Maybe he could just walk to the bakery around the corner and get a bagel and cream cheese for Susy and maybe a donut for himself instead of his normal Greek yogurt. A raspberry-filled sugar jelly donut with an iced chocolate milk. It was a sugary, carb-loaded crap of a breakfast, and something he would normally never eat, but his body was going to be metabolically fucked up for a while anyway.
Tristan took a deep breath in and couldn’t help but cough back out instead of a slow release. There was a catch in his side that hurt pretty strongly for a few seconds and then would ease away. He’d only been vertical for about fifteen minutes getting dressed, and his head was already starting to throb and both of his sides would hurt off and on. His body must be stiff and sore from the beating it had taken, reminding him how careless he’d been with himself. That was absolutely the last time Tristan would drink booze for any reason, no matter what the quantity.
It had taken Tristan quite a bit of time and hard work and a shit load of carefully controlled supplements to develop his body mass and size; he was a bean pole for most of his years growing up. The number of hours he put in at the gym rivaled the number of hours most people spent watching television. He’d gotten soft for a while this year, but with Peyton pushing him again, he’d been more active in the gym, and was getting back to his core weight and size. He’d just thrown a lot of that work away with his stupidity.
A glutton for punishment as always…a grueling work-out it was.
Tristan and Susy worked the same shift that night at the restaurant, so they rode together in his Jeep. It was a cold Thursday night in January, and they didn’t expect to be that busy, but there was no guarantee. Sometimes people would get a wild hair or have the winter blues and would bring in a group of friends for a good time. Not only a good time, but a cheap meal, a great selection of beers and great service. The restaurant had certainly become popular over the winter months, and the weekends were usually packed. The weekdays were slower, but still decent.
Entering the front door, Tristan was greeted with the familiar smells that he’d been missing for the last day or so. It was like stale beer, grease, a bit of pine cleaning solution and musty air all wrapped into one. He expected it to make his weak stomach protest, but it didn’t bother him. Breathing a sigh of relief, he smiled as he walked to the bar, but it fell instantly when he saw Gabriel standing there with his arms crossed over his chest, glaring at him fiercely.
“Well, glad you could bless us with your presence today, Tristan. Mind meeting with me in my office for a bit?” Gabe all but snarled at him. It wasn’t the first time he’d heard his boss use this tone of voice, but it was the first time he’d heard it directed at him.
“Sure thing,” was all he could muster. Gabe didn’t wait for an answer; it really wasn’t a request anyway. Tristan knew he was in deep shit, but he wasn’t expecting this kind of a reception. The brief text messages they’d sent back and forth seemed like his boss was already over him failing to show up for work. Well, Susy did tell them immediately that Tristan wasn’t coming in, but because it didn’t come directly from him, it was pretty much considered a no show.
The pair walked into Gabriel’s back office and the door slammed dramatically behind them. Tristan was just about ready to lay into him for being such a prick when Gabe smiled at him, but held his finger to his lips in a silent plea to stay quiet. He whispered, “I’d lose credibility as a cranky fucker if I didn’t chew you out for yesterday, and boy do you deserve it, kid.”
Tristan went to interject an explanation, but Gabriel held up his hand. “Susy told me all about it. It was stupid as hell, but, hey, I’ve done way stupider shit than that, and still live to tell the tales.”
Tristan quietly chuckled. “It was more than stupid. It was fucking moronic. I don’t know what got into me.”
Gabe didn’t hesitate in agreeing with him. He quietly added, “A smart move would’ve been to just beat the fucker silly and toss him out on his ass. Not dispose of the last of the booze in your gut while you cart the hot girl off to bed.”
“I didn’t cart her off to bed, Gabe!!! She was fucked up, too!”
“Shhhh, Tristan,” he quieted. “I know, I know. Anyway…just remember that I’ve basically inducted you without so much as telling the staff that you’re second in command. I can’t have you fucking off like that again. Got it?”
Tristan sighed before answering, “Yeah, I got it.”
“Good. Now let’s finish off this show with a bang…”
Gabriel got out of his chair and headed for the door to his office; Tristan wasn’t sure what he meant, or what he was doing, so he stood up himself and watched him with a puzzled look on his face.
The door was practically yanked off its hinges when Gabe pulled it open and said loud enough for the entire staff to hear, “That was your one and only warning, Tristan. A whole day’s docked pay and all is good. Deal?”
Gabriel held out his hand toward him and looked at Tristan with a serious gleam in his eyes.
Motherfucker, Tristan thought. He’s serious about it, too.
“Fine,” he grumbled, but he wasn’t acting anymore. He knew Gabriel had saved face and didn’t have to chew his ass for not showing up yesterday, or worse yet, fire him, but still told him where the shit landed when things fell off the ladder. But he was going to bust his ass like any other day and not get paid a red cent in wages. He made damn good money in tips, but he was paid more than minimum wage to boot for basically managing the staff as well.
Gabe slapped him on the back and chuckled at the grim expression on his face. He could hear his full on laugh from the other side of the door after he dismissed him. Fucker, Tristan thought again with a tiny smile, and back to work he went.
