Chapter 4
Good things come to those who don’t pounce.
Gage
I hum as I fold out of my SUV at Five Fathoms Brewing. I pat my pocket. The concert tickets are safely tucked away.
Addy is going to love this. As much as she enjoys singing, she must love concerts.
I stroll into the restaurant. It’s busy today. I’m not surprised. The burger I ate yesterday was one of the best burgers I’ve ever eaten. And I’m a picky eater.
I wasn’t always picky. I used to be happy when my stomach wasn’t growling with hunger. But since I’ve started earning my own money, I’ve become picky. It’s the ultimate luxury. Not penthouses. Not fancy sports cars.
I wave the hostess away and make my way to a seat at the bar.
“What can I get you?” the bartender asks.
I scan the taps. “I’ll have a Backwater Blonde, and can you tell Addy I’m here?”
His eyes narrow. “Addy?”
“The waitress. ”
“I know who Addy is. The question is, how do you know Addy? She doesn’t date.”
She will once she gets a gander at these concert tickets.
“We’re friends.” It’s not a lie. We will be friends. Lovers, friends, partners. All of the above.
“You’re funeral, dude.” He sets my beer in front of me before wandering off to speak to another waitress. Her gaze meets mine and her eyes widen. Unlike Addy, she appears to know who I am. She nods at the bartender before walking away. I hope to find Addy.
I sip on my beer as I wait for her. A tray slams down on the bar next to me and I jump. What the hell? I swivel to my left. Addy glares at me.
“What part of no do you not understand?”
Damn. This is not the greeting I was expecting. But she didn’t ignore me. I can work with this. Besides, Addy’s magnificent when she’s angry. Her eyes darken, and her nose scrunches. I want to kiss it.
“Can we discuss this in private?”
She snorts. “Private? There is no such thing on this island. Small town. Small island. Big gossip.”
“We could use the office.”
“Chloe probably has listening devices installed in her office.”
“I don’t,” a tall woman says from across the bar. “Lucas said it was illegal to eavesdrop on people. Even if you own the business and it’s your employees.” She rolls her eyes before throwing a set of keys to Addy. “Go ahead and use the office.”
“Come on. Let’s get this over with. ”
She stomps away and I hurry to follow her down the hallway and into a room marked office. I shut the door behind me.
I grin at Addy but she crosses her arms over her chest and glares at me. Not exactly the reception I was hoping for. She’ll change her mind.
“Let me repeat my question. What part of no do you not understand?”
I pull the tickets out of my pocket and flourish them. “I’m surprising you.”
She sighs. “Is this one of those situations you think is romantic but isn’t?”
I wave the tickets at her. “Don’t you want to know what these are?”
“Fine. What are they?”
“Tickets to see Juliet Ash. Taylor Swift’s tour is over but I thought you’d enjoy seeing Juliet. She’s nearly as big a pop star as Taylor.”
Her mouth drops open. “Are you serious? Those tickets cost a bundle. And she’s not playing anywhere near Smuggler’s Hideaway.”
Addy must be a fan if she knows Juliet Ash isn’t playing anywhere nearby. Good. More temptation for her to resist.
“She’s playing in New York City. I thought we’d make a night of it.”
“Let me get this straight. I told you I don’t have time to date and your response was to buy tickets for a concert in New York and ‘make a night of it’.”
“You don’t have to worry about a thing. I’ll pay for the flights and hotel rooms.”
She blinks up at me. “Is this what you do? Buy expensive gifts for women to get them to do your bidding?”
“My bidding?”
“Your orders and commands.”
I growl. “I know what bidding means.”
“The question remains. Is this what you do?”
“No.”
I don’t chase after women. I usually don’t have to. Saying my name is enough for most women. They can’t throw themselves at me fast enough.
But not Addy. She doesn’t care about my fame. And, guessing by the scowl on her face when I offered her the tickets, she doesn’t care about my fortune either. It’s refreshing.
And intoxicating. I want to get to know this woman. In every possible way.
Her brow wrinkles. “I don’t get it. Why are you going big for me?”
“Because you’re worth it.”
“You don’t know me. You don’t know if I’m worth it.”
“I know you can sing well. I know you’re an excellent waitress. I know you’re clueless about football.”
She holds up a finger. “I’m not completely clueless about football. My brother plays. I understand the rules. I just don’t follow any teams. I don’t have— ”
“Time,” I finish for her. “Everyone has time for the things they love. I figured as much as you love performing, you might want to go to a concert.”
