I pull back from him and blink a few times. “You okay?” he asks. “I’m pretty sure they heard you from a mile away.”
I close my eyes and fall forward, letting my body rest against his. “I think so.”
He gives a little chuckle. Obviously, he is not worried about the little blackout that I seemed to have experienced.
He lifts me up off the floor and lays me in bed. I cuddle up next to him when a thought hits me. “What about you?”
He runs a hand up and down my bare back. “Tonight was all about you, Angel.”
Even though tonight was his birthday, I am too exhausted to argue with that statement.
*****
The week seems to go by in a blur. I spend every waking moment going through all the boxes, and I’m thankful to have the friends that I have to help me. The girls have been over every second that they get, helping me sort through everything and find a place for it. I have hung all of my mother’s clothes in the spare bedroom closet but still have not found their wedding rings.
“Where could they be?” I wonder aloud, placing my hands on my hips while looking around the room. Holly, Missy, and Courtney are all sitting on the bed.
“They must be at you mother’s house,” Holly says frowning. “We did pack up everything very quickly.”
I turn my back to them and let myself fall onto the bed. “I guess I can go back and go through the house again,” I say, staring up at the ceiling.
“I’ll go back to T-town with you,” Courtney says excitedly. “I’ve been wanting to go back and see my mother.”
“Okay,” I agree, turning around so that I’m on my stomach facing them. “I will talk to Slade and see what he has to say about me going next weekend.”
“You have to ask permission?” Courtney asks, crossing her arms over her chest with a smile.
“No,” I respond, defensively. “I have just left several times without even telling him where I’m going, and I would have been pissed if he would have done that. So, I will see if he has anything planned. Maybe he will want to go.”
“Oh.” She closes her eyes for a second. “Speaking of plans, I already have plans next Saturday, so I can’t go with you.”
“What do you have planned?” Missy asks.
Courtney looks at all of us. “Thursday is Thanksgiving. Josh’s dad is going out of town to visit his sister and her family. So Josh said we would spend the weekend with him to celebrate it.”
“Why doesn’t Josh want to go with his dad to see his aunt?” I frown.
She shakes her head. “He wouldn’t tell me why. Just that he didn’t want to go and I left it at that. So, we are going to spend it with the Long family.”
“Why don’t you go and see your mom?” Holly asks.
“She has a new boyfriend.” She rolls her eyes. “Guess she is going down to Texas with him to see his family.”
It doesn’t matter how much her mother hates them, she still likes to have herself a man. Courtney’s mother has always been that way. Then she falls in love quickly and they end up running from her. But the only person who matters is whatever man is in her life at the moment.
“What about you guys?” I ask turning to Holly.
“We are going to the Longs’ for the day and then my family is having theirs that evening,” she replies happily.
“You?” I look to Missy.
“Everyone goes to my parents’ house. I invited Tate but he turned me down,” she replies quietly.
Courtney bumps her shoulder into her. “I’m sure if you put on edible panties and send him a picture titled ‘what you can have for dessert’ he would definitely come over.”
Missy looks down at the comforter with red cheeks. I narrow my eyes at Courtney and she shrugs. “What? I’m sure he would come over for that. Who doesn’t like dessert?”
“She does not need sex advice from you Courtney,” I say with a laugh.
“Why not? Mine would be better than you or Holly.”
Holly rolls her eyes. “Yeah, because you’ve slept with more men than me and Sam combined.”
Courtney gives us a big smile. “First of all, Sam has only slept with two guys. I don’t know how many you have slept with.” She looks at Holly “And second, I can’t help it if I matured faster than you guys.”
“Anyways,” I say getting back on track. “Why did Tate decline? Is he going to Alaska to see his mother?”
She shakes her head. “Not that I know of. Does he ever say anything to you about her?”
I shake my head no. “Well, he mentioned that he goes and sees her often. But other than that, no. Why?”
“He never brings her up. I don’t even think he talks to her.”
Hmm. I’ll have to ask him about that.
“What’s going on in here?” I turn my head to look over my shoulder and see Slade and Josh standing inside the bedroom.
“Girl talk,” Courtney says sweetly. Josh cocks his eyebrow as he walks over to her. He places his hands on either side of her and bends down. “If you are talking about me, feel free to embellish a little bit,” he jokes.
She grins up at him. “Always baby,” she teases.
He chuckles before pressing his lips to hers.
Holly rolls her eyes playfully and we start to get up off the bed.
“Is the game over?” I ask, coming up to Slade.
“Halftime,” he responds, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and steering me down the hallway.
“What time do you have to work tonight?” Missy asks as we enter the kitchen.
“The bar opens at six. Holly and I need to be there by five to start getting everything ready,” I tell her as Micah and Tate walk into the kitchen from the basement.
“I can’t believe tonight is your last night to work at Larry’s,” Holly laments.
“It’s a dream come true,” Slade sighs out.
I look up at him with a scowl.
“How did the unpacking go?” Josh asks as he enters the kitchen with Courtney.
I sigh as I sit down at the kitchen island. “I still didn’t find my parents’ rings.”
“I remember her saying something about them being in her dresser,” Tate remarks.
