10. Harmony
CHAPTER 10
Harmony
I look at the drawers of clothes I have. Or better yet, what I have left of my clothes in the two drawers. I opted to sell all the formal clothing I had a month after I left Winston. There was no way I needed to have floor-length ball gowns. Even packing them when I was leaving, I thought it was a dumb idea, but the money I got for them afterward made it make sense. I grab the light-blue jeans and slip them on over my hips, buttoning the button before I grab the sleeveless white halter top and put it on. I walk back over to the mirror, which has seen better days, so many better days that I look yellow in it. The jeans hug my hips but then flare down all the way to my feet. The shirt hugs me and falls just above the waist of the jeans. I turn, making sure I look okay before grabbing a pair of socks and running down the steps to the front door. Sitting on the last step, I put them on before grabbing my sneakers. “Hey, buddy.” I look over at the living room and see Wyatt sitting on the floor with his work in front of him, snacking on apples with peanut butter.
His warm brown eyes look up at me. “Yeah, Mom?” The yellow pencil in his hand is suspended in midair.
“We have to go, buddy,” I tell him as he takes the last piece of apple and throws it in his mouth before he puts away his homework and then stuffs it back in his backpack.
“Mr. Mendelson said he’s going to help me do math,” he tells me as he picks up his plate and runs with it to the kitchen before coming back and grabbing his bag. “Then we can go and pick more berries,” he adds with a smile on his face. Last night when I got there to pick him up, he was sleeping on the couch, and Mr. Mendelson carried him out. He then told me they picked raspberries for me all night long. Which is why I decided to do the raspberry white chocolate loaf that Brady brought over to me this morning. I walk out after Wyatt, slamming the door shut behind me as I walk down the steps to get in the car. “Are you going to be late again?” he asks from the back seat as I pull out of the driveway.
“Most likely,” I say, hating it but knowing I have no choice. I think even Wyatt knows this is my last resort. “Sorry, buddy,” I apologize to him, “but for now, I have no choice.”
“Okay, Mom,” he replies softly and looks out the window. My heart squeezes in my chest as I tap my finger on the steering wheel. Mr. Mendelson is waiting for us in his rocker, and the smile on his face is huge when we pull up. Wyatt is out of the car door, shouting for him.
He runs up the steps, hugging Mr. Mendelson around the waist and looking up at him. “I was practicing my math,” he tells him.
“That’s good news,” he praises. “I just put dinner in the oven, so we can work on the math until then.”
I look over at him as I walk up the first step. “Thank you,” I say and hand him two loaves of raspberry cake that I made this morning. “This is for you. Will you let me pay for dinner?”
“Aren’t you leaving?” Mr. Mendelson teases. “Get off my porch,” he tries to say with a firm tone but smiles while he says it.
I laugh before turning and leaving, wanting to get there before my shift starts. I don’t even know how the night will go after the exchange on my porch. When he sat there, I didn’t even know what the fuck he was trying to say. I was exhausted from sleeping maybe an hour and a half before the alarm rang for me to get up and get to baking. I was on two cups of coffee and half a piece of toast by the time he walked up to me. So, I might have also been hangry, but I always get defensive when people talk about how I parent.
Parking in the back of the bar, I grab my purse before walking to the front of the building. I see it’s almost slammed full. The nerves come to me faster than I can push them away, and I give myself a pep talk. I walk toward the bar, seeing Brady behind it, going back and forth. “Hey,” he says when he sees me, “do you think you can clock in right away?” I nod before walking to the small closet and hanging my purse and grabbing my cell phone. I walk over to the bar and spot Janelle going nuts. “You got that side,” Brady explains, pointing at the tables on the side. “They’ve been here since 2:00 p.m.,” he says, putting drinks on the tray. “They should be leaving soon, but I think they just ordered food.” I stare at him and take in his dark eyes that look lighter in the sun. “That’s for that table over there.” He points from the tray toward the table with five men sitting around it.
“Got it,” I confirm, taking a deep breath. “Here goes nothing.” I turn with the tray and the five drinks, trying not to spill anything before looking back at Brady. “What are these?” I ask of the five glasses that look the same.
