Here's to Tomorrow

by Teagan Hunter

  “If you’re done reminiscing with these two douchebags and want to get to know a real man, I’d be more than happy to help.” That was one of the two guys I didn’t know. “I’m Tanner, Tucker’s older and sexier brother.” He waggles his eyebrows at me and I have to fight hard not to laugh.

  I’m guessing by the huge grin on his face, a smile slipped through. Great. Dude probably thinks I’m interested and I’m so not. He’s definitely more Maura’s type than mine with his buzzcut hair and big build. I check him over quickly because I know she’s going to be asking about him. I spy a chain around his neck. Dog tags, maybe? Probably. He looks military.

  “Hi,” I reply simply. “Did you want to take advantage of our Monday wing special tonight?” As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I regret them. I have a feeling he’s going to make some smartass comment.

  He chuckles. “Oh, sweetheart, there’s a lot I’d like to take advantage of tonight. Cheap wings, cheap beer, and some sexy-as-sin willing waitresses. Know any?”

  Called that shit.

  “I’m sure there are few floating around here somewhere.”

  “I’m sure there are.” He eyes me like I’m one of them. Yeah, no. Big no.

  Ignoring anything else that comes out of his mouth, because I’m starting to find this guy annoying, I turn to the other guy, the overly quiet one. “Were you ready to order?”

  “Um, yeah, can I get twenty bold traditional wings, please?”

  “Sure thing. Tucker, were you ready?”

  “Yeah, I’ll take the same as Hudson, please.”

  “I’ll do thirty super-hot traditional wings,” Tanner pops in, doing a good once-over, apparently liking what he sees because he gives me another creepy smile.

  I nod. “Alright, boys, I’ll be back in a bit with your food. Flag me down if you need anything in the meantime.” I’m not entirely sure, but I think I hear Tanner say something about needing me all the time as I walk away. Asshat.

  As soon as I walk through the doors to the back, I’m verbally attacked by Maura.

  “Holy shit! That one on the outside is so hot! Who is he? Is he single? Can I have him? Oh, how’d it go with Henry?”

  Now I know she’s just being a brat about his name. “It was okay, I guess. He acted like he didn’t know me, but then Tucker, the one next to the guy you’re drooling over, spouted off all kinds of info about me and Hudson didn’t seem to like the fact that he knew all that.”

  “Well it seems like he was trying to play it cool, something you should have done. I watched you the entire time and I could see you sweating and shaking from here. So I guess it wasn’t too bad of a start. Now, what about the hot guy?” She’s bouncing up and down by the end of her question.

  “His name is Tanner, he’s Tucker’s older brother, and I’m pretty positive he’s a soldier.”

  She claps her hands together and bounces even more. “Ohhh. I like soldiers!”

  I find it funny that she’s getting all worked up. Mainly because Maura just started coming out of her shell last year and now she’s boy crazy and it’s fairly amusing.

  “Settle your ovaries, woman. He seems like a player, so maybe this one isn’t a good guy to get invested in? Plus, like I said, he’s probably a soldier and soldiers leave a lot, so there’s a good chance he won’t be around long.”

  “Perfect. I’m not looking for anything serious anyway. That dillhole Aaron screwed me over and I’m still trying to recover from that. We can just have some fun in the meantime. Okay?”

  I’m reluctant to agree, but I find myself doing so anyway. “Okay.” Then she’s gone.

  As much as I love my best friend, she’s exhausting. She’s always been kind of quiet in public and loud around friends and my family. At least until last year. Something lit a spark under her ass because she’s been on the go nonstop since. She’s actually been dating—something she didn’t do until last year either—so if she wants a little fling, good for her.

  Now if I could find me a man, I’d be set. I’ve been single…forever. Alright, it’s only been six months, but I think I’m ready. Not for anything super serious, but something steady would be nice. Hudson just might be the type of guy for it. At least I hope he is cause I’d really, really like to get to know him. If I’m reading him right—which I’m hoping I am—he agrees with me.

  I don’t want to get ahead of myself, so I won’t be counting my chickens or ducks or whatever the hell it is people count.

