Seeing Her

by Maria Jackson

  SEEING HER

  by Maria Jackson

  SEEING HER

  Published by Maria Jackson

  Copyright © 2017 Maria Jackson

  All Rights Reserved

  May not be copied or distributed without prior written permission.

  Cover photo: © Deposit Photo

  This book has been adapted with permission from a previously published book by A.R. Steele.

  ONE

  Some girls enjoy wearing skimpy clothes and lots of makeup. Chloe wasn’t one of those girls. Other things she disliked included smiling for no reason, flirting with strangers, and speaking in general.

  Now that the night was finally over, she was relieved to pull off the tied-off tank top and slide her well-worn polo shirt over her head. Staring into the inside of her locker, she rubbed a makeup remover wipe over her face, then smoothed her pixie-cut brown hair into a ponytail.

  The way the locker door blocked her partially from the others’ view did little to calm her heartbeat, which increased every time she was around this group of girls. They were all so beautiful, confident, and outgoing.

  They wore the exact same uniform that Chloe did, with the tiny tops and the barely-there booty shorts. Someone else could’ve mistaken her for one of them. But they were completely different from her.

  “What did Tony want to talk to you about just now, Paula?”

  Kylie was the one who had spoken – Chloe recognized her by the subtle self-assurance in her voice. By this point, Chloe could recognize all of the waitresses by voice alone. She spent a lot of time standing in this corner, avoiding the others’ gazes as she listened to the conversations around her.

  “It was about the back room,” Paula said. “He has some plans for it.”

  Eavesdropping was never Chloe’s intention, but it was hard to avoid overhearing what people were saying. At least she wasn’t the only one listening to the other two this time.

  “What plans?”

  The husky voice meant it was Jennie. Chloe shivered. That girl had to be the most intimidating person here. She was red-haired and tattooed, with a motorcycle and a bad attitude. Chloe doubted they’d even spoken once in the six months she’d been here. On nights when she felt daring enough, she soaked up Jennie’s steely eyes and toned body. In return, Jennie always glanced right past her.

  “He’s going to remodel it,” Paula said.

  Now she had everyone’s attention. Nothing at Jubblies had been remodeled since Chloe had started working there six months ago. Actually, judging by the looks of things, nothing had been remodeled since the restaurant had opened.

  The back room was only used for large groups and parties. If the manager wanted to spend money on improving the restaurant, Chloe could think of several projects she would’ve chosen to tackle instead of this.

  She kept her face mostly hidden as Chloe peeked out from behind the locker door. The women who surrounded her were scarier than spiders, snakes, and plane crashes put together. They were gorgeous and charismatic and completely unattainable. When they were all in a group like this, it was a million times worse.

  Paula was the only one Chloe could be herself around. They’d been neighbors since Chloe was a little girl. Through childish friendliness, she’d convinced Chloe to open up. Somehow they’d stayed in touch all these years. Chloe had gotten this job through Paula, which made her technically part of this group. But only technically.

  “Why would Tony remodel the back room?” Kylie asked.

  “To make it really nice,” Paula said. “He showed me a picture of what it’s going to look like after the remodeling. Picture this. One long wooden table, big enough to seat twenty people. Brand-new chairs, gleaming with polish. A huge bay window overlooking the highway. Modern art on every wall.” She gestured, drawing them an imaginary picture.

  Chloe frowned, sliding her glasses onto her nose. If she and Paula had been alone, she would have asked what the point was. They were close enough that she could talk freely with Paula. In a group like this, her heart started pounding as soon as she even thought about speaking up.

  Luckily, Kylie had the same question. “Why is Tony doing this?”

  “He thinks it’ll bring in more customers. He wants this place to be more of a party spot. If he can get big groups in the front door, then they’ll be more likely to spend. And spend a lot.”

  “I don’t know if an improved party room is the number one thing customers want at a place like this,” Kylie mumbled. “They’d probably prefer for all the staff to get boob and ass implants instead.”

