Chapter 5
Kai
WHEN I FINALLY ARRIVE at the bar, Leo looks like he is going to die on the spot.
Three different customers are yelling at him as he tries to catch up, filling their cups with beer.
A football game is on the screen, and the bar is packed with sports fans.
I personally was never into sports, but owning a sports bar somehow seemed like a brilliant idea when I was eighteen and couldn’t figure out what I wanted to do with my life.
Now, closer to my thirties than my twenties, I regret this decision.
The money is good, though. That helps, especially when you’re financing a new security system to stalk your new obsession.
Stalk seems like a strong word. Let’s switch it a little bit.
To keep an eye on your new obsession. Yes, that’s better.
I’m just looking out for her; the girl clearly doesn’t have any sense of self-preservation.
I need to look out for her. What if the next guy she kidnaps is a murderer?
I get behind the bar, and Leo gives me a disappointed look.
“Can you explain why you’re two hours late?” he asks as he pours beer for one of the customers. I smile and pick up another glass, filling it with the whiskey the guy in front of me asked for.
“Traffic,” I say as I turn to help another customer. “What can I get you?”
“Beer.” Of course, he wants beer. The one that’s in front of Leo. That puts me in his direct path of questioning. Excellent.
“Okay, let’s say I accept this answer,” Leo says as he hands a tray with a round of shots and beers to the waitress we hired for today.
It’s usually a self-service kind of bar, but when it’s this busy, it’s genuinely better to hire someone to serve.
It’s usually the same girl, a blonde in her early twenties who has a southern accent and smiles too much.
At first, she was making her share of mistakes, but now she’s the solid reason we’re surviving game days.
She has become a pro, serving customers with a polite smile and helping to solve disputes when drunk guys decide to pick a fight about the game, even though I’m pretty sure she knows less about sports than Leo and I do, and that says a lot because both of us know nothing.
We are the most ridiculous sports bar owners.
If you tossed me a football, I would not know what to do with it to save my life.
“Do you have an explanation for why we got billed for a new security system with the address of Rachel’s house?” Leo asks again, and I realize I used the bar’s account instead of my personal one to finance my stupid obsession.
“It’s an apology for kicking her door down,” I say innocently while I do my best to avoid his gaze. I serve customers, take orders, and smile like I won the lottery—anything to avoid Leo getting suspicious, which is probably doing the exact opposite since I never smile at customers, to begin with.
“You bought her a new security system with twenty-five cameras as an apology,” Leo repeats.
“I could have,” I protest as I fill another round of shots.
“But did you?” Leo presses.
“Fuck you,” I murmur as I try to move away from his line of metaphorical fire, but he follows me to the other side of the bar.
A customer yells, “Hey, I was ordering.”
“Shut up, dude, I’ll get your beer in a minute. I have more important things right now.” Leo yells at the customer and turns to me. “Please tell me you’re not stalking the girl.”
I cough, choking on my own saliva. “I would never.”
“Dude, your ex-girlfriend has a restraining order against you for that exact reason,” Leo yells in response.
“In my defense, I was young and naive and thought it was romantic,” I explain.
“And now that you’re old and mature, you have decided to upgrade your game by installing cameras in the girl’s house without her knowledge.
” Bingo. See. I am growing as a person. I am evolving.
Past me would just camp outside her house; now I am using my resources.
Work smart, not hard. I am as efficient as a stalker can be.
“This guy needs his order.” I point to the guy who keeps waving at Leo.
The man is starting to get mad, and if Leo doesn’t get him a beer soon, he will probably start a fight.
As much as I want to avoid Leo’s questions, I would hate to have a fight in the bar.
The last guy who started a fight broke five of our chairs and a television.
Considering the cost of Rachel’s security system, this isn't the best time to replace items in the bar.
“This isn’t over, Kai,” Leo says with a defeated tone. “If the police come here asking, I’m going to hand them your head on a plate.”
“Calm down, Salome,” I joke. “No one is going to come asking.”
I doubt she’ll figure out the cameras soon enough to call the cops, and by the time she learns about them, I’m sure she’ll be too attached to call them.
Besides, what is she going to tell them?
‘I kidnapped a guy, Officer, and he is now stalking me. Please help.’ They’ll probably think this is part of a kinky role-play and want nothing to do with us.
They might even go as far as not paying attention to any distress calls made from her house under the impression that it's probably a prank.
Which is awful if you think about it, but cops are dumb that way sometimes.