“I’m going to put in Die Hard. That cool with you?” I asked.
“Absolutely. It’s a classic.”
We watched the movie for a bit. Then my phone finally went off.
Jenna: Meet my goddaughter Ainsley!
I opened the picture and saw Jenna holding a tiny bundle of blankets with a little head poking out. Dark hair was already growing like crazy, and Jenna’s face was glowing. She looked amazing.
Aiden: Congrats, godmom! You both look happy and amazing.
Jenna: She’s so cute, and Gage is losing his shit. It’s adorable.
Aiden: If she looks anything like Cyn, he’s going to have his hands full.
Jenna: You have no idea. I gotta go. Ttyl.
“What has you smiling like a goon?” Miles asked, making me look up.
My immediate reaction was to tell him to fuck off, but we were trying something new, so I held up the picture. “Cyn had her baby this morning. Jenna just sent me the picture.”
He grabbed my phone and smiled at it. “Wow. She sure has a head of hair already. Jenna looks radiant.”
“She was named godmother, and she wasn’t sure she was going to be there for the birth.”
Miles patted my knee, which made me stiffen for a second, but he said warmly, “She’s quite something, Aiden. Jenna. Dad even likes her.”
“You guys have talked about her without me? I don’t approve.” I shook my head.
“No, it’s not bad, Aiden. That’s what you don’t see. Dad isn’t always an asshole, but clearly he doesn’t show you his human side.”
“Maybe I’ll see it sometime.” I didn’t hold any hope, though.
We continued to watch the movie and talk. It was kind of normal. I texted Jenna, but I didn’t plan on her responding.
Aiden: You would not believe that Miles and I are bonding right now.
Jenna: GOOD!
Aiden: The bar going okay?
Jenna: I’m keeping my head above water.
I knew she would never specifically ask for help, and it was the afternoon, so technically I wasn’t being too clingy if I went to help. “I’m going to the bar to see if Jenna needs help. They’re packed as hell and understaffed. Sorry to run out on you.”
“I get it, man. If you don’t mind, I can help out, too, if she needs it.”
Once again, my brother was freaking me out, but I went with it. “Sure, man. If you don’t mind driving, I’m probably going to make sure she gets home. So I’ll ride with you.”
“Absolutely.”
We hopped in his car, and Aerosmith blared through his speakers. “Walk This Way?”
“It’s my all-time favorite.”
I scoffed. “No shit. It’s one of mine, too.”
Another shared moment. I needed to punch something or myself to see if this was an alternate reality. “Holy shit. They looked slammed. The line is all the way down the sidewalk.”
Miles was right. It looked like chaos. “Drop me off here and see if you can find a spot. I’ll tell the bouncer you’re coming.”
I walked up to the front of the line and heard my name being called from some people in line. I didn’t look back, but I waved.
“Hey, man, I’m here for Jenna. She may need some help,” I told the bouncer I recognized, but I couldn’t remember his name.
He looked wary. “I don’t know, dude. Let me ask her.”
“Jesus, let me in and help her. It’s a shit show out here.” I put a little fire in my voice.
He looked me up and down and cracked his neck. “If I find out you’re fucking with me, you’re banned.”
“I don’t care. Hey, my brother’s going to be here in a second. Name’s Miles. Let him in, too, or Jenna will be pissed.” I pushed past him to see the entire bar filled past max capacity. Servers were running like crazy, and drinks were being poured at an almost comical speed.
Jenna was serving food, hair in every direction. She wore badass leather boots with a tight tank top.
I needed to tone it down and help her out, not check her out. “Jenna! What can I do?”
She turned in my direction and smiled. I met her at the kitchen door, where she caught her breath.
“You sure about this?” She had a look of uncertainty, but I clapped my hands a couple times.
“I got my game face on. Let’s go! Plus, I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t sure.”
“Okay, can you bus tables? The bin’s right here. When it’s filled, bring it here for them to wash and repeat.”