  Maura, on the other hand, seems to be just fine in doing so. She’s currently chatting it up with Tanner, not paying any attention to the other guys at the table. I have to laugh because Tucker keeps glancing over at his brother and rolling his eyes. Not sure what’s going on there, but it doesn’t seem like he’s a big fan of Maura’s choice in guys.

  I’m gliding around the bar, refilling drinks and delivering food, when I feel his eyes on me again. Not sure how I know it’s him, but I do. It just feels…different.

  The hairs on my neck stand up and a chill runs down my spine. His gaze makes me feel…alive. I casually scan my area from behind the bar, stopping on his intense green eyes for only a few seconds. And damn are they intense. I’ve never been able to actually feel someone’s stare before, but his—I feel it everywhere. Every single fiber of my being feels Hudson’s gaze. Every single fiber of my being loves it, wants it, craves it.

  Chill, Rae. You don’t really know the guy; you just think you do.

  I close my eyes briefly to try to collect myself. When I open them again, he’s standing directly in front of me, causing me to jump slightly.

  “Hi,” he says with a small frown. He shifts on his feet. Two seconds go by. “Um.” Four seconds go by. “Well, uh…” Two more seconds. Apparently he’s nervous. “Um…bathroom?”

  Is he serious? I raise my eyebrows, silently hook my thumb in the direction of the bathroom, and watch as he practically runs away.

  And I thought I was weird.

  Hudson

  Goddammit! Bathroom? Really? That’s all you got, Hudson? You’re a fucking tool.

  I cannot believe I just fucking did that! I’m such an idiot. Can’t even form a full sentence. How in the hell am I going to be able to face her now? I’m sure she thinks I’m a complete dumbass. Wonderful.

  I stand in the bathroom, just staring into the mirror, trying to get myself under some semblance of control. I glare hard at my reflection, trying to burn her image, her laugh, and her presence out of my head. Because she shouldn’t be in there. She can’t be. I have Joey to take care of and think of first. If I keep telling myself she can’t be in my head and that my obligations to Joey come first, then maybe I’ll believe it.

  She probably just likes staring into my eyes. Not to be conceited or anything, but it’s something I’ve been told since I was little—that my eyes are amazing. It’s always everyone’s favorite feature of mine. They’ve gotten me in and out of trouble a lot over the past several years.

  That’s right, Hudson. Focus on anything but the important shit. Dumbass. Focus. You’ve got this. It’s just a girl. Yes, a hot girl, but just a girl.

  I shake my head, take a deep breath, and head back out there.

  “You good?” I hear.

  I turn toward the voice. Rae’s standing at the end of the bar closest to the bathroom. Was she waiting for me?

  “I’ll survive.”

  “You sure? You seemed a little…tongue-tied.” She gives a small shrug. Her lips twitch slightly, totally giving away whatever bullshit she’s about to spout. “But then again I’ve been known to leave men tongue-tied from time to time. It’s a gift,” she teases.

  “Wow. Someone is totally full of themselves.”

  “Or just honest.”

  I laugh. “Fair enough.”

  We stand there in silence for a few seconds.

  I take a step closer to her as someone passes by on the way to the bathroom. I’m probably closer than I need to be but she doesn’t back up so neither
do I.

  “You having a good night so far, Rae?”

  “Ya know, it didn’t start out too hot. I have this coworker that kind of hates me and was mad that I took her table. But it seems my luck has turned around. While she was off pouting or hitting on some poor unsuspecting customer, I snagged the best table in the joint.” Her eyes sparkle as she says this.

  “Did you now?” I ask. “What table would that be?”

  She steps up closer to me and motions for me to lean down next to her. She leans in close, her breasts brushing up against my arm. She smells incredible. Very clean and fresh. Almost like…rain. But the good-smelling kind, like when it rains when the sun is out.

  I can feel her hot breath over my ear as she whispers. “You see that table?”

  “There are a lot of tables, Rae. You gotta be a little more specific,” I say, shaking my head no.