The evening wasn’t overly busy, and things were wrapped up before ten o’clock. Only two customers remained inside, one of their regular blue-collar friendly but overly nosy Joe, and a blond woman dressed to the nines, wearing a skin-tight black dress that exposed more than it covered. Tristan assumed she was waiting for someone, especially when she kept her eye trained on the front door whenever it opened.
After most of the staff had finished waiting on their tables and cleaning up, the kitchen was officially closed. Tristan politely told the pair, “Calling last call. Another one for either of you?”
The man shook his head and polished off the last little bit of beer in his glass. “Nope, I’m done. Have a great rest of your week, Christian.”
Rolling his eyes at the man’s back as he left, Tristan was half tempted to correct him on his name, but didn’t have the energy to go through a lengthy conversation with the man about it. So, he opted for a simple, “You too!” then turned to the woman.
“What about you, sweetheart? You done?”
A tinge of pink crept up the woman’s cheeks, and she smiled like she’d just won the lottery. Tristan wasn’t sure what he’d said that was worthy of such a smile, and then it hit him like a ton of bricks. The leggy blond in the next-to-nothing dress and fuck me heels was waiting for him to pay her some notice. He’d been off his game tonight behind the bar, and recognized the flirtatious way she batted her eyelashes and how she stared at his mouth when he briefly talked with her for the last hour, but he didn’t engage her at all. She always leaned forward when he came over to refresh her drink…obvious signs of flirting.
“I…um…” she hesitated for a moment, and then she tried to look coy, but it actually looked like she was constipated. Tristan couldn’t help but laugh at her changing facial expressions, and the next one she made was fury. The steam was practically rolling out her ears and it made it harder for Tristan to keep a straight face as he told her, “I’m sorry, miss. I’m not interested. But thank you.” Random lays weren’t his style…maybe at one time he was all for it, but he had no intention of fucking some overly made up chick that sat at a bar all night hoping for some attention.
Thank everything that was holy that she didn’t spit something back at him, angry at
being rejected. She even tossed a few dollars onto the bar and strolled out the front door, muttering something under her breath.
“What was that all about?” Susy asked after she locked the front door, continuing to hum the song that was just playing on the radio system.
Tristan huffed, “Scorned chick. Was looking for a hook-up and I politely declined…after I laughed at her.” He chuckled again. “Guess she had a right to be pissed off. She wasted her time here half the night and I was oblivious to her. I didn’t even pick up on her not so subtle cues until she’d been here for a good couple of hours, and then she had to work at it to appear interested. Made her look like a twit. I bet she would’ve been a good lay, but I’d have been running the whole show she was so tame.”
Shaking his head, he shut off the remaining lights behind the bar, and Susy stood with her head lowered as she waited for him. Tristan thought it was odd she turned so quiet, especially because she’d just been obnoxiously singing something off key and smiling wildly at him, like normal. Now she was stock still, completely motionless and looked like someone had just kicked her puppy.
Tristan ushered Susy to the front door, instinctively leading her with his hand on her lower back. She tensed when he touched her through her flimsy white cotton dress shirt the staff wore. Tristan immediately pulled his hand away like he’d just touched an open flame. “You okay, Sus?”
She took a moment to pull on her coat, and Tristan did the same. The pair stood in the entry way with Tristan staring Susy down in the little alcove. “You flinched when I touched you…what’s wrong?”
He didn’t even realize he was gripping her arms until she tried to wrench free. This was a first for her to be so touch-phobic…they weren’t always holding hands or hugging, but they didn’t avoid contact with each other at any time. For Christ sakes, they were roommates and had slept in the same bed just recently.
His curiosity was growing, plus he was starting to worry when Susy didn’t answer him. Was she hurt somewhere? Did something happen and she was jumpy around him?
“Sus, honey, what’s wrong?” he asked and tucked a stray lock of her hair behind her ear. It wasn’t meant to be an intimate action, but it was hard to keep his hands to himself. She was looking at him with wide eyes and in the small space they were sharing, they were practically touching noses. She finally closed her eyes and turned her face down. “Nothing,” she stuttered, “I’m tired…”
Tristan gave her a hug and then let go to kiss her forehead. “Let’s get you home, Sus.”
He tried to pull away, but Susy was now reciprocating his hold by clinging to the material on his coat. “Tristan,” she whispered before opening her eyes.
He watched her face, surprised to see lust there…her pupils were dilated as she looked up at him through her eyelashes. He could tell that her breathing was labored, and she’d started to shake in his arms.
They were right back in the same position again, and fuck all if Tristan couldn’t help but lean down to brush his lips against hers. Susy didn’t back away from his touch this time…in fact, she was leaning in even closer.
“I’m tired of ignoring how I feel about you. It smacked me hard when you said she’d be a good lay. It’s stupid, but I was jealous,” Susy barely whispered while her eyes were closed and her chin slightly quivering.
The realization of the situation landed on him like a ton of bricks…why Susy’s demeanor changed so suddenly. She was jealous thinking of him taking another woman home…even admitted to those feelings. But they were just roommates, nothing more. They’d started something with each other one day, but it ended in disaster. He wasn’t in any rush to jump back into a relationship, but he could easily admit he wanted to feel a soft woman in his arms again.
