Thirteen
Hunter
It’s late afternoon when we arrive at Haymakers. The lunch crowd has already disbursed and the dinner crowd hasn’t really arrived yet. There are a few regulars at the bar and just a few tables have patrons finishing their late lunches.
Harley makes a beeline for us as soon as we make our way to the bar.
She looks Kat up and down then says, “I hope you’re not planning on waiting tables dressed like that.”
“I wasn’t actually planning on working tonight,” she replies.
Harley frowns at her. “I don’t know why. You obviously still need a makeover.”
I think Kat will be insulted, but she’s actually grinning from ear to ear. Maybe because Harley’s treating her like Kat and not like she’s a movie star.
“If you change your mind I’ve got some extra clothes in the car. At the very least you could actually wear something that fits your body and not that clothes sack sweatshirt.”
Kat tilts her head like she’s giving it some thought then she says, “Okay.”
Harley gives her the hint of a smile. “I’ll be right back.”
As soon as Harley takes off I whisper in Kat’s ear. “Don’t let her bully you into anything.”
She frowns. “This is an initiation ritual, Hunter. And I think she’s actually starting to accept me. Don’t worry.”
I shrug. Just when I think I may have women figured out—even just a little bit—I get thrown a curve ball again.
As we head over to the bar I take Kat’s hand in mine. I know it probably sounds corny but I feel like our hands just fit together. I feel like everything fits together—probably a little too well. I don’t want to get my hopes up about anything, but she did come back to New Jersey to see me again. That must mean something.
I just hope it means a little more than wanting to get laid again.
Tucker is talking to one of the regulars at the bar. Izzy Grant. They were both outcasts in high school, but Izzy was a couple of years younger than Tucker and a year older than me. I remember Tucker once stood up for Izzy when some of the popular kids were making fun of her. They teased her mercilessly. He got the shit beat out him. That’s when he started lifting weights and no one ever beat him up again.
Izzy and Tucker are both scary looking, with don’t-mess-with-me attitudes, and they’re both heavily tattooed. But Izzy is tiny, maybe as small as Gracie. And while everything about Gracie is light and beautiful, everything about Izzy is dark and disagreeable. If a guy had the courage to sleep with Izzy (not that I’ve ever met anyone who did) he’d probably keep one eye open all night just so he didn’t get murdered in his sleep.
Tucker glances up at me and Kat when we approach the bar. “Hungry?”
I nod.
“What do you want?” he asks Kat.
Kat glances in my direction and raises an eyebrow. “What are you having?”
Tucker beats me to it. “Burger, fries, onion rings. He likes two slices of cheese and two tomatoes on his burger.”
“I’ll have that,” Kat says.
Tucker just nods in response. He was never a person of many words, but when he got back from serving in Iraq he was even worse. He really closed himself off from everyone. The only thing that’s made him truly human again is his love for Gracie. Not that he doesn’t love his brothers, but we couldn’t reach him the way Gracie did.
Kat takes a seat at the bar next to Izzy and I join her.
Izzy briefly glances in our direction just long enough to give us a death stare then looks back at her beer.
After Tucker places our order with the cook he makes his way back over to us. “What do you want to drink?” The question is directed at Kat.
“Feel like having some wine or maybe a beer?” I ask her.
She purses her lips for a moment then narrows her eyes. “Maybe a beer.”
Tucker doesn’t bother to ask me. He pours us two Buds and places the tall glasses on coasters.
I look around the place, but don’t see any signs of Gracie. Tucker generally doesn’t let her out of his sight. “Where’s your better half?” I ask him.
When he glances up at me I see just the slightest bit of fear in his eyes. It’s not an emotion I generally see coming from Tucker. “She’s not feeling well. I left her at the house. She’s resting.”
I suddenly feel embarrassed that Kat and I made so much noise when we were there. I thought everyone had already left for Haymakers.
“Do you want us to check on her after we finish eating?”
Tucker gives me one quick nod then turns away. I don’t think I’ve seen him so upset in a long time, maybe since our parents died.
“I’m sure she’s fine,” I try to reassure him. “The flu is going around again.”
He nods, but I can see the concern in his eyes.
Harley plops down what looks like a pair of jeans and a top on the bar next to me. “Here you go, Kat.”
“Thanks.” Kat jumps down from the barstool and grabs the clothes. She gives me a warm smile. “Be right back.”
Once Kat is on her way to the ladies room Izzy glances over at me. She’s usually pale, like some kind of weird vampire chick, except for the bright red lipstick she always wears. And her clothes are always all black right down to her black cowgirl boots.
Izzy wasn’t always so weird and anti-social. She was actually like most of the other girls at school until the middle of her sophomore year. Then something changed. She withdrew and became antisocial. Whenever anyone tried to get close to her she lashed out at them. In a weird way it was similar to how Tucker was for a long time after he got back from Iraq.
“What’s she doing here?” Izzy asks. It takes a moment for the words to register because Izzy rarely speaks to anyone.
“Who?” I reply.
“Katie Lawrence.”
“Having a beer.”
“Funny.” She looks me up and down. “You’ve got quite a sense of humor for a cop.”
