by Claire Adams
I came up against a roadblock; no matter how I tried to get around it, my brain wasn’t allowing me to remember. It was incredibly frustrating.
I reached down to retrieve my pants. I pulled my phone from my pocket. I didn’t have any messages and my battery was almost dead. And I was surprised to see it was already four in the afternoon. Holy shit, I’d slept all day. I’d drank a lot more than I realized. Once the liquor had started flowing, I didn’t remember not having a glass in my hand. Why didn’t I drink any water? How did Sienna let me do that?
She did want me to have a good time. And by getting me drunk, there were sure to be moments she could make fun of me for. Hmm. I’d have to get her back for this once I was able to move without wanting to throw up.
I flipped through to find Sienna’s number so she could fill me in on the details.
Before I could press the call button, someone knocked on the front door. I smiled and placed the phone on the bed. Sienna was here. At least I could ask her face-to-face. And maybe she would have some coffee for me. Or possibly some greasy hangover food. No matter how bad I felt, I was always up for her food.
I stood up and the room tilted. Once I got my bearings, I pulled on a pair of sweatpants and headed out to answer the door. She banged on the door again, and it sounded like a hammer in my head.
“Coming,” I croaked then cleared my throat. I must have had more whiskey; it always made my voice hoarse.
I opened the door and was prepared for Sienna to bust my balls about something stupid I did last night, but instead, I was surprised to see Rachel standing there.
“Rachel?”
“Hey, babe,” she said and pushed through the door, lugging her bags. She rolled them to the middle of the room and stood them up. She turned and crossed her arms, looking me up and down.
I must have looked like a wreck. I raked my hands through my hair. “What-what are you doing here? I thought you were staying another couple of days.”
She looked like perfection, a deceiving quality. She walked over to me and rubbed her soft hands over my chest. “Can’t a girl come home and see her fiancé?”
I glanced outside the door before I kicked it closed behind me. “Sure, but I’m just surprised is all.”
She smiled. “I want to tell you about the whole thing!” She started unloading every single detail of the trip.
“Please don’t yell,” I said, rubbing my temples. “Sienna and Tony threw me a bachelor party last night.”
“I hope it wasn’t at her disgusting diner. You could probably get a disease from there.” She stuck out her tongue and made a gagging noise.
If anything, I would get a disease from the strippers. Sunny’s was the cleanest diner I’d ever visited. Besides, I wasn’t going to get into this with her now. I had no patience and no energy.
“Anyway,” she said. “On the plane ride there, we were sitting behind a child. In first class! I made them move the family across the plane by telling the flight attendant that I wanted a refund if I was going to have to listen to a screaming child after paying so much for the ticket, then…”
For the lack of us speaking while she was gone, she was certainly making up for it now. I fought hard to pay attention, but what I really wanted to do was call Sienna and figure out what the hell happened last night.
Rachel tagged along with me all around the house, even while I showered. She was never this attached before. I should have been grateful—I was marrying her, after all—but today was not the best day for her to be clingy. I just wanted to get in touch with Sienna and find out what I had missed out on.
The shower felt refreshing and offered me a chance to drown out Rachel for a few minutes. Her muffled words weren’t discernible in the stream of water cascading over my head, offering me a small moment of peace. Guilt pressed on my chest so I took a quick shower so Rachel wouldn’t have to repeat herself. It was one of her pet peeves, and I didn’t want her voice to get even more high-pitched than it already was. I wasn’t sure my throbbing head could take it.
When I got out of the shower, Rachel was standing there, holding my phone out.
“Did someone call?” I asked. Sienna wouldn’t be too happy if Rachel answered her phone call.
“No,” she said. “Are you expecting someone to call?”
“No,” I said and wiped my face with a towel.
She narrowed her eyes for a moment before thrusting the phone at me.
“I want you to make reservations for dinner tonight.”
I took the phone from her. “Where do you want to go?”
“You choose,” she said. “But make it a nice place.”
“Sure thing,” I said.
“We’ll talk more then. I want to freshen up, then we can leave.” She winked at me then turned on her heel and strode from the room. Her clacking heels echoed across the space until they were gone.
I sighed. She knew I could get a spot at any restaurant I wanted. Flashing my money was her favorite thing, and if the restaurant wasn’t full, she’d know I didn’t try hard to get into an exclusive place.
My phone was dangerously close to being dead. I had one phone call to make before I had to charge it.
Rachel would make my life hell if I didn’t schedule a reservation. And I wouldn’t have the privacy I needed to speak with Sienna about last night. I was sure if Rachel heard the conversation, she’d have a lot of questions. And I wasn’t prepared to talk to her about last night. At least not until I got all the information.
I sighed. Sienna would have to wait.
When we arrived at the restaurant, Rachel acted surprised that we’d gone to such a nice place. I was still recovering, so I didn’t have the energy to remind her that she was the one who wanted a fancy place. I ordered a bottle of wine for the table but I knew my glass would remain empty. I guzzled both mine and Rachel’s glasses of water before the waiter returned to take our order.
