trinity is going to have way too much fun when she finds out. I’m not looking forward to that at all.”
    “We deserve whatever happens to us,” Ben replied. “We have let down the brotherhood.”
    “What the hell was he serving us…anyway?” Joel asked. Piling slowly into the car, they buckled up, and he set the GPS for the closest diner.
    “He called it a Viux Carre. It had high-proof rye, sweet vermouth, and Bénédictine,” Ben replied.
    “The high-proof rye got us.” Dane smirked. As they drove down the street, he tipped his head against the seat. “To be more accurate, it was the bourbon-and-rye combination that took us down.”
    “Mardi Gras is next week. We better get out acts together, because I don’t plan on feeling this way again,” Ben stated. “Ruby is never going to stay interested in me if she thinks that I can’t handle myself.”
    “It’s going to take a lot more than that,” Joel replied. “She’s been a widow for five years, and according to Vivi, you’re the first man that she’s shown any interest in.”
    A small grin crossed Ben’s face. “I’m glad she waited and I was the one that caught her eye.”
    Joel glanced into the rearview mirror and noticed that Ben had a blissful look on his face. Lucky bastard , he thought. He wished that he was still capable of that sort of optimism. If he were, then it would make being around Vivi a lot easier.
    ***
     
    Vivi and Ruby were following along with the yoga program on TV, while Trinity lay prone on the couch. “Are you sure you don’t want to join us?” Vivi called over her shoulder.
    Trinity lifted her eyes away from her iPad and smirked. “I’m sure.” Pulling the blanket higher on her shoulder, she stared at the ceiling. “I hope you all are done soon, because I want to hear the details of what happened on the patio last night. I believe our Ruby was smooching a man.”
    Ruby was