She wasn’t sure what the point was in staying in this town now that she knew Corin was dead, but she figured she might as well do as she had planned today. Go to the bar and see if they were hiring, put in a few other applications elsewhere, go to the grocery store. She put the cigarette into the can and with a sigh, got up and retrieved her phone.
It was a simple phone. She had chosen it because it looked sturdier than the more expensive models. There was no damage, and she put it back together and turned it back on. It turned on as normal. She shoved it into her purse, grabbing her keys, thinking that she should probably stop at a used furniture or thrift store as well.
When she went outside, she saw Carson leaning against the picnic table in the parking lot, talking to a tall guy with shoulder length dark hair. She hurried down the stairs trying to avoid them, but Carson looked up and saw her.
“Ami.” He gave her a huge grin.
“Hi,” she said, trying not to sound enthusiastic. Carson’s friend was eyeing her with interest.
She met his eyes, which were a beautiful shade of hazel and then looked away. She thought he was really good looking, but she had a feeling that he knew it.
“This is my friend Nick. Nick this is my new neighbor, Ami.”
Nick nodded at her. “Nice to meet you.”
“You, too.”
“How do you like your apartment?”
“It’s fine. Is there a furniture store or a thrift store that might have some cheap furniture around here?”
“There’s a thrift store up about five blocks. It’s right across from the grocery store.” Carson said.
Ami tried to ignore the fact that his eyes kept drifting to her chest. “Thanks.”
“No problem. “I’ll see you around then?”
“Sure.”
Ami hoped that it wouldn’t be too often as she walked away. She had a feeling they were both checking out her ass.
Once she reached her car, she pushed the button to unlock it and got behind the wheel.
Following Glendene’s directions, she found the bar easily and pulled up outside only a few minutes later.
Once she’d checked her wallet to make sure that her social security card was still inside, she pulled out the only picture she'd ever kept in her wallet. It was an old picture. She'd only been two when it was taken and it was hard to believe sometimes that she'd ever been that young. They all looked so happy, she standing in front of her parents in her favorite yellow dress. Who would have thought that they’d no longer be a family less than a year later she thought? She hadn’t found out that her mother had been screwing around with Bruce since a year into her marriage with Charles until much later. She’d known that her father had never stopped loving her mother.
She sighed, shoving the picture back into her wallet, trying to stop the tears that were threatening to fill her eyes.
She took a deep breath and exited her car, locking the door behind her.
Chapter 3
She took another deep breath and let it out as she opened the door, breathing in the scents of stale beer and popcorn.
There was a good looking guy behind the bar with dark hair and pretty brown eyes, flirting with a short, blonde girl with buck teeth and a more than ample chest. Ami wondered briefly how the girl kept her balance with such big breasts, but immediately chastised herself for the thought.
She had to clear her throat when he finally took a breath, his eyes still on the woman's chest.
He finally turned to look at her and said with a smile that she figured had probably gotten many women into bed. “What can I get you?”
"An application please."
The blonde got bored and walked away. He sighed. “I don't know if the boss is still hiring. Let me see if he’s here."
"He's right here," a deep voice said. The man that the voice belonged to was tall. The arms that stuck out from his t-shirt were defined, and he had a black band tattooed around both of his biceps. Ami thought that he looked like a bad boy with wavy blonde hair that reached his shoulders and a pair of blue eyes that looked like they could stare right through you.
"I'm Gabe," he said reaching out a hand to her.
"Ami.” The way that he was looking at her was making her uncomfortable. It only got worse when she noticed the wedding ring on his finger.
"You're looking for work?"
“Yes." She felt tongue-tied. She was used to men looking at her, but she thought that this guy had something on most men. He wasn't ashamed of it. Wedding ring or not, he never looked away from her.
"Have you ever worked in a bar before?"
“I did. It was only for a few weeks, though. They got shut down. Um, I do have quite a bit of experience with a cash register and I’ve worked as a waitress."
"Well, that puts you ahead of most of the people that already work here.” He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. He was studying her, and she had a feeling it had to do with a hell of a lot more than the job.
She gave him what felt like an artificial smile back.
"It would be part time at first. We have two people that will probably be leaving shortly, so if you wanted to move up to full time then, you’d be more than welcome to."
Was he hiring her or did he have something else entirely in mind for her in his office she wondered? She suddenly wanted to run away from Gabe’s Place and never look back.
But she nodded and followed him back to a corridor that had restrooms on one end and a door marked "Boss Man" on the other.
He saw her looking at the sign and said "An ex employee. Everyone seems to get a kick out of it, so I left it up."
She followed him inside and felt her heart skip a beat when he shut the door behind them.
Why was she being so paranoid she wondered? It wasn’t like every guy in the world was like Corin. She just hadn’t let any of them get close enough to know for sure.
He rummaged around in a desk drawer and pulled out a single paged application, handing it across the desk to her. His desk was very neat, only an open laptop and two pictures sitting on it. One was of a gorgeous woman with red hair, multiple tattoos and a pair of very green eyes and the other was of two children. Both of the children had dark hair, the handsome boy who looked eleven or twelve having hazel eyes, and the little girl who Ami figured was seven or eight, having her mother's eyes.
