Chapter 39
Iignore the hoots and hollers of the college guys lining the bar, celebrating another football win. Keeping my head low and my mind on target so I can earn as much in tips as humanly possible and get the hell back to my apartment in one piece, preferably without someone pinching my ass like they have every night I’ve worked here.
I’ve failed so far. A girl can only hope.
When I showed up here for an interview four months ago, I was desperate and not sure the manager would even take me on, but the way he looked at me had me questioning if he recognized me somehow. Nerves clawed inside me, telling me I would be exposed, but then his kind blue eyes met mine and he told me he would help me while keeping my identity a secret.
His words shook me to my core, and I questioned him, asking how he could have known I was running from something.
He said he saw it in my eyes. Whether that was the truth, I don’t know, but the manager, Reece, became my savior that night, and every day since. Then he told me I could work the bar and that he knew of an apartment in a safe housing block he managed.
My situation suddenly seemed so much better, especially with Maggie living next door. A sweet woman in her late sixties who took me under her wing and someone I could trust wholeheartedly. She became the mother figure I didn’t have, and I couldn’t be more grateful for her.
While I knew I couldn’t risk contacting Jade, Maggie became the closest thing to a best friend, easing the pain of losing her.
“Yo, sweetheart. Get me another beer, yeah?”
I’m snapped out of my mind and back to the here and now, and the college guys have moved to a table near the bar, and now each time I pass them by, I have to plaster on a mega-watt smile I don’t feel. Whatever gets me a tip, I guess. I shake my head and weave through the crowd with the empty glasses, sliding them onto the bar, then I lean over to place the order for him.
“Tiffany, when you have a minute, can I get another three pitchers of beer for table four, please?” Tiffany glances over my shoulder and raises an eyebrow before giving me a chin lift.
Just as I’m about to move back, a hand clutches my butt cheek, causing me to grimace. Great, I failed.
Again.
As quick as the touch arrived, it disappears, and I spin to face the assailant.
My chest tightens as I take in Rafael’s furious stare. Somehow his eyes are darker than ever, colder, and my blood freezes under the intensity. He has a hold of the guy’s hand, squeezing it tightly. “Ahhh. Fuck, dude. Come on, that’s my throwing hand.” The guy’s face is twisted in pain as Rafael continues to bend it, and the guy squirms in his hold.
“You touched what doesn’t belong to you.” His deadly voice sends a shiver washing over me, and when the sound of bones snapping rings out in my ears, my feet move of their own accord as my mind screams at me to run.