  “This idea’s pretty stupid,” Jennie put in, her voice a sudden harshness intruding into the light atmosphere. The auburn-haired waitress tended to have that effect on people. “The customers won’t care either way. Tony’s wasting his money.”

  Chloe agreed – but since no one had asked for her opinion, she kept it to herself. Better to say too little than too much.

  “It won’t be done for another few weeks, anyway,” Paula said.

  “Good,” Jennie grumbled. “With any luck, I’ll be out of here by then.”

  She was always talking about how much she hated this place. Chloe wished she would just leave if that was the case. Maybe then she’d be a little less nervous. Chloe was uncomfortable around these girls in general, but when Jennie walked into the room, the tension always rose to a whole new level.

  “Well, I’m heading out,” Paula said. “Night, girls. Night, Chloe.”

  Chloe nodded good night to her. Paula often made an effort to include her, which was nice. If she also forgot a lot of the time, that was okay. Chloe tried not to let those occasions get to her. Paula had her own stuff going on, and she did so much for everyone. It was understandable that helping her socially stunted neighbor would be low on her list of priorities. Any efforts to bring Chloe into the group were bound to be futile anyway.

  “I’m heading out too,” Alyssa said, making her way to the door.

  Trying not to look at the two girls left in the room, Chloe laced up her shoes. Kylie was nearly as daunting as Jennie with her leather jacket and couldn’t-care-less attitude. With any luck, neither of them would notice Chloe.

  Everything was fine as they finished changing… but Chloe had to walk behind them as they headed out to the parking lot.

  “I can’t wait for our work week to be over,” Kylie groused. “I need to get so high to get over this amount of work.”

  “Oh?” Jennie said. “You need a hookup? I’m holding.”

  Chloe tried not to listen, but she had to pass by them on her way to the bus stop. She glanced over as she caught up to them. Jennie was still in her Jubblies tank top, which scooped low over her chest. She stood with one hand on her motorcycle, leaning casually on it as she talked to Kylie.

  “I’m good for now,” Kylie told her. “I’ll let you know if I need anything later.”

  “Sounds good. You know I’ve always got whatever you need.”

  The two traded a few more words, and then Kylie got into her car and left for the night.

  Chloe tried to sneak past Jennie, but it was impossible to get away without being seen. The girl’s eyes landed on her, and Jennie sneered. “What are you listening for?”

  Shocked, Chloe took a step back. She couldn’t remember a time when Jennie had addressed her directly before. She tried to remember if they had even shaken hands when Chloe had first started working at Jubblies. More likely, Jennie had scowled at her much in the way she was doing now.

  “I wasn’t listening,” she said.

  Her voice tended to be soft, and Jennie didn’t hear her. She forced herself to speak louder. It was never easy to talk to the customers inside the restaurant. With the pounding music and her quiet voice, it felt like she w
as yelling all night. She was less afraid of those people, though. She knew exactly what they expected of her, and she could make an attempt to deliver it. This was completely different.

  Jennie laughed at her. “Oh, no? I saw you staring. What, you want to buy some weed?”

  Despite her dry throat, Chloe’s back straightened. She was no innocent, and she didn’t appreciate being treated like one. “Maybe I do.”

  “Is that so?” Jennie asked, her eyebrow rising. “I’ll sell you some.”

  Despite how little they had interacted, Chloe had seen enough of Jennie to have a bad impression of her. She seemed mean, or maybe bitter. She wasn’t carefree and fun-loving, like most of the other waitresses.

  Jennie never attempted to joke around with the others. When she spoke, it was generally to complain. Chloe had the sense that Jennie felt she was too good for this place – unlike her, who was grateful to even be here.

  “Yeah, I do want some,” she said, her voice louder. She was annoyed with the assumption that she wouldn’t want to smoke. People had all sorts of ideas about her because she was quiet. They thought she was a prude, or stuck up, or naïve. Wrong, wrong, and wrong!

  The amusement was visible on Jennie’s face. Chloe wanted to smack it off her – not that she would ever do such a thing. “How much?” Jennie asked.