“On it. Hey, Miles offered to come by and help out, too. What can he do?”
She was distracted by a dispute happening at a back table but put her hand on my arm. “He can bus with you and sweep the floor. It’s filthy. Excuse me. I may have to go kick somebody’s ass out.”
She took off in the direction of a fight, and I watched her grab the collar of one of the guys and drag him toward the front door. Despite the noise level, I heard her yell, “Don’t come back here, Gerry. You touch another one of my servers again, I will fuck you up.”
The place fell silent and then cheered. She had a deer-in-the-headlights look before she clapped her hands. “Show’s over. Back to work, people.”
I grabbed a bin and motioned for Miles to join me. “We need to bus tables, dude. Have you done this before?”
His expression soured slightly. “Uh, pick up dirty dishes for other people?”
“You gonna be a pussy or what? Either help out or leave.”
“Okay,” he said slowly, the unease on his face almost comical.
“Consider it character building.”
We bussed table after table. Miles didn’t complain once the rest of the time, and he was sweating like crazy. I was, too, but it was nice to see him do something that wasn’t so…stuck-up.
“This is so much harder than you’d think,” he told me when we grabbed a quick drink break.
“I know. I wish I wouldn’t have worked out today.”
Jenna walked in the kitchen and was pulling up her hair into a high ponytail, exposing her neck. I felt my chest tighten at the gesture.
“Don’t complain, pretty boy. You know you’re in great shape. Thanks for helping, Miles. I can’t express how thankful I am. We’ll probably have another two hours before shit calms down. You can head out if you need to, but I promise you can have drinks on the house for at least a week.”
“I’m good. This is kind of fun,” Miles said, blushing.
“Me, too,” I added with a smile.
“Great.” Relief filled her eyes, and I knew she was struggling.
“Have you had a moment to sit down in the past eight hours, Jenna?”
“No. Even with Joel here, the two of us are running wild. This is the first break I’ve had the whole day.” She rubbed her eyes, exhaustion evident.
“Sit down. For five minutes,” I demanded.
“Can’t. Perks of being the manager. If you take off, find me first, okay?”
I shook my head. “I’m here to make sure you get home.”
She chugged her glass of water, then continued working. Miles watched her leave, and I thought he was checking her out. “Dude. No.”
“No, I wasn’t looking at her ass, which is nice by the way, but she’s so scary to be so small.”
I laughed. “I know, man.”
I went back to bussing for another hour or so. Then a hand grabbed my arm. I looked down to see Bri watching at me with heated eyes. Her blue irises did nothing for me. They were the wrong color. And for the first time, I was pissed how she just assumed she could touch me.
“Bri.”
“Aiden,” she purred, making me cringe. “I didn’t know you worked here. When did you start?”
“I’m just helping out today,” I explained.
“Ah, your newest fuck buddy roped you into working?” She sneered, causing her girlfriends at the table to giggle.
“Unless
you need something, we have nothing to talk about.” My mood soured, but she grabbed me by the balls, literally dragging her nails into them, and whispered, “You deserve to be with someone like me. I’m going places. I’ll wait for you to let your dick have some more fun, but when you grow up, get rid of the trash. I’ll be waiting.”
She unclenched my balls, and I felt it all the way in my stomach. I almost dropped the bus tub before Jenna marched over, fire in her eyes.
“Bri. We meet again. This time, though, you’re on my turf. Touch any of my workers again and you will be permanently banned from this place.”
“You can’t threaten me, you bitch.”
“It wasn’t a threat, Barbie. It was a promise. I’m one of the owners, so if you ever plan on coming back here again, show some goddamn manners.”
Bri’s lips curled and her hand twitched as if she were going to punch Jenna.
I was about to intercept, but Jenna laughed. “If you touch me, I’ll have you arrested. Try it. I dare you.” She looked at me, and her nostrils flared in humor.
We both walked off, and I set down my bus tub before she put her hands on my stomach to hold herself up, laughing.