So why didn’t he even consider taking the floozy chick at the bar home for nothing more than to ease some tension? Maybe he’d completely turned down her down without a second thought because there was someone else his mind was focused on right now.
“Susy…” he said her name in longing and pulled her against him.
Chapter Eight
He was going to hell for this, but the sudden realization of his feelings and the connection between them right now was too strong for him to pull away.
All thoughts fell away as Tristan focused on creating this one perfect moment with Susy. She needed to feel how special she was to him, and if this was the only way how, then so be it.
With as much restraint as he could manage, he pulled back and looked into the wide and nearly fearful eyes of a timid dark blonde-haired girl. Everything was riding on this very moment, and her answer to this next question would define the rest of their relationship.
“Do you want me, Susy, as much as I want you right now?”
Pulling her lower lip between her teeth, she responded with a slight nod. Tristan could feel her trembling in his arms and pulled her in closer to give her not only warmth from his body, but support. Holding her tight, he kissed the side of her head and told her, “I want to make love to you, Susy. Not fuck you up against the wall. Can you wait until we get home?”
Susy tilted her head upward, but left her eyes closed. She nodded and cleared her throat and stuttered, “Yes. I’ll wait…Please…”
Tristan ducked his head in approval and worked at unlocking the front door of the restaurant so they could leave. Susy was practically jelly in his arms as he maneuvered her outside and held her to re-lock the door.
It was absolutely freezing and they were both shivering by the time Tristan got them to his Jeep. Susy was still holding tightly to him and hadn’t said a word other than her non-verbal cues that let him know she wasn’t shying away from him. Like the way she clutched at his arm tightly as she moved across the parking lot with him, or the way she all but purred when he gripped the back of her neck in one hand when he helped her into the passenger side.
The drive home only took ten minutes at the most, but it felt like an eternity. The pair held hands over the small console, but otherwise didn’t say anything. It wasn’t an uncomfortable silence, but more like the calm before the storm with anticipation building between them like wildfire. Susy was wriggling in her seat and it was making Tristan hard thinking about her envisioning the upcoming events.
Climbing up the stairs to their apartment, Tristan could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest, and it wasn’t from the energy it took to get to the second floor. The anticipation was burning a hole through his body and he needed to get Susy inside their apartment before combusting into flames.
When they made it inside, Tristan locked the door before pulling off his coat and hanging it on the rack. He held out his hand to do the same with Susy’s jacket and then pulled her into his arms, holding her head still as he kissed her lips softly, and then kissed each of her eyelids.
“Susy…I don’t know what you think you know about me, but I’m not looking for a passive lover. I want you to tell me what you want…tell me if I’m not making you feel good…”
Burying her head against his chest, she answered with a groan. She spoke into his shirt, “If this is about the crap I spewed at you when we first met, please forget I even said anything. I was just trying to get a rise out of you…”
Tristan chuckled deep in his chest and was relieved to feel Susy do the same. He lightened the tension of the moment by grinding his hips against Susy so she could feel his erection against her belly. “Well, you did get a rise out of me this time.”
Susy pulled back for a moment and held a mask of concern on her face as she asked, “I do want to ask something first, but I don’t want you to get mad at me…”
Tristan couldn’t help but frown at her words, but it wasn’t because he didn’t want to answer questions right now. He’d hoped Susy was comfortable enough to never hesitate in asking him a question for fear of him getting angry. That was one thing he hoped he would never do to anyone…no matter what the question. It was a childhood fear in him that he hoped he never unleashed
on anyone else.
“Susy,” he said her name like it was a prayer to the heavens, “honey, you don’t even need to preface your questions like that.” He softly kissed her forehead and pulled her back against him. “Ask me anything.”
She turned her head to the side so she wasn’t speaking into his chest and asked, “Are you sure you and Peyton are done? I don’t want to drive a bigger wedge between you. I really do like her and she was good for you,” Susy sighed against his chest, then finished in a rush, “I just don’t know where you two stand.”
Tristan replied with a question of his own. “If I say we’re through and have been for more than a month, will you believe me?”
Susy tugged out of his arms and backed away from him. “If it’s the truth, then yes. I’m only asking because I don’t want to hurt you in the end. We got a good thing going between us, and I’m ready to add more to our dynamic, but not if it’ll cost you something in the long run.”
Tristan puffed out the breath he was holding, then answered, “Sus, Peyton and I were both ready for that relationship to be done. Was it hard to let her go? Yes. Do I want her back in my life right now? No. It wasn’t a healthy relationship and we both walked away without a promise of something more later on. She’s the kind of woman that needs a steady, normal family with all the promises and expectations out of life. I don’t expect her to wait around for me, nor does she expect me to do the same.”
“You know that for a fact, Tristan?”
“Susy, Peyton and I were only together for a few months, but she will always be one of the most influential people in my life. I’m not going to cheapen what we had by saying I don’t give a fuck about her. Because I did…I mean, I do.”
Being With You (The Redemption Series) Page 5