He smirks at me. “Whiskey.”
I ignore the urge to make a face at him and go straight to glaring at him. “Are they all the same?”
“Yeah, they are.” He nods before he looks over at Janelle, who hands him a white ticket. He grabs the ticket from Janelle. I would think for someone who is dating the other someone, he should maybe take it with less attitude.
I turn on my heel and walk over to the table. “Hey there.” I put a smile on my face. “I’m Harmony,” I introduce myself, “I’ll be taking care of you gentlemen tonight.” I put down the first drink in front of a man, who smiles at me and thanks me. “If you need anything, let me know.”
“Will do,” the second man says, grabbing his own drink when I hand it to him.
By the time I hand all five drinks out, I turn to see Brady wave me over, and I walk toward him. “You rang?” I ask sarcastically, and maybe I shouldn’t be fucking with my boss.
“This is for that table.” He points over to another table. “Whiskey on the rocks.” He points at the glass with the ice. “Vodka neat.” He points at the other glass that looks like it has water in it. “Vodka soda.” He points at the drink beside it that looks fuller than the other, but with little bubbles in it. “I’ll get the next one going,” he states, turning and walking back to do more drinks when the door to the back opens, and I see Autumn coming in. I freeze in my tracks and so does she when she sees me. I don’t know if I should deliver the drinks or run out of the bar. I don’t have to wait long because it takes her less time to get her footing than me.
“Hi,” she says, smiling, “I was hoping to find you before I left.”
“Can you two do that after she delivers those drinks?” Brady urges, and Autumn is the one who turns her head at him.
“What’s gotten into you lately?” she asks, but I don’t stay around to listen to his answer. I think as soon as I walk away that maybe I should have stayed so I know what the hell is up his ass. I mean, I’ve known him just a couple of weeks, but in those couple of weeks, he’s saved me three times, the last one by giving me a job. So whatever was up his ass, I would know and could avoid doing so as not to put a bigger bull’s-eye on my head.
I walk over to the table and introduce myself like I did the last time. That seemed to be a good thing to do. Make small chitchat with them and ask them if they are from around here when I don’t recognize them. I’m thankful there aren’t many regulars in here sitting and staring at me. No doubt taking the gossip to my in-laws. I know one thing for sure—Winston would definitely come to my front door, but under no fucking circumstances would he come into this bar. At least I can be thankful he wouldn’t cause a scene in the place I work. Walking past a couple of tables before making my way back over to Autumn, I ask if everyone is okay. When I finally get back to the bar, Autumn is beside Brady making drinks while he hisses at her to get off her feet.
“Mommy and Daddy are fighting again,” Janelle teases. “My bet is on Autumn.” She stays beside me.
“That would be a good bet,” Autumn agrees as she puts drinks on a tray for Janelle, who takes them and walks away. “Are you okay?” she asks, and I just nod. She looks like she wants to say something else, but Brady places drinks on the tray in front of me. I smile at her as I listen to him tell me where to go. By the time I get a chance to catch a breath, I look over and see that it’s almost nine o’clock. Autumn walks out from behind the bar, putting her hands on her lower back, when her eyes light up as she looks at the door. “Well, well, well,” she says as Charlie walks in toward her. Actually, it looks like he’s prowling to her. The scowl on his face would not have me smiling like she is. “Look at who it is.”
“Let’s go,” he snaps two words, his voice tight. Instead of going with him without asking another question, she puts her hands that were on her back on her hips.
“Did you just walk in here, without even giving me a kiss, and order me to ‘let’s go,’ Charlie Barnes?” My eyes about come out of my sockets. “After I’ve been working all day long and then been on my feet for what feels like a hundred hours.”
“Whose fault is that?” Brady leans on the bar to interject his part of the showdown. Autumn doesn’t even turn back to look at him. Instead, she holds up her hand and flips him the middle finger, her eyes never leaving her husband in front of her.
“Now,” she snips, rubbing her baby bump, “perhaps we should start this again?”