“How do you know I love performing?”
“It was clear to see on your face when you were singing. And the way you got the crowd involved. Everyone in the place was in love with you by the end of one song.”
She chuckles. “I didn’t realize big football players were prone to exaggeration.”
“Because we’re not.” I brush a hair from her forehead. “What do you say, Addy? Let me take you out to the concert of your dreams.”
She retreats a step but not before I notice the way her mouth falls open and her pupils dilate. She’s interested in me, but she’s fighting it. Why?
“I hate to sound like a broken record but I don’t have time. It’s cool you wanted to do something different. But I can’t up and fly to New York. You should have asked before spending the money.”
“I don’t care about the money.”
“Must be nice,” she mutters.
It is nice. I grew up with nothing. Always going to bed hungry. Having to accept charity from people who looked down their noses at me. I won’t go back there. And I won’t apologize for being happy to have money now.
“I’m not apologizing for having money.”
She waves away my non-apology. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t have time to date you anyway. ”
I need a new angle. This one isn’t working. “What about friends? Do you have time for a friend?”
“Not really. My life is crazy busy.”
I lean against the door and stuff my hands in my pockets. “Explain this crazy, busy life to me.”
“Why bother?”
I grin. “Because we’re friends.”
“I never agreed to be friends.”
“But you would have eventually. You find me irresistible.”
“Annoying is more accurate.”
“Come on. Tell me about your busy life.”
“Fine,” she huffs. “You want to hear about my boring, busy life? Here we go. I work full-time here at Five Fathoms Brewing. More than full-time if I can pick up the extra shifts. When I’m not here, I’m raising my three siblings.
And, if I should somehow find a moment of time to myself, I write music. ”
“You want to be a singer?”
“Songwriting is the dream. A silly dream.”
“I’ve heard you sing. It’s not silly.”
Her cheeks darken, and she glances away. She’s even more beautiful when she’s embarrassed. “Whatever.”
“And you’re raising your siblings? Why? Where are your mom and dad?”
“Not that it’s any of your business, friend , but my dad left when I was two. I don’t remember him. And my mom is here. Being a single mom is tough. I help out.”
I didn’t think it was possible to be more interested in Addy but I am. She’s helping to raise her siblings when she could leave this island and chase her dreams of becoming a songwriter. A woman who will sacrifice for her loved ones is the kind of woman I yearn for.
“I’m sorry I don’t have time to have fun with you.” She glances at her watch. “I should get back out there. The lunch rush is in full swing.”
“Of course.” I open the door and motion her out.
She rushes down the hallway to the bar and I follow.
“Table nine,” the bartender says as he shoves a tray full of beers her way.
“I got it.” I lift the tray before Addy has a chance.
She scowls at me. “This is my job.”
“And I’m just helping out. No biggie.”
The tray weighs a ton. I have no idea how she could possibly lift it. She’s such a little thing.
I reach a crowd gathered around the television and lift the tray in the air in order to pass them.
“Table nine’s the other way,” Addy says.
I glance back at her. She giggles and her eyes twinkle. I’m mesmerized. Maybe she’s a witch in addition to waitress, babysitter, and songwriter.
My arms begin to tremble. This morning’s workout was all arms. I should probably deliver these drinks before I embarrass myself. I whirl around to find table nine. My foot stubs into a chair, and before I know what’s happening, the tray of drinks crashes to the floor.
“Shit.” I kneel down to pick up the mess .
“He can drop glasses in my house any day,” the woman at the table next to me says.
“Maybe we should ask him to bend over.”
Addy rushes across the bar to me. “Dakota, Blossom, you’re happily married women.”
“Doesn’t mean I can’t look. Your new man is handsome.”
Addy’s nostrils flare. “He’s not my man. He’s a friend.”
She kneels down to help me pick up the glass but I nudge her away. “I’ve got it.”
“It’s literally my job.”
“I spilled. I pick up the mess.”
Her eyes widen. “You should explain responsibility to my brother.”
A chance to meet her family? I immediately agree. “Okay.”
“I approve,” one of the women at the table says.
Addy rolls her eyes. “The gossips will be wagging their tongues about us by tonight.”
“Oh, don’t worry. They’re already wagging,” the woman says.
Addy groans. “Sorry.”
“I’m not.”
She doesn’t appear to believe me, but the bartender hollers her name and she rushes off.
I have my work cut out for me, convincing her to be more than friends, but I don’t mind. I’ve always been a hard worker. Especially when I know what I want. And I want Addy.