  I line my sight up with the finger she’s now pointing, following as she scans the crowd slowly. Very slowly. It’s as if she’s trying to make this last as long as possible. I can’t blame her. Being next to her like this, all up close and personal, feels so damn good. I shift just a little bit closer and catch the hitch in her breathing. I smile smugly.

  “There. That’s the best damn table a girl can ask for.”

  “That’s your favorite table tonight, huh?”

  I feel her nod. “Yep. I’m a lucky gal.”

  She’s pointing at a table full of some dudes that are probably in their sixties.

  “And why is that your favorite?” I push.

  “Because…,” she starts, searching for some sort of answer because she totally just randomly picked that table. I bet it’s not even hers. “Tips! Because tips.”

  She sounds so proud of herself right now.

  “You wanna know my favorite table?” I ask, taking a chance and shifting behind her a little more. “It’s real special.”

  Her head bobs up and down.

  “You see that table?”

  I feel her laugh lightly. “You gotta be a little more specific.”

  Very cute, Rae.

  Reaching down, I place my hand over hers. I raise our arms up a gently and extend her pointer finger. I move our arms, lining them up so she’s pointing directly at my table.

  “There,” I whisper, my lips brushing her ear. Her heart is racing so fast and I can’t help but smile. I feel it too, Rae. Being this close to her is doing things to me that I can’t even begin to explain. Little beads of sweat are starting to form on my hairline and my mouth has gone almost completely dry. “That’s the best damn table a guy can ask for.”

  “Yeah? Why’s that?” she asks, her voice unsteady and thick. I lick my lips and swallow the lump that’s formed in my throat. Fuck. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to get so close to her.

  “Because…,” I tease. “It’s lucky enough to have the best-looking dude in the whole place sitting there tonight. Whoever got the opportunity to wait on him is very blessed.”

  She laughs and steps away from me, turning back to the bar and grabbing her tray of drinks. “You’re right. She’s a lucky gal. Tucker is pretty hot.”

  That fuckin’ mouth.

  “Adorable, Rae. So adorable.”

  She gives me one last grin before she rushes away to drop off her drinks. I watch as she walks away, a grin stretched across my face the entire time.

  I hear a throat being cleared next to me. I look over to find a huge-ass black man shooting daggers at me from behind the bar. He’s scary-looking as shit. He looks over at Rae and then back at me, the look on his face still lethal. On that note, I’m out.

  “Yo, did you fall in or what?” Tanner asks when I get back to the table.

  I ignore him. “You guys wanna come over for a card game, pizza, and beer this weekend?”

  “Joey not gonna be around this weekend?” Tucker asks.

  “Nah. Sleepover at Charlie’s.”

  “Damn. Joey’s fun, man.” I just laugh and shake my head because he’s right. Joey is fun. Probably the best kid ever. Always running around doing and saying some really crazy stuff. I get a good laugh out of it all.

  “Well I guess I’m in then,” Tucker agrees.

  “Yeah, I’ll be there. I don’t have anything going on this weekend for a change so it’ll be nice to relax a bit,” Gaige said.

  “Wait. What day? I kinda agreed to a double date when you were in the bathroom.” I looked at Tucker like he’s on crack. “What? Tanner got that other hot waitress to go out with him on one condition: double date.”

  “With who?” I ask, wondering if it’s Rae. I look around the bar, not seeing her.

  “No idea. He just looked at me and said I’m going. She just skipped away, saying she’ll find someone ‘real sweet’ just for me.” I think I saw him shiver a bit at that.

  I laughed. “You scared?”

  “Maybe a little.”

  Gaige chuckled over that one.

  “What’s the other waitress’ name?”

  “Maura, and she’s fucking edible, man!” Tanner practically yells. I cringe, hating it when he gets crude like that. It’s one thing to talk to a woman like that on an intimate level, but another to bellow it out to your buddies.

  “Anyway, was thinking Saturday. Or was that ‘date night’ for you dorks?”

  “Saturday’s good. We’re going out Friday night,” Tucker says.