I look to him with narrowed eyes. “Well, why didn’t you tell me that?”
He shrugs carelessly. “I just remembered it.” He then looks over to Slade.
I release a breath as Slade places his hand on my shoulder. “We’ll find them, Angel. They have to be there somewhere.”
I nod my head. “Yeah.”
“Come on, let’s go down to the basement and watch some football before you have to get ready for work,” Slade says, grabbing my hand and pulling me away from the counter.
*****
“That’s how you met Slade?” Missy asks, wide-eyed.
I bob my head in confirmation, before I park the truck in the back parking lot of Larry’s for my last shift. She and Holly wanted to ride up here with me since the guys are all coming up later as well. They can ride home with them.
“So he was once like Tate?” she asks, smiling.
“I don’t know much about Tate,” I reply honestly. I have thought that a few times, but I’m not going to tell her that I have seen him with several different women in the last couple of months.
“I don’t know if anyone can be as bad as Slade once was,” Holly adds seriously.
“That is probably true,” I agree, nodding my head.
I open the door to the truck and get out and we all start to walk toward the back entrance. I walk in first and run straight into Jeremy.
He grabs a hold of my waist in an unnecessary attempt to steady me. I instantly shove his hands away and jump back.
“You need to be more careful,” he taunts with a smile on his face.
I just narrow my eyes at him as he walks away, now laughing to himself. “You really hate him, don’t you?” Holly whispers as we walk down the hallway.
“There’s just something about him,�
�� I muse, more to myself. Then I come to a stop and turn to face the girls. “Why is he even here? I checked the schedule yesterday. He was not on it.”
Holly looks down to the floor then back up at me. “Well….” She rocks back and forth on her feet. “I didn’t want you to work tonight. This is a surprise quitting party.” She shrugs. “Whatever you want to call it. So I had him come in to work your shift.”
I smile because I can’t be mad at her for that. “That is very sweet, Holly. Thank you.”
She lets out a breath with a little laugh. “I thought that was going to be harder.”
Holly then turns to Missy. “You can stay, but you can’t drink anything alcoholic. Okay?”
Missy nods with a smile on her face. “I don’t drink anyway. But thanks for letting me be part of the party,” she says excitedly.
“No problem. You’re one of the girls now,” Holly says, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. “Let’s get Sam a shot. I plan on getting her a little tipsy tonight,” Holly taunts as she leads us toward the bar.
I roll my eyes as I follow after her. Holly goes behind the bar as Missy and I sit on the bar stools.
“When is Courtney coming up here?” Missy asks.
“Later with the guys. Josh’s father needed some help with something.” I wave my hand in the air, not remembering what Slade had told me while I was in the shower.
“Here you go,” Holly says, sliding a shot my way. I start to lift it to my lips but she stops me.
“I’m going to use the restroom real quick. Wait until I get back and I will take one with you.” She places her drink on the counter.
“Okay.” I set mine down as well. I turn to talk to Missy when my phone rings and I know it’s Slade.
I stand up and pull it out of my back pocket. “I’ll be right back,” I tell her as I walk away from the bar.
“Hey, baby.”
“Hey, Angel. I just wanted to let you know we are going to be here for about another hour.”
“Okay, the girls and I just got here, so I’ll see you in a little bit.”
“Love you,” he says before he hangs up.
I turn around to walk back to the bar when the door to the women’s bathroom swings open and Holly emerges.
“Slade called.” I hold up my phone. “They are gonna be another hour,” I explain.
“Perfect,” she says cheerfully. “Gives us girl time.”
We make our way back to the bar. “Did he know I wasn’t working tonight?”
She looks over at me with a smile on her face and I shake my head. Of course Slade knew. He knows everything.
I sit down next to Missy as Holly picks up her drink.
“I told him I didn’t want it,” Missy announces, getting our attention.
“What?” I look over to her.
“That Jeremy guy.” She checks around for him before she looks down to the shot glass in front of her.
“He made you a shot?” Holly asks, scowling.
Missy nods. “I told him I don’t drink. That I wasn’t even old enough, but he said I needed to take one with you two.” She then pushes the shot over toward me. “You can have mine.”
I look down at it and see that it’s the same colors as ours, but looks a tad foggy. “What kind of shot is this?” I ask her while staring at it.
“He said it was the same thing you two had.”
I pick it up to inspect it closer. I look at the cloudy drink and frown. “This is not the same shot. This does not look anything like ours.” A repulsive thought hits me. “What if he put something in it?” I ask, setting it down in horror.
“Jeremy wouldn’t do that,” Holly states.
“You don’t know him, Holly. None of us really know him.” I push the glass away from me. “And none of us are going to take that shot.”
“I don’t think—” Holly begins and I stop her.
“What if we test it?” I question aloud. I’ve had a bad vibe about him from the get go. Do I want to think that he is trying to drug my friend? No! But something is seriously off and I’m tired of ignoring it.
Holly looks down to the shot as she bites nervously on her bottom lip. “How are we going to test it without drinking it?” she asks quietly, thinking out loud.
“I have an idea.” I smile, looking back down to the shot glass.