Ami felt a momentary pang looking at the little girl, since she looked about Charlie’s age.
She filled out the application quickly, feeling his eyes on her the whole time. When she handed it back to him, she was sure that he let his hand linger on hers a bit too long on purpose.
"Right now it's going to be Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday, four to close. We close at Midnight Monday-Thursday and one am on Friday and Saturday, closed Sundays. You'll be working with Rick on Tuesday and Wednesday and Candy on Saturday. You are willing to start tomorrow correct?"
"Yes."
"Great." He gave her a warm smile. That time it did reach his eyes. "Welcome to the team Ami."
"Thank you.” She tried to hold his gaze, but it didn't work for long. She hoped he didn't hang around very much or she was not going to last long at this job Ami thought.
"We'll start you out at $11 an hour with a raise possible every six months. And you’ll have your tips of course. Does that sound fair?"
It sounded more than fair to Ami since she'd been expecting minimum wage. "Yes, thank you.”
“We will see you tomorrow then. Come around three thirty if you don’t mind.”
"Sure.”
She’d need to come early Ami thought. She was more than a little rusty at making drinks.
Gabe reached out to take her hand again. Again, she got the uncomfortable feeling that he held it extra-long on purpose. Maybe her mother was right, she thought. Maybe she should go get Charlie and stay with Desiree and Bruce. Then she thought no, she really wasn’t a fan of her stepdad and there was no way she was going to prove her mother right; that she reall
y was a screw-up, by running home.
"Have a good night Ami. You're welcome to have a drink on the house if you'd like."
"No thank you. I don't drink much."
"Good.” She’d started to get up when he said "Ami, one last thing?"
"Yes?"
"Do you have a boyfriend?"
She figured that with the way he was still looking at her, it would be safer to tell him what she planned to tell Carson when he got around to asking. "I do."
Gabe nodded. "I realize it may sound like a strange question, but we've had some trouble with women that worked here before. Giving their boyfriends free drinks and such."
She didn't think that was the only reason that he'd asked, but thought it was much better to let it go.
"I wouldn’t do that."
"Of course not. You take care Ami. If you have any trouble while you're at work or anywhere else feel free to call me. Anytime. I make sure that I take good care of my employees."
She was beginning to wonder just how well he took care of them. Her eyes strayed back to the pictures on his desk. "Thank you. You have a beautiful family."
"Thank you. My wife is expecting our third child."
"Congratulations."
"Thank you. Goodbye Ami."
"Bye Gabe."
His eyes followed her all the way out of the office and down the hallway.
Eric grinned at her when she came out. "You got the job huh?"
"Yeah."
"Awesome, it'll be nice working with you. I'm Eric."
"Ami.”
"Nice to meet you Ami. When you starting?"
"Tomorrow."
"You'll be working with Rick then. Don't let his size fool you; he's nothing but a big teddy bear."
She was interested to know how big he really was. "How tall is he?"
Eric laughed. "He's 6'7, and almost three hundred pounds. All muscle too."
"Wow.”
"Yep, you'd never believe he's going to school to be a nurse by looking at him. You'd never think Candy's his girl unless you saw them together either, though."
"Why not?"
Eric laughed again. "Candy's as small as Rick is big. She's only about 5'2, a hundred pounds or so."
"That is quite a difference isn't it?"
"Yeah. Well, I guess I'd better get back to work. See you tomorrow." His eyes were straying back to the blonde who was talking to a tall man with red hair at the other end of the bar.
"Bye Eric. See you tomorrow."
When she was back in her car, she breathed a sigh of relief. What was it with men she thought? She was wearing slacks and a short sleeved top. It's not like she was wearing a mini skirt and hooker boots. Why did men have to keep molesting her with their eyes?
She sighed as she started the car, wondering whether she should be grateful that she had a part time job that would pay as much as a full time minimum wage job, if not more with tips, or completely disgusted because she had a feeling neither her neighbor or her boss were going to be too put off by the fact that she had a boyfriend. Not that her boyfriend was real of course, but neither of them needed to know that Ami thought.
What was with Gabe anyway she wondered? He had a beautiful wife, two adorable children and another on the way. Married men were definitely off limits. Well, she thought to herself, all men are off limits to me, but especially the married ones.
She spent most of the rest of the afternoon shopping. First she bought a bed, a kitchen table, and a coffee table at the thrift store. She’d almost bought a small desk for her laptop, but figured she didn’t have room. The furniture was set to be delivered the next morning. Then she went to the grocery store.
Once back at the apartment, she wanted to laugh when she saw Carson and Nick still sitting at the picnic table. Nick looked even better than she remembered him looking. She wondered what he smelled like, then wanted to smack herself in the head.
She got out of the car warily, wondering if she could make it to the stairs and up to her apartment before the guys, who were involved in what looked like a heated conversation, spotted her. But Carson looked up before she was halfway to the stairs and gave her a wide smile.
"Ami. Nice to see you again."
"You too, Carson.”