  I can almost see the wheels turning in his head as he tries to find a way out of it. Tucker isn’t one for blind dates. Or dates at all. He definitely enjoys the single life. Not in the slutty guy way, and not in the Tanner way; he just prefers to be alone. I mean, dude has itches, and he gets them scratched, but he doesn’t really talk about it or advertise any of it. I completely respect him for it.

  “I see you, man,” I say to him.

  “I see you, too,” he says back.

  We both narrow our eyes at each other and then break out into grins. It’s something we’ve been saying and doing for years. No idea when or how it started, but it’s our way of saying we know what each other is thinking.

  “Aw! Did you girls just have a moment?” Fuckin’ Tanner.

  “Don’t be dick because you’re jealous of our bromance, Tanner,” Tucker tells his brother.

  “Whatever,” Tanner mumbles. I actually think that deep down he is jealous. He and Tucker have a great relationship, but Tucker and I just seem to click in a way they don’t.

  They continue to bicker but I tune them out because I just caught sight of Rae again.

  Right now, I want to kiss whoever came up with the uniforms for this place. They’re simple but sexy—or at least Rae’s is. It’s nothing but a pair of black shorts that somehow make her short legs look a mile long and a tight burnt-orange v-neck that is definitely clinging to her curves in just the right way. I know that most places make you wear those ugly-ass no-slick shoes but that doesn’t seem to be required here because Rae is rocking a pair of blue Chucks. Each time I’ve seen her before she’s had her hair down. Not this time. It’s up in a ponytail now and it looks totally hot on her.

  Her entire look is so simple and understated that she stands out in the best way possible. She looks nothing like the other girls running around who are caked in make-up and have freakishly-long bright fingernails. Rae’s plain. But it’s a good kind of plain.

  She stops at the table full of guys again. I watch as she laughs with them. I have to admit that I’m a little jealous that I’m not sitting over there just so I can hear her more clearly.

  I’ve thought about her laugh a lot over the last two weeks. In some weird sort of way, I’ve missed it. It felt so good to be able to laugh and have fun with her during our little ride. I’m usually surrounded by people that have been in my life since Joey was born, and it’s become a little…bland. Not that I don’t have fun with Tucker and Gaige, and not that Joey doesn’t keep me happy all the time. But it was nice to have had that small connection with someone new—no matter how short-lived i
t was.

  I can’t even count the number of times I had to talk myself out of looking at her file to get her number. Tucker caught me with it on my desk once and proceeded to make fun of me for two straight days. I eventually had to lock him out of my office because he kept walking in at random times just to see if he could catch me again.

  Rae looks up and catches me watching her again. She gives me a small smile that causes my heart rate to increase just slightly. Damn. Just her smile does stupid things to me. She spends another thirty seconds (yes, I counted) at the table before she makes her way to ours.

  “How you boys doing?” she asks in that lyrical voice of hers. She peels her gaze from mine and looks around the table. “You want another Sam Adams?” she directs to Tanner.

  “Bring it on, baby,” Tanner tells her before he goes back to talking with Tucker and Gaige.

  My body tenses for all of two seconds over the “baby” part before the look on Rae’s face registers with me. She’s so not impressed with Tanner. Good job, Rae. The guy is a total douchebag.

  She nods politely and then turns to me. “How about you, Hudson? Need a refill? I hear you’ve got an excellent waitress that can get one for you.”

  My body tenses again but this time it’s from her saying my name. I didn’t realize before how much I love it.

  “I’m good.” The grin she gives me is adorable and I can’t help but wonder what just went through her head. “What?”

  She brings her hand up and pretends to zip her lips. I raise an eyebrow at her. She huffs.

  “Geeze, Hudson. You can’t expect a girl to just give up all her secrets.”

  One word. Secrets. That’s all it took. Suddenly, I now want to know all her secrets. Every last one. I want to know her. Badly. I want to get close to her—no, I need to get close to her.

  But should I? Should I drag her into what’s going on in my life? Can I do that to Joey? Can I let a stranger into our lives like that?

  For her, I think I could.

  You should probably start by getting her number, jackass.

  So I go for it. “Listen, Rae…,” I start.