Chapter 8
CHAPTER EIGHT
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JULIANA
“Hey, Juliana.”
I glance up to see Bentley, a guy who moved here recently from Texas to be the bartender at Elm & Echo. People have moved here from all over the country to work for Camden. He’s come in a couple of times and is always nice. Flirty, even. He’s cute. Sandy-colored hair, brown eyes, and a great smile.
“Hi, Bentley. How’s it going?”
“It’s going better now that I’ve seen you,” he says, his smile wide.
Uncle Hal sings, “‘Amarillo by morning…’” and when I look at him, he shoots me innocent eyes. “You know that old George Strait song…”
“Can’t say that I do.”
Every time Bentley comes in, Uncle Hal sings a somewhat negative song, usually one about Texas. I don’t know what he has against Bentley, but he gets a little saucy every time he sees him.
Bentley sings the rest of the lyrics in a high, sweet voice. He looks at me, eyebrows lifted, and I clap.
“I didn’t know you could sing like that,” I say.
“There’s a lot about me you don’t know,” he says. He leans in. “I’d like to change that, if you’re willing.”
“Oh.” I stare at him and then laugh awkwardly.
“‘All my exes live in Texas,’” Uncle Hal sings.
“What do you say?” Bentley says. “You and me, dinner tonight?”
I press my lips together, my fingers fidgeting with my apron.
“Say yes,” he presses.
“Okay, sure. Why not?” I say.
Erin is right. Not that I’m planning to get laid like Erin really wants me to, but she’d be all about me going on a date. And Bentley seems great.
He taps on the counter. “Excellent. How about I pick you up at seven?”
“Okay.” I point in the direction of my house, even though he can’t really see much of it from the cafe’s windows. “I live in that house next door.”
“That’s what I’ve heard,” he says, winking again.
I’m not sure how I feel about a man who winks. It kind of grates, actually.
“I’ll see you tonight,” he says before he walks out.
For a second, I wonder what Camden would think if he knew I was going on a date with Bentley, but in the next second, I’m pushing that thought away. Camden might be the hottest man on the planet, but he’s not nice. To me anyway. Or at least, most of the time he isn’t.
I don’t know what to make of the way he’s been acting lately.
It was so weird waking up in his bed. I still don’t know what happened on Christmas night.
Which is making it hella awkward for me to be around him.
I want to ask him about it, but maybe I don’t even want to know how I acted.
I need something to distract me, and Bentley feels like the perfect distraction.
When Bentley walks out of the cafe, I overhear Uncle Hal telling Papa, “This yahoo comes gallivanting into town from Texas, singing in falsetto, and Juju got all swoony.”
I cover my mouth so I don’t laugh out loud.
Uncle Hal’s not done. “Who sings in falsetto anyway?”
“Turn on a pop station and you’ll hear a whole slew of heartthrobs singing in falsetto,” Papa says.
Uncle Hal snorts. “Juju needs a man who sings in full voice.”
“Times are changing, little brother,” Papa says.
He’s all of thirty-nine minutes older than Uncle Hal.
“I have a date tonight,” I say, walking up to them.
Papa startles and then puts his arm around my shoulder.
“That’s wonderful, sweetheart.” He looks at the clock. “Why don’t you let us close up when it’s time? I think we’ve got the system down. You could leave pretty soon even. Take your time getting ready.”
“Oh, I don’t want to leave you guys with all this.” I pat his back.
“Nonsense. We’ve got it. You could use the break, and what’s the worst that could happen?” He laughs. “Don’t answer that. Really. We can always call or come get you if anything goes wrong.”
“Are you so sure?” It’s a few hours before Bentley is picking me up, but I could use a catnap. And the thought of taking my time to get ready sounds lovely…
“Go on,” Uncle Hal says. “We’ve got this.”
“Okay,” I say, hugging them both. “Thank you! Are you sure?”
“Positive,” they say at the same time.
I take them up on it, and it’s blissful. By the time Bentley picks me up, I’ve napped, washed my hair, taken a long bath in Mildred, curled my hair, touched up my nails, and paced the house a few times. At the last second, I text Goldie and Erin.
Wish me luck. I have a date tonight.
Goldie
WHAT! WHO?
Erin
Attagirl. Do everything I would do.
lol I will NOT be doing everything you would do, Erin. Even if I wish I could. It’s with Bentley, the guy from