“So, as of right now, you have a venue, officiant, and what else?” Rachel said, flipping through her phone. She was half-paying attention like she always did, but for some reason, it annoyed me. It seemed like everything she did annoyed me today. It was unfair to her that I was hungover, so I tried to muster up the energy to talk to her even though I really didn’t want to get into this right now. I didn’t even want to leave the house, and now she wanted to talk about the wedding? Balls of stress built up in my shoulders.
“That’s it. I didn’t have time for anything else yet. The band I put a deposit on didn’t have availability for the new date. The caterer was checking her calendar and was supposed to get back to me.”
I’d left my phone at home to charge while we were at dinner. When Rachel went home for the night, I’d be able to call Sienna and get all the information I needed to ease my mind. Not knowing what happened last night created a sense of anxiety in me. I hoped I didn’t say or do something stupid. By the lack of Sienna’s phone calls, I had a really strong feeling that the part of the night I didn’t remember was very important.
“Parker, are you even listening to me?” Rachel said.
I didn’t realize I wasn’t paying attention to anything she’d said. My brain was still fuzzy and I must have zoned out.
“What did you say?”
Rachel sighed. “We still have so much to do. I think I’m going to have to hire someone to help me since you were obviously not the person for the job. I’ll need your checkbook so I can put down all the deposits. And I need to get my dress fitted…”
She continued on. I interjected an appropriate “sure” and “uh-huh” as needed, but I didn’t contribute more than that.
I could barely choke down my dinner since my stomach was still rolling from the night before. I had the waiter wrap up my meal and I got the check before he even offered dessert. I knew Rachel wouldn’t want any and I needed to get home and call Sienna. Or maybe she already called me and wondered why I hadn’t gotten back to her in almost an entire day.
Rachel seemed p
ut off by us rushing out of there, but I ignored her.
After paying the check, I called for the valet. After he pulled the car up to the curb, I opened the door for Rachel. I tipped the valet and shuffled over to my side. I was almost home-free.
We had to go back and get Rachel’s things at my place. I wished I would have packed them in the car so I could take her home right away. But my brain wasn’t functioning well at all since I woke up hours ago.
When we got to my place, I left the car idling and got out. “I’ll be right back with your things.”
Rachel opened her door and stepped out. “We can do that tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” I didn’t like the sound of that. “You’re staying here tonight?”
“Is that a problem?”
Fuck….
“No, I just—” I had no excuse. She was my fiancée, and she had the right to stay over whenever she wanted. But why did she have to agree to stay over tonight, of all nights?
Rachel strode up the front walkway, leaving me to turn off my car and lock it. This was going to be a long night.
Chapter Eighteen
Sienna
I hated that I expected to hear from Parker. I’d religiously checked my phone all day Sunday, and here I was Monday morning and continuing to stalk my best friend. I had written him several texts that I eventually deleted. And I lost count of how many times my finger hovered over his number but didn’t have the nerve to press it. I wished I would have left his house when I’d had the chance. It’s not like he would have been offended if I hadn’t lain down with him. I was so stupid to allow myself to think he was actually speaking the truth through some sort of drunk haze. I wasn’t that girl. So, why did I feel so shitty?
I checked my phone the second I woke up and there was nothing from Parker. After a quick look at his social media profiles, he hadn’t been active since Friday. At least he wasn’t off doing something fun. But I actually would have preferred that, so at least I’d know he was alive and well. I wasn’t a fan of being the only sober one at a party, but I wanted Parker to have a good time and get him home safely. I knew he’d have a hangover, but I thought he’d at least send a text to let me know he woke up okay. And maybe talk to me about him calling me Rachel.
Whatever.
He’d contact me when he wanted. I wasn’t going to pine after him like every other girl. I had to get to work and make a living. Not everyone had billions of dollars and an offer for more money on the back burner.
When I got to the diner, I parked and walked toward the back entrance. Tony was there smoking. Again. I clenched my jaw. I didn’t have the energy to yell at him. Instead, I walked right up to him and took the cigarette out of his hand. Before he could snatch it back, I threw it on the ground and stepped on it, digging it into the ground with the toe of my shoe.
“Do you know how much those cost?” he asked, annoyed.
“Yeah, your life. Now pick it up and throw it away before coming in. And don’t let me catch you doing this again or I’ll throw the entire pack away.”
“First of all, you wouldn’t dare go through my things. And second of all, what bug crawled up your ass this morning?”
If I was going to open up to anyone about my feelings, it would be Tony. He was my closest friend, other than Parker. But as much as Tony disliked Rachel, I wasn’t about to tell him or anyone how stupid I’d been. Who falls for someone that’s getting married? Parker made it obvious by moving mountains to plan his wedding that Rachel was the one for him. He apparently had a high tolerance for brats; he still wanted to marry her.