“I guess I’m a lot funnier when I’m off duty.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
I eye her. “She’s having lunch, too. Does that help?”
For that I’m actually rewarded with the tiniest of smiles. I didn’t realize Izzy still smiled.
“I’d appreciate it if you kept that observation to yourself. We’re just trying to have a quiet lunch together.”
Izzy gives one cold laugh. “I don’t actually have anyone to tell.”
Izzy’s a loner like Tucker. It’s probably why she likes hanging out at the bar with him so much. Not that the two of them ever actually talk to each other.
I breathe a small sigh of relief when Kat comes back and I don’t actually have to talk to Izzy anymore. I always feel like she is judging me.
Kat’s now wearing the tightest jeans I’ve ever seen and a white lace push-up top that accentuates her assets.
I’ve got to push my hands deep into my pockets to keep the monster growing in my pants from completely breaking loose.
“It’s an improvement,” Harley says as she looks Kat up and down.
Izzy gives another one of her cold laughs. “If you say so.”
Harley glares at her. “I don’t think anyone was talking to you, Crazy Girl.”
Izzy glares right back at Harley. They’re both mean girls, but in completely different ways. Harley is a beautiful blonde who everyone wanted to be like in high school. Izzy is the girl who everyone loved to hate.
“Okay, Barbie Doll,” Izzy fires back. “I wouldn’t wear your clothes for a million dollars.”
Harley rolls her eyes in response. “Like anything could ever help you. You’re beyond redemption.”
“Coming from you I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“Is there a problem here?” Tucker glares back and forth between Izzy and Harley as he places our lunch orders on the bar.
Izzy heaves a sigh then stares at her beer again. Harley looks like she’s going to say
something, but obviously thinks better of it when Tucker slowly shakes his head at her.
Harley doesn’t back down for anyone except Tucker. He could be the one person on Earth who actually intimidates her.
“You’d better eat before your food gets cold,” I urge Kat.
She picks a small onion ring and pops it into her mouth. She actually lets out a small moan as she savors the food. “Do you have any idea how long it’s been since I ate something with grease and fat?”
I shake my head.
“It’s been so long I can’t even remember.” She points to her plate. “It’s good.”
“Try the fries. They’re even better. But you need a little bit of mustard to dip them in first.”
I grab the squeeze bottle of mustard and hold it over Kat’s plate. I’m just about to put some next to her fries when I see the look of horror on her face.
“Don’t tell me you’ve never had mustard on your fries before.”
“Fine, I won’t tell you.”
I have to laugh. She’s already managed to steal my best line.
“It’s really good. Trust me.”
Her eyes are still narrowed like she doesn’t believe me.
“I’ll put it on my plate and give you a bite of one of mine. How about that?”
“Okay…” She still sounds hesitant.
I squirt some mustard on my plate then dip one of the smallest fries I can find into it. I then feed it to Kat.
The moan that she lets out lets me know that I scored another hit.
“You’re right.” She smiles then places a kiss on my cheek. “I shouldn’t have doubted your culinary expertise.”
Izzy coughs. “The two of you are kind of making me sick.”
“Jealous much?” Harley says to Izzy.
Izzy looks her up and down. “Definitely not of you.”
Harley laughs. “Yeah, right. Whatever you say.”
“Why do you insist on turning everyone into a clone of you?” Izzy asks.
Harley tucks a strand of her long blonde hair behind her ears. “Make no mistake. There is only one Harley Davis. There will only ever be one Harley Davis. And I’m the one who gets to be her.”
Tucker glances in Harley’s direction and says, “Why don’t you give it a rest, okay? Do you want me to get Jake out here?”
Harley purses her lips. “He has been in the back room a while, hasn’t he? Maybe I’d better go check on him?”
Tucker rolls his eyes at her. “Great. Now who’s going to wait tables while Jake and Harley hook up in the back room?”
Izzy holds up her hands. “Don’t look at me. I doubt anyone wants me touching their food anyway. I’ll probably be accused of spitting in it. Or something worse.”
My stomach kinds of turns at the thought of what could be worse than having someone spit in your food.
Tucker nods in my direction. I shake my head in response. “It’s my day off. I plan on spending it with Kat. We only stopped by to get some lunch.”
“Could you just help out for a few hours until Coop and Riley get here? With Gracie being sick we’re short-handed.”
“If you guys are busy why hasn’t Jake hired anyone to help out?”
Tucker’s mouth is an angry line. “Every time he tries to hire someone he ends up screwing them. When they figure out there’s nothing more going on than just a quickie in the back room they quit.”
I glance over at Kat, but her expression is neutral. I don’t want her to think any less of me because I’ve got a brother who’s no better than her ex, Devon Black.
But she seems to be more interested in savoring her French fries and mustard than bothering with our conversation about Jake and his sexual conquests.
The bar doesn’t seem that busy right now, but I know in a few hours the place will probably be packed. Hopefully by then Coop and Riley will have arrived. I know I’ll only have Kat here for a short period of time and I want to enjoy every moment of it with her. I definitely don’t want to waste the little time we have working at the bar.
“This is really good,” Kat states as she practically inhales the last bite of her burger then gives me a satisfied grin. “It even has a pickle on it. I love pickles.”
“I always get extra pickles. I love them too.”
She pushes her plate away and hops down from the bar stool. “So it sounds like we’ll be working at the bar for a few hours.”
I shake my head. “I’ll be working at the bar. You don’t have to.”
“I don’t mind. It’s fun.”
“This is supposed to be a chance for us to spend time together. I didn’t invite you here to work at Haymakers.”
She laughs. “I kind of invited myself.”
I grab her hand and pull her toward the back room, away from the few patrons in the bar.
“I need to kiss you,” I whisper in her ear.
“I’m not going to stop you.”
I pull her close and put my lips on hers. She tastes a little like French fries and mustard. I laugh when she says the same thing about me.
“You barely touched your food.” Her eyes are filled with concern.
I shrug it off. “I wanted to make sure you got something to eat. It seems like the people in LA are trying to starve you to death. That’s not going to happen when you’re with me.”
“Maybe I should be with you more often then.” There’s a glimmer in her eyes at the suggestion.
“And how exactly would something like that work? Aren’t you supposed to be on a movie set soon?”
She gnaws on her bottom lip in response. “They could probably use a police consultant on the movie.”
I laugh. “I’ve only been a cop for a few months. I’m not exactly an expert on police procedures.”
“I could hire you to be my bodyguard.”
I frown. “You’d basically just be paying me to be with you. That kind of makes me sound like some kind of man-whore.”
She laughs, but then her face grows more serious. She runs fingers down my cheek and says, “I can’t imagine not being with you, Hunter. It hurts to think about never seeing you again.”
I take in a deep breath. I have to admit that it hurts to think about not being with her too. My heart swells whenever I’m with her and then quickly shrinks to nothing when she’s gone. When I imagine not being with her I feel as though my heart shrinks so much it almost completely disappears.
“What about flying out here for weekend breaks like you did this weekend?”
She shakes her head. “There aren’t that many breaks when you’re on set and we’re going to be filming for about sixteen weeks.”
I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut when I think about not seeing her for four months while she’s filming in LA. I’m not sure what to do or say so I just kiss her. Another crazy amazing kiss that takes her breath away and makes my heart start to pound.
“What’s going on?” Jake’s voice startles me and I nearly jump away from Kat.
He’s trying to comb his hair with his fingers. Harley is right behind him straightening her top.
I frown at my brother. “Like you have any room to talk. What were you and Harley doing in your office?”
He pats my shoulder. “That’s the point. We were in the office.”
I glance at Kat. Her cheeks are reddening. I put my arm over her shoulder and place a light kiss on her cheek. “Come on. We should probably help Tucker out. I’m sure business is starting to pick up.”
Then I look up at my brother. “You planning on working or just hanging out in the back room?”
Jake gives me one of his most charismatic smiles. “Funny.”
Harley heads back towards the bar and we all follow her.
I’m not sure why I feel so anxious. Maybe it’s because Kat and I still haven’t really figured anything out. And I know our time together this weekend is limited. I could only get two shifts off, but she still agreed to come out and see me, even for that small amount of time.
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br /> For a split second I actually consider her ideas. Would being a consultant on a film set be such a bad thing? I shake my head. I just can’t image being anything but a police officer. It’s all I ever wanted to be.
Of course I’ve never imagined meeting anyone like Kat. Someone who would completely turn my world upside down.
The place is starting to pick up a little bit. Several more regulars have joined Izzy at the bar and more tables have filled up with patrons.
Tucker eyes me when I pass by him. I make a point of grabbing a towel and wiping down the bar in front of him.
“Is your girlfriend going to wait tables?” he asks.
“She’s not…” I really don’t want to get into a big explanation of our relationship with Tucker.
“Whatever you say,” he replies as he pours two beers and places them on the bar in front of two young blondes.
I only have to count to six before Jake swoops in and takes their money. He makes a point of holding each of their hands a few seconds too long after he makes change.
If I was a betting man I’d give it less than ten minutes before he’s got both of them in his office for a threesome.
When I glace over at Harley I can see she’s glaring at Jake, but he’s not even paying attention to her. His attention is fixed on his next conquest: the blondes in front of him.
I survey the bar until my eyes finally land on Kat. She’s taking an order from an older couple who I’ve seen in the bar a few times. If I didn’t know she was Katie Lawrence I’d definitely think she fit right in at Haymakers.
Is it wrong that I want her to fit in here? That I wish she wasn’t a movie star; that she was really just Kat.
I try to erase the thought from my mind because I know no good can come of it. I try to focus on the time we have together instead.
“When are Coop and Riley supposed to get here?” I ask Tucker.
He shrugs. “They said they’d get here when they get here. They were running in some kind of charity marathon and then they had to get changed and make the drive out. It could be any time.”
Hopefully it will be sooner rather than later because all I can think about is getting back to the house and being with Kat again. I want to spend the entire night inside of her, wrapped in each other’s arms.
A Wilde Night (Old Town Country Romance Book 3) Page 12