“What?” Missy asks.
I jump off the bar stool and go behind the bar. I make up another shot exactly the same as the others.
I then slide it over to Missy. “That is yours.”
She stares at it for a few seconds and then looks up at me with a frown. “I’m confused.”
“You have to take it.” I smile softly at her. “Or this won’t work. Can you do that? Just this one.”
She nods her head as if determined. “I can do it.”
“Great! Hand me the one that he made for Missy,” I instruct Holly.
I hold it up and look at it. The cloudiness is already gone and it looks normal. I take a deep breath, thinking how much I want to kick his ass. I know he has mixed something in that shot. How could he do that to Missy? I knew he was a piece of shit from day one.
“Hey, Jeremy,” I greet as he approaches us from the back bar.
“We are all going to take a shot to kick off the party.” I hold up the glass in my hand. “I made you one as well.” I smile sweetly at him.
He frowns at my friendliness. I’ve never been nice to the guy. I’m sure he’s wondering why the hell I am being nice now. “Never mind,” I say as I shrug, though I need him to drink it. If he takes it and it doesn’t have any effect, then he didn’t do anything different to it. “I’ll take both of them.” I start to lift the glass to my lips when he stops me.
“No. I’ll take one with you. We sure are going to miss you.” He gives me that sly smile and then he looks over to Missy. I have the urge to throw this glass at the side of his head.
“Here you go.” I set the shot down on the bar and push it over to him.
“Decided to take it after all?” he asks as he looks down at Missy.
She swallows nervously and her eyes shoot to mine. I give her a small nod and a big smile to play along.
“Uh.” She clears her throat. “Yes. Yes, I did.”
I lift my shot glass before he catches on to us. “To Larry’s.” I look around the bar. “This place changed my life for the best. And I’m going to miss it.” I lower my glass, knocking the bottom onto the bar and then shoot it back. Everyone follows including Missy. She coughs and gags as I smile over at her. I’m pretty sure that was the first drink she has ever had, but she had to take it or it would have raised questions from Jeremy.
“That was delicious,” I say, licking my lips.
Jeremy nods his head. “I have to go finish stocking the back bar.” He sets his empty shot glass down before he walks off to the cooler. “Thanks, ladies.” Then he pats Missy on the shoulder. She looks up at him, terrified and frozen. “Save me a dance later.” He winks before he walks off.
I look at Missy. “Are you alright?”
“How do you guys drink that nasty stuff?” she says with a sour look on her face.
“You get used to it,” Holly laughs out loud, before she turns to me with a serious look on her face. “Now what?”
“Now we go and find out if he did what I think he did.”
Holly and Missy follow behind me as I walk down the hallway and into the cooler where Jeremy is stacking boxes. I don’t know how long something like that takes to get into your system. I’m hoping it happens soon before the guys arrive.
“Perfect,” he says when he looks up at us. “I could use some help.”
“Feeling okay?” I tilt my head while I gauge his reaction.
“Yeah. Why?” He turns around to pick up another case of beer.
I stand behind him and cross my arms over my chest. “I figured that shot would make you feel…funny.”
“Like drunk?” He laughs. “Baby, it takes a lot more t
han one shot to get me drunk.”
I grit my teeth at the fact he just called me baby. “What about one that was roofied?”
He stands up and spins around. The look in his cold brown eyes has me taking a step back from him.
“What are you talking about?” he asks slowly as he looks down at me.
I square my shoulders. I have never liked this man and I’m not about to take his shit. “I gave you Missy’s shot,” I spit out.
“You what?” He looks from me over to Missy and then to Holly.
I take a step toward him. “I said, I gave you Missy’s shot. You know the one you drugged?”
Before I can even blink, he’s standing in front of me. He reaches out, placing his hand around my neck, and pushes me up against a bunch of stacked beer boxes.
Missy screams and jumps back, covering her mouth as Holly starts to run toward him. I lift my knee quickly. He releases me when it makes contact with his balls. He falls to his knees as he cups them in both of his hands.
I rub my neck as I take in a few deep breaths. I look down at him as he struggles to catch his breath as well, and tries to stand. “I always knew you were a bitch,” he rasps out. “That’s why I drugged you.”
I look at Holly and Missy as my heart pounds in my chest. I then look back down to him. “You’re lying. There was nothing in my shot.” Was there? I hadn’t even looked at mine or Holly’s after we noticed Missy’s shot. What if he had put it in all of our drinks? We left them on the bar when Holly went to the bathroom and I took Slade’s phone call.
He shakes his head slowly. “The first time I met you.” He takes in a deep breath and looks up at me. “That night I was your bartender.”
I remember trying to walk to our hotel room. How awful I felt when I woke up in the middle of the night. That next morning. “You son of a bitch,” I say between my teeth.
He lets out a small laugh. “I did Slade a favor. I’m sure that was the best night he has ever had with your uptight ass.”
“Slade is going to kick your ass,” Missy says, taking a step toward him as he continues to sit on his knees. Holly grabs her shoulders and pulls her back then chimes in, “Speaking of Slade.” She then produces her phone from her back pocket.
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