“No tip jar, Ma’am,” Rocky answered before I could even open my mouth.
“I was talking to him,” she snapped back.
My gaze was still on Rocky when I felt skinny fingers go under the collar of my shirt. I took an involuntary step back and gasped.
She didn’t just…
I reached into my shirt and pulled out a five dollar bill.
Oh, my gosh, she did!
“Um, we don’t take tips.” I cleared my throat and winced a bit.
“Trust me, sonny. You deserve it!” With a huge grin on her face, she grabbed her stuff and scuffled toward the door, bouncing youthfully the whole way out of the store.
Still in shock, I hardly heard Rocky comment, “You were always good with the ladies.”
“Ha! You wish.” My eyebrows furrowed. I wasn’t sure if she was kidding or not. Did she really think I was that much of a male slut? I had a ton of shit to fix, and it was nobody’s fault but mine.
An hour flew by, and before I knew it the line had finally trickled down. Feeling ecstatic that I was finally going to have some alone time with Rocky, I turned toward her only to be immediately shot down.
“Hey, beautiful.” The douche Ethan was back, and it took everything in my power not to punch the smug look off his face. Of course, the joy I felt from seeing Rocky’s less than stellar greeting was enough to placate me—for the time being at least.
“Ethan! What are you doing here?”
Possibly aware of Mr. Rossi’s ‘no untrained people behind the cash wrap’ rule, he leaned over, reaching out for Rocky. Struggling to hug her, he soon gave up and coughed, “I couldn’t speak with your dad without seeing you.”
“Why were you speaking to my dad?” she asked almost suspiciously.
My head snapped to the side. Why did Rocky seem so scared of him? Immediately my protective instinct came over me, but I knew I was probably overreacting. To calm myself down, I busied myself by dusting off the keyboard and picking at some lint wedged between the counter’s crevices.
“We were discussing marketing plans for first quarter.”
“Oh,” she sighed with relief.
As if just noticing me, the douchebag glanced over in surprise. “Hey there, my man. Looks like they got you trained on that thing.”
“Looks like it,” I shot back a bit more forcefully than I had intended.
Ethan’s annoying smile faltered a bit. “Well, I better get back to the office. I’ll see you later?”
“Uh, yeah sure.” Rocky ran her slim fingers through her beautiful mane of dark brown hair and leaned back slightly.
Knowing that a goodbye kiss was inevitable, I desperately looked around for an escape route. Unfortunately, the only way to get out of the enclosed cash wrap was by walking through the little door that Ethan was now draped over. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing me run away from him, so though it would be hard to stomach, I gritted my teeth and prepared myself for a game of tonsil hockey. To my surprise—and relief—there was no kiss in sight and Ethan left without a fight.
I looked after him and shook my head. “Douche.”
“What was that?” Rocky’s head snapped in my direction.
“You heard me.” I grinned sheepishly.
“You don’t even know him. How can you judge him?” Rocky sneered.
“Since when do you go for pretty boys like that? You never were into that type.” Please don’t tell me she grew up into one of those prissy girls I despise so much.
“I never had a type in high school! Besides, what would you know about me? If memory serves me correctly, which it does, you haven’t spoken to me since college. What do you even know about me anymore?”
I winced. She was right of course, but I couldn’t let her stay mad at me. Figuring a joke might placate the situation, I shot back, “I know you grew about two cup sizes since I last saw you.”
“Stop being such a jerk. You know what I mean!”
Okay, maybe that was the wrong route. Then again, I couldn’t help myself! Standing face to face, it was really hard not to eye her rack at least once. Though Rocky was still pretty petite, she had curves in all the right places. Gawking was definitely the only option that I had.
My eyes lifted, catching the unamused twist of Rocky’s lips. A slight dimple shone in her left cheek, but I knew it wasn’t from smiling. Recalling Stephanie’s visit, I knew I had to face the music and sighed. “I know things were left a bit odd between us. I also know you won’t believe me, but I have a perfectly good excuse why.”
“Try me.”
“Jesse to the stockroom. Jesse to the stockroom.”
I bit back a groan. Of course Mr. Rossi would choose that moment to call me back to The Dungeon. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if he had a hidden camera or some listening device and was busy eavesdropping on us this whole time.
Pouting slightly at my dumb luck, I said quietly, “I really did miss you. I know you don’t believe me, but I really do want to make it up to you.”
“How?” The look of doubt on her face broke my heart, and for once I thought I was a bigger douche than Ethan was.
Prove yourself.
“Do you want to get something to eat tonight? Around eight?” Shit. I felt like an awkward thirteen-year-old all over again.
She’s gonna say no.
“Sure,” she replied without skipping a beat.
I turned away before she could see the smile on my face, ignoring those pesky red flags flashing before my eyes.
Chapter 17
The smoke circled the ceiling of Harpoon’s, looking like an ominous monster from a cheesy ’80s horror movie. My lungs felt heavy and my mouth dry. I grabbed onto my throat and coughed, still in disbelief that not only had I grown up in a similar environment, but that I’d also shelled out a lot of money buying my own cancer sticks.
“Crap, I better text Rocky and tell her to meet me somewhere else.” I reached for my phone only to remember I didn’t have her number—I take that back—I did have one, but it was from five years ago. Deciding not to embarrass myself by texting a wrong number, I positioned myself by the door in hopes of intercepting her as soon as she walked in.
I felt her presence the moment she entered the bar. It was as if the room grew brighter, more ethereal, making the scuffed floors, stained walls, and ripped seats look like a palace. She wore red—ironically the last color I’d seen her in before I moved away. I couldn’t help but wonder whether it was an omen of some sort. Truthfully, I was too nervous to question whether it was a good one or a bad one.
Taking a moment to quiet my mind, I inhaled slowly, exhaling in one loud puff. Wiping my moist hands against my jeans, I called out, “Rocky! Over here!”
Rocky’s eyes lit up the moment she found me. Her shoulders visibly relaxed as she sauntered over to me. “Hey! Interesting place you chose here.”
I frowned, eyeing a drunk biker type stumble over his feet. “Yeah, didn’t think this through so much. Didn’t know this place still allowed smoking.”
“We can go somewhere else if you want.” A nearby jukebox drowned out her words. This really wasn’t going to work in more ways than one.
I nodded eagerly. “Yeah, let’s go. I’ll drive.”
I escorted Rocky out of the crowded bar only to be met by a brutal blast of cold air. North Carolina winters were killer, and definitely nothing I missed. I glanced down at Rocky and noticed that her nose had turned bright red and her eyes were on the verge of tears. Given that I hadn’t said or done anything that could have insulted her—yet—I figured it was the weather bringing her down. My arm instinctively reached out to bring her closer to me, but catching myself, I stopped midway.
Now’s not the time.
Diverting my arm, I gestured toward the end of street. “I scored a spot by the curb around the corner. The walk shouldn’t be too bad.”