Nick was looking at her with interest again. His eyes really were beautiful Ami thought. Then she had a brief unwanted thought that they could be described as bedroom eyes and wondered what was wrong with her.
"I thought it would be nice if we welcomed you to the building with a night out on the town Ami."
"I think I'll pass Carson." She wouldn’t look at Nick.
"Sorry, Ami," Nick said. "My friend here frequently forgets his manners." He ignored the dirty look Carson gave him and continued "What Carson meant to say is we would like it if you would accompany us on a perfectly harmless night at the bowling alley. And don't worry; you won't be the only female in the party."
"Bro, I don't think this Alicia chick counts as a female. You said she was knocked up."
Ami wanted to groan. The way she looked at it, a woman would be that much more a female if she was pregnant, but figured Carson must have been under the impression that it meant he wouldn’t get laid.
Nick shook his head, leaning against the picnic table and lighting a cigarette. Ami wished he hadn't because his shirt rode up, giving her a peek at his well-toned abdomen. "You are going to be nice to her Carson. She's a very nice girl and she's been having a hard time because of her prick of an ex."
"Why don't you take her then?" Carson mumbled.
Nick laughed. "No one said anything about anybody ‘taking’ anyone. We all need a break. It's just friends hanging out."
Carson sighed. "Whatever man. You want to stick me with the fat chick so you can hook up with Ami."
Ami raised an eyebrow. "Ami is standing right here." She tore her eyes away from Nick. “I have a boyfriend.”
"Oh.”
Ami wasn’t sure who looked more disappointed, Carson or Nick.
Nick said “If you don't feel comfortable hanging out with us tonight, I understand."
Ami changed her mind suddenly. What would it hurt she thought? "I'll go. What time are you guys leaving?"
Nick looked at his watch. "Probably about six. They actually have a pretty good buffet at the alley. It's just nachos, hot dogs and stuff but it's free so that makes it even better."
He gave her a grin that kept her fighting to not feel weak in the knees. "Sure.”
"They're hiring too, if you're looking for a job."
"I actually start work tomorrow. But thank you."
"Wow, you work quickly. Where?"
"Gabe's Place."
Nick groaned. "You're kidding me."
She felt a stab of panic. "No. Why?"
"Carson you did not send her to that place did you?"
Carson looked up. "No."
"What's wrong with Gabe's?”
"Nothing exactly," Nick said. "Unless you count the fact that Eric, the daytime bartender is a pussy hound and Gabe has been known to take 90% of his female bartenders to bed. No wait, I take that back. I think it's been all of them except Candy and that's only because Rick would kick the shit out of him if he tried."
"Shit.” She'd had a feeling, but she was hoping that she was wrong, praying really.
"Just watch your back Ami.” Nick said.
"Yeah.”
"If Gabe gives you any trouble let me know. I've wanted to take that conceited fuck out for a long time," Nick said. There was fire in his voice.
"I'll be fine.”
Nick nodded, not looking completely convinced. "We taking my car Carson?"
"Yeah. If I have to hang out with a hot chick that has a boyfriend and a pregnant chick all night, I'm getting trashed."
"If you are rude to either woman Carson, I swear I will never let you borrow my place when I'm out of town again."
"It ain't my fault my place sucks and yours doesn’t.”
"My rent
is a lot more expensive than yours. You sure you don't want to move in with me Carson?"
"Hell no," Carson said. "I'd never get laid with you around."
Ami stifled a laugh. Nick gave her a lazy grin, showing off a gorgeous pair of dimples and straight white teeth. "You don't mind riding with us do you Ami?"
"No." She felt like kicking herself again when the thought that she wouldn’t mind much when Nick was around popped into her head. What was wrong with her she thought? Just because Corin was dead, it didn’t mean she could safely jump into bed with the first hot guy she met. She had a son to worry about.
"We're not picking up the pregnant chick are we?" Carson said.
"She lives right down the road. She's meeting us there."
"Good. I don't want to be stuck in the backseat with a fat chick while you get to sit up front with Ami."
"Shut the fuck up Carson," Nick said, giving him a tight smile. "We'll see you around six then Ami? If my moronic friend hasn't convinced you otherwise."
She smiled at him, wondering what might have happened if she hadn’t told them she had a boyfriend and wanting to kick herself again. "I'll see you at six."
As she walked towards the stairs she heard Carson say "I'd like to see a lot more of that one."
Then she heard him say "Ow. Nick you're a fucking asshole."
She stifled a laugh as she walked up the stairs, and then frowned to herself. There was no way she was going to let herself feel what she had a feeling it would be all too easy to feel for Nick.
She glanced at the clock. It was almost five o'clock. She lit a cigarette and sat back on the couch. Wondering if it wouldn’t be a much better idea to stay home, she pulled out her laptop and booted it up. She tried not to think of Nick while she waited, but it wasn’t working. He was too damned good looking.
She signed onto her internet connection, and checked her email. There was a long drawn out letter from her mother. By the time she had sent back a reply that she hoped didn’t sound too cold, she glanced at the clock and saw it was 5:45.
She jumped up from the chair, used the restroom and changed into jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt.
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