  How was that stuff even measured? Chloe had no idea. Now that she thought about it, did she even want the drug? She had heard enough bad things about pot to make it seem unappealing.

  “Give me ten bucks’ worth.”

  She had to repeat herself again, which made Jennie look smug. It was as if the girl could see through her and knew why she was doing this. She had just shown Jennie that she didn’t have the slightest idea how weed was bought or sold.

  “I can’t do that small of an amount,” Jennie said. “The smallest I can do is an eighth.”

  Chloe nodded as if she knew what an eighth was. “How much is that?”

  “Fifty.”

  Fifty? That was most of the money Chloe had made that night. She pursed her lips as she dug her wallet out of her pocket and counted out a wad of tips. Her pride wouldn’t let her back out.

  She tamped down her resentment as she passed the money into Jennie’s hand. Who knew? It might be fun. Maybe she’d smoke it alone with her cat. Bjorn never judged her no matter what she did.

  As she gave Jennie the money, it occurred to her again how good-looking the woman was. She certainly saw what all the customers liked about her. Despite Jennie’s bad attitude, her face was absolutely perfect. Her red lipstick gave her a sexy punk-rock edge.

  Chloe’s eyes slid along Jennie’s body. Her arms were nicely defined, with elaborate sleeve tattoos accentuating the slim muscles. Chloe knew from the outfits they wore in the restaurant that her waist and abs were just as well shaped. Chloe was also quite familiar with the contours of Jennie’s thighs, her calves, and the sculpted curve of her ass.

  Jennie didn’t move for a second after pocketing her money, and Chloe feared she would take it and go. Maybe Jennie was planning to take her for a ride. She probably knew Chloe wouldn’t protest the unfairness. She’d keep as quiet as always even if she did get ripped off.

  At last Jennie reached back into her pocket and pulled out a small baggie. Jennie’s eyes rested on Chloe as she reached out to take it. The drugs only took up a fraction of the plastic bag. Her expression had to show her disappointment. Fifty bucks for this?

  While Chloe was ready to walk away, Jennie wasn’t done with her yet. “How exactly are you going to smoke this?” she asked.

  Chloe was rapidly losing interest in getting high. At the moment, all she wanted was to get away from Jennie. This girl was too attractive to keep a clear mind around, and now she seemed to be playing mind games with Chloe. That made it impossible to know what to say. Chloe preferred by far how Jennie had ignored her before.

  “I’ll roll a joint,” she said with attempted bravado.

  Jennie almost laughed. “You have rolling papers?”

  “Well, I’ll use a… a bong.”

  “You’ve got a bong?” Jennie was definitely laughing at Chloe now.

  Chloe’s body tensed in reaction. She was perfectly capable of owning a bong. Even if she didn’t, how would Jennie know? “What do you care?”

  “You don’t,” Jennie said. “I can see it on your face. Why do you want to pretend that you do?”

  Called out, Chloe didn’t have an answer. She shrank back. All she wanted was to walk away, but Jennie would have seen her waiting at the bus stop. At this hour, the bus only came every thirty minutes.

  “It’s okay,” Jennie said, her lips curling up again. Chloe couldn’t have said if they were in a sneer or a smile. “I can smoke you up.”

  The cool breeze of the summer evening whipped over Chloe, and she shivered slightly. “What does that mean?”

  Jennie moved her hand, making her motorcycle rattle. “We can smoke it together.”

  TWO

  Jennie peered intently at Chloe’s face as she waited for her answer, taking in the deep brown eyes and angular cheekbones. She’d never spent this much time looking at the girl before. Chloe generally stayed as far out of the spotlight as possible. Even when she was working, she seemed to shrink away from attention.

  Obviously Chloe was capable of doing all the socializing required of her job. She was a hostess, which meant she didn’t interact much with the waitresses. Jennie had no clue what she said to the people who came into the restaurant. She definitely avoided her coworkers as much as possible.

  Jennie knew that Chloe was a lesbian, like many of the other staff at Jubblies. In general, Jennie was too focused on her work to look around and check out her coworkers. The idea of pursuing Chloe hadn’t occurred to her.