“I have absolutely no problem with putting you over my shoulder and taking you out of here kicking and screaming, Autumn Barnes.”
They have a stare-off, and, I swear, I don’t even think I take a breath as the stare-off happens. Until she turns away from him and walks to the kitchen area, coming back out with a plate filled with french fries and a burger. “I was going to share this with you.” She pulls out a stool. “But you lost that privilege with that dumbass cowboy attitude.” She takes a fry and dips it in ketchup. “Sucks for you”—she moves her head side to side, enjoying the french fries—“because this is so good.”
I look at Charlie, wondering what he’s going to do, only to see him shake his head and look down at his feet, mumbling out words that I think are not good anyway, before walking over and pulling the stool out beside Autumn. He bends and kisses her neck before sitting down. “Too little, too late.” She side-glares at him as she takes a bite of the burger, and I can feel my stomach rumble as I watch her.
I should have eaten before I started my shift, I think to myself, but I was so nervous it completely went out of my head. So now I am going on a turkey sandwich and chips from lunch. “Can you get the case of water out of the closet?” Brady asks. I nod, walking over to the closet at the far end, near the door.
I can hear hissing from behind me coming from Autumn, and I think it’s directed at Charlie, but the minute I open the closet door and step in, I feel heat behind me. Looking over my shoulder, I glance at Brady, who steps around me, going to the case of water. The door closes behind me. “You just asked me to get the water,” I remind him.
“Yeah, but then I got that look from Autumn, so I came to help you.” He turns to me. “Open the door for me,” he instructs, and I don’t know if it’s because the room is small, but I feel him very close to me. The light is so dim that it shines only over the cases of water by the wall and not at all by the door.
I turn the handle and push the door, but nothing happens, doing it again and again. “It’s stuck,” I say, pushing to open the door again. But this time the handle breaks off in my hand. “Oh my God,” I tell him as he puts down the case and comes closer to me, “it’s broken!” I try not to panic, but with him standing so close to me, my breathing is coming in pants. And it has nothing to do with the room being so small and everything to do with the heat coming from the man who is very fucking close to me. It also comes from going all night, running all over the bar, yet every time I looked over, I found Brady had his eyes glued to me. Probably making sure I didn’t fuck up anything.
“How the hell did you do that?” he snaps out at the same time he grabs the handle from my hand.
“Do you think I have the strength of the Hulk—” I start to say as he gets even closer to me as he leans into the door too, trying to put the handle back on where it came from—“that I would be able to break a door handle?”
“I have no idea of your strength,” he pants, trying to slide it back on and turn it side to side. “Do you have your phone on you?”
“No,” I reply with a half smile on my face that now fills to a full smile. “My boss thinks I’m going to be scrolling social media during my shift, so he makes me leave it behind the bar,” I almost say in his face, but I don’t. “Where is your phone?”
“Fuck, I don’t know,” he answers honestly. “Could be in the office, could be behind the bar.”
“Amazing.” I close my eyes, the smell of him assaulting me. “This is great, just what I wanted to do tonight.”
“Yeah,” he mumbles, standing up in front of me, the tips of his shoes almost touching mine. “Trust me, this was not on my bingo card for tonight.”
“No?” I ask, trying not to let the words and his tone get to me. “Shocking.”
“You always this much of a pain in the ass?” he comes right out and asks me, and I could swear he’s coming closer to me. The air in the room is almost electric, or maybe it’s my body that feels like it’s one big nerve. “Like always?”
“I don’t know,” I answer, but my heart hammers so hard in my chest it feels as if it’s going to come out of it. “You always this much of a—” His eyes twinkle when I stop talking.
“Of a what?” he asks, his voice is almost a whisper. “What am I, Harmony?” His eyes move back and forth as he watches me. “What do you think I am, Harmony?” His voice barely a whisper. My mouth going dry. The handle in his hands falls to the floor with a huge clank, before they tangle in my hair, and his mouth is on mine. My eyes close the minute his tongue touches mine. I will them to open again so I can see this is happening, and it’s not my imagination. But the only thing I do is slide my tongue into his mouth and swallow down his groan.