“Find it funny, huh? You really helped my manhood there, standing up for me.”
“It’s my bar now, and I wanted her to be aware. But holy shit. I think I actually scared her there at the end.” She threw her head back and laughed some more.
“Uh, shorty, you scared everyone who heard you. I was scared for them. It’s really good you’re so good-looking or everyone would be downright terrified of you. But really, thanks for looking out for me.” My manhood wasn’t hurt at all. It was hot as fuck seeing Jenna ready to cut a bitch for me.
“I couldn’t help it. I know you can handle yourself, but seeing her grabbing you in front of everyone was unacceptable.”
I gave her a knowing smile. “Glad to see you finally accept this place is part yours.”
“I love it. I didn’t think I would, but as long as my hours don’t interfere with school, I’ll be okay.”
“You look ready to pass out.” I pushed part of her hair behind her ear, and she leaned into my hand. “Time to punch out, Jen-Jen.”
“I know. It’s been twelve hours straight. I’m going to tell Joel I’m leaving.” She closed her eyes and sighed.
“I’ll take you home.” It wasn’t a question.
She smiled. “Okay.”
Chapter 27
Let Life Happen-Jenna
I found Joel chatting with some regulars at the bar, and I waved at them. “Hey, guys. Have a good holiday?”
“Sure did, Jenna. I heard about Ainsley. Heard she was huge.”
“Over nine pounds,” I gushed.
“Incredible.”
“I know. She’s the most beautiful baby I’ve ever seen.”
“You mean the only one you’ve seen,” Joel quipped.
“Who cares? She’s perfect, and I’m going to be the best godmother ever.”
The regulars clapped their hands for Joel and me. I rolled my eyes. “Hey, Joel, I’m taking off.”
“About time. I’ve been telling you to for the past two hours. Maggie and I can handle it until close. We’ve closed up hundreds of times. Don’t become one of those obsessive managers who can’t leave work.” Good thing he had a teasing tone to his voice or I would’ve hit him.
“I won’t. Today was just…There aren’t words for it.” I tried to find something, but I was on empty. Like when the gas light comes on in the car and you know you have just enough left to get you to the gas station—I was past that.
“Then leave. Take that man of yours and get out. I can’t wait to tell Gage you threatened two patrons today.” He snickered.
“Promises, Joel. Not threats. And he’s not my man.” Despite my exhaustion, his comment roused me a little.
“Jenna, not once in the past three years have you ever brought a guy to Thanksgiving with the family. I know we’re both fucked up in our own ways, but stop fighting your inner battles. Look at what he’s done for you in the past day and a half. He held your hand all night. He worked for you for eight hours today.” His face was serious, eyebrows almost to his hairline.
I nervously bit my lip and felt unwelcome emotions barge into me. My lip started trembling on its own, but Joel put his hand on my shoulder. “We all deserve what Cyn and Gage have, but it wasn’t easy for them. Trust me. I still doubt love even exists. But I’ve seen you two for a while now. You’re in a relationship, but neither of you wants to admit it.”
“What do I do?” I pleaded with him because I knew he was right, but I didn’t know how to deal with it. “I’ll just fuck it up or get hurt. I-I don’t know.” I ran my sweaty hands through my hair in frustration.
“J, stop freaking out. As your older brother, I’m telling you to not overthink everything. Just let life happen instead of fighting it. Now get out of here. Right now. Shoo!” He winked and swatted with his towel.
Just let life happen. It was good advice. I could do it. Just let whatever happens happen, because what else could we do? If I tried to plan out or analyze every aspect of my life, I was going to constantly be reminded of the pain of my past. I was done hiding.
I grabbed my purse, feeling lighter than I had in a long time, and texted the new parents. They obviously had checked in on me the whole night, but I wanted to tell them I survived. They replied with more pictures of their new baby girl. Adorable.
Aiden was waiting in the alley by my moped. His arms were crossed, and he was looking up at the black sky. He didn’t notice me yet, so I took the time to watch him. He held himself with such confidence, but I knew he had just as many insecurities as I did. He caught me staring and gave me a heart-stopping smile. A zing of pleasure shot right to my ovaries. Shit.
“Ready to get some rest, champ?”
“I don’t know if I can sleep.” My heart pounded, and my proximity to Aiden was only half the reason. “I’m running on so much caffeine and adrenaline. My body aches in places I didn’t know I had, but my mind won’t shut up.”
“Want to come back to my place, watch a movie, and wind down?” He assessed me with his eyes in a caring way. Whatever was happening between us, it wasn’t purely sexual attraction. His gaze reflected concern. His face gave me my answer.
“Yeah.” I watched his expression light up at my response. I repeated the phrase in my head. Let life happen. “A movie actually sounds really great. After the past twenty-four hours, relaxing is exactly what I need.”
“Glad you agree. Normally, a solid hour with my brother is my limit, and boy, have I surpassed it today.”
“Hey, when did Miles take off? It was mighty noble of him to come help out.” I knew Aiden was nowhere close to being best friends with his brother, but the fact they were recovering filled me with so much happiness I could burst.
“He left around six. Shocked the shit out of me. The whole day did, really. At first, he looked like he was going to throw up, touching other people’s food. I almost felt bad for him, but then he got the hang of it and was talking with all the customers. It was a side I hadn’t seen of him in a long time.” He shook his head at the memory.
I laughed and put on my helmet. “You may not agree with me, Aiden, but it’s great he’s trying. It has to mean something, right?”
“Fo’ sho’, but my initial reaction is still to question his motives.”
“I understand, but if he’s really, really going to try, then you need to, too. He deserves to have a shot at a relationship with you despite your past.” He gave me a weird look, and I realized those words somehow pertained to our odd situation. I wasn’t ready to discuss it, so I immediately changed the subject. “You’re riding in the back this time.”
“You’re coherent enough to drive?” His concerned gaze assessed me.
I stuck my tongue out at him, and we hopped on. His arms enveloped me, and I could smell the day’s
work on him. Normally, a bar was known for smelling bad, but for me, it smelled safe, comforting. His hard body pressed against my back, and I could feel his racing heartbeat pound through his chest. I let myself enjoy the way he held me on the short ride to his house. Things were changing between us.
“What movie are you thinking about?” he asked while leading me into the house, his hand on my back.
I noticed he was finding every possible excuse to touch me, but he never crossed the line. It was frustratingly like torture. In the beginning of our friendship, he would blatantly attempt to flirt and embarrass me. Now it was more, like he needed to touch me for his own comfort.
“Something stupid but great.”
“So any Adam Sandler movie?” He raised one eyebrow.
“Yes. Exactly what I need tonight.” I clapped once.
“I’ve got just the one.” He put in Happy Gilmore, and we plopped down on the couch a foot away from each other.
I was curious why there was no commotion in the house and asked, “Is anyone else here?”
“No. I was the only one who stayed for the weekend. They all traveled back to their families.”
My heart clenched at the way he said it so nonchalantly. Like this happened a lot. I put my arm around him and hugged him. My face was pressed into his chest while I said, “I’m so glad you were able to spend the holiday with me. You’re a part of my family now.”
He squeezed me back, pulling me into his lap, my head still on his chest. He didn’t say anything, nor did I. We stayed intertwined for the entire movie, neither of us moving, not wanting to break the connection.
I felt myself drifting off to sleep, so I didn’t know if I dreamed it or not, but I felt his lips lightly touch my face and heard him whisper, “You’ve become my family too, shorty.”
I woke up with the title sequence showing and the clock glowing 3:00 a.m. “Shit.” I groaned and moved to get the kink out of my neck.
“You all right?” he mumbled into my hair, which covered his face.
“Yeah, just fell asleep at a weird angle. It’s late. I should head back.” I moaned, not looking forward to the drive back this late.
Let Life Happen Page 19