  Now Jennie questioned why she’d ever overlooked the possibility. The weirdness factor was a major one, but Chloe was more than attractive enough to make up for it. Her pixie-cut brown hair encircled a face that exuded both innocence and seduction. Jennie knew by now that Chloe had a killer body. Chloe had glasses on, which she didn’t wear in the restaurant. Somehow they only added to her appeal.

  They weren’t friends, had probably never even spoken… but now they were speaking. For some unknown reason, Chloe had decided to buy drugs from her. It was enough to make Jennie see her in a new way. A twinge went through her body as she looked at her.

  “What do you say?” Jennie asked. “Do you want to smoke with me?”

  The terror was evident in Chloe’s eyes. Jennie would have assumed Chloe hated her if she hadn’t already figured out she acted like this with all the girls.

  “I don’t know,” Chloe said.

  “Why not? You have something better to do? It’s almost eleven at night.”

  Jennie knew she was pushing, but she definitely wanted Chloe to stay. She was intrigued now, and she’d be disappointed if Chloe let her go home alone.

  “Yeah, it’s almost eleven at night,” Chloe said. “Sleep would be something better to do.”

  The mild burst of sarcasm caught Jennie off-guard and made her smile. She hadn’t quite expected that from Chloe. Then again, she hadn’t expected any part of this conversation. This girl had some spunk. She couldn’t have said why she’d stopped to talk to Chloe in the first place, but she was glad she had.

  Chloe had always seemed innocent, maybe even prissy. Since Chloe had been there for a while without opening up to anyone, Jennie and the other girls had accepted her as a silent presence in their midst. She didn’t bother them, and they let her be.

  Jennie remembered one time when the girls had talked about Chloe, and they’d all agreed that she was weird. Jennie had stayed out of the conversation. In general, she kept her part in the group discussions to a minimum. It was better to not get involved. She planned to leave the restaurant as soon as possible. She had no need to make friends there.

  Sure, she smoked with Kylie pretty often, and they chatted about this and that. J
ennie might have considered her a friend if they’d met in another environment. Here, it was every woman for herself.

  Putting her hand on her motorcycle seat again, she rattled it once more. “Let’s go.”

  Chloe’s eyes were still wide, but she nodded slightly as she looked at the motorcycle. “Where would we go? Not saying that we’re going to go.”

  Jennie leaned in to hear her. The extra effort was quickly becoming natural. Plus, standing this close allowed her to inhale the fresh scent of Chloe’s shampoo.

  Jennie rubbed her hand over her pocket, conscious of the bills in it. If Chloe was the kind of girl to buy weed, Jennie could have been wrong about all kinds of things about her. She should’ve gotten to know her earlier. She could’ve had another customer… or maybe more.

  Fear was evident on Chloe’s face. This was probably new for her. Although Jennie considered offering her the chance to back out, she decided against it. Chloe had made it clear that she didn’t like to be coddled.

  “We can go to your place,” Jennie said.

  “I live with my parents.” Chloe shook her head anxiously. “I can’t bring anyone over, especially not at this hour.”

  With her parents? Chloe had to be close to Jennie’s age, which was twenty-four. It was unusual for a girl in their age range to live at home. Given Chloe’s quirks, Jennie supposed it made sense.

  Jennie wondered if her parents were aware of her job, and if so, what they thought of it. And whether Chloe talked more at home than she did in the change room. Now that she was paying attention to Chloe, she had all sorts of questions about her. She kind of wished she could see where the girl lived.

  “We can go to mine,” she offered. “We’ll have to be quiet, that’s all. My roommates will be sleeping.”

  Chloe hesitated, and Jennie guessed she might back out after all. She couldn’t blame Chloe if she did. Chloe barely knew her, it was late at night, and they were going to smoke a drug that Chloe had little to no experience with.

  After a second, though, Chloe nodded.

  The parking lot was empty. Jennie assumed she’d been planning to walk or take the bus. “I’ll take you on my bike,” she said. She climbed on, then gestured to Chloe. “Come on, you can ride behind me.”