My stomach churned. It wasn’t Tony’s fault that I was in a pissy mood. “There’s no bug; I’m just a little annoyed.”
“With?”
I tried to open the door, but he pushed it closed and stood between me and my diner.
“Talk to me, Sienna,” he said. “Me and you banter, we don’t fight.”
I pushed my hands through my hair. “I’m fine, really. Sorry I got all worked up. It just annoys me to see you smoking every morning. You know I don’t want you to do it, but if you’re going to, just do it somewhere else.”
“And that’s all you’ve got on your mind?”
No.
“Yes.”
Tony hesitated but eventually moved out of the way for me to open the door.
“How was the rest of your night on Saturday?” I asked, trying to get on better terms with him. Tony had been a good friend and texted me Sunday morning. Granted, it was a picture of the strippers in his bed, but at least I knew he was okay.
“It was wild, man,” he said. “Those girls have some tricks up their sleeves.”
I laughed. “I’m sure they do. Did you have to pay them extra for those tricks?”
He pulled a face. “They’re strippers, not prostitutes.”
“Did you check your wallet when they left?”
His eyes widened and he pulled out his wallet and looked through it. Relief crossed his face. “I don’t know why you do this to me. For a second there, I actually believed you.”
I shrugged. “You never know.”
“Do you think Parker had a good time? I know I hogged the girls, but he looked comfortable talking with you.”
I had no idea of the actual answer, but I didn’t want Tony to feel bad about keeping the strippers to himself. “I’m sure he did. He was properly wasted with a smile on his face when I left him.” That wasn’t a lie. Everything that had come out of Parker’s mouth was, though.
We went to work preparing for the morning. Tony went on about things he did with the strippers, even though I begged him to stop telling me his personal business.
Our banter made me smile, though, and for a little while I was able to forget about the flame I held for Parker.
It was later in the morning when the Lamontes came in. Immediately I smiled and waved at them through the pass-through.
“I thought we were going to miss you today.”
“No dear,” Harriet said. “We had a doctor’s appointment. But thanks for asking.”
“Sure thing,” I said. “I’ll be right out with your coffee.”
Harriet and Ken always had a way of bringing up my mood. And as I felt myself start to backslide and check my phone every two minutes, I was happy to have them distract me.
I poured their coffee and brought it over to their table.
“Good morning,” I said cheerfully.
“Good morning, Sienna,” Harriet said. “How was your weekend?”
I didn’t tell them about the bachelor party, especially the fact that it was at the diner. I knew them well, but not well enough to inform them that there were strippers not too far from their table.
I stuck to the facts. “It was good. I went surfing and cleaned up around here. How about you?”
“Oh, well, we don’t do much now. We went to the movies to keep cool.”
“What did you see?”
Harriet told me about the movie. Then Kenneth proceeded to tell her she was wrong about the details. Even after forty years, they argued, and it was the cutest damn thing I’d ever seen.
“I hate to interrupt,” I said as Kenneth worked himself up so much he started hacking into his handkerchief. “But I have to get some orders out. You want the usual?”
“Yes, dear,” Harriet said. “And I’m going to look up this movie on my phone. I know I’m right about the dog being the villain.”
I smiled and left the two of them.
I was almost to the kitchen when the door opened. I glanced up and saw Parker entering the diner.
I shoved through the doors. We had four other tables of patrons, so I put my head down and worked hard to get their food done before I could start with the Lamontes. And maybe Tony would intercept Parker and tell him how busy we were.
Instead, Tony burst into the kitchen and I glanced over my shoulder at him. “What’s up?”
“Parker is here,” he said while grabbing an extra plate for the table
he was working with.
“Oh?” I said, pretending as if I hadn’t seen him come in before.
I looked across the room. Parker stood in the middle of my diner, staring at me. It was the place where I had seen him get a lap dance. He looked much fresher than he did on Saturday. His blue eyes pierced through me, and he had the audacity to smile at me. Everything I’d pushed out of my head for most of the morning came rushing back.
I tore my eyes away from him and pressed the flat end of a spatula onto the french toast sizzling on the grill. How dare he come here and expect everything to be okay. Even if he forgot our conversation, which was probably going to be his excuse, there was no reason not to contact me for an entire day after I worked my ass off pulling together his bachelor party.
“Hey,” he said through the pass-through.
I placed two plates right in front of his face and dinged the bell for Tony to come get the food.
“Hi,” I said stiffly.
“Are you busy?”
I grabbed another ticket and reviewed it. “What does it look like?”
“Can we talk?”
“Not now, Parker.”
“How about when you get off work?”
“Are you going to sit here all day and wait for me, again?”
“No,” he said.
I almost felt bad for him, but I allowed those feelings to linger. “Okay.”
“Okay, we can talk?”
“Yes, Parker. We can talk when I’m done with work.”
“Okay,” he said and turned to leave. “See you later.”
I watched him walk out of my diner and into the lot before the door closed behind him.
I sighed and pressed my hands against the counter. I took several breaths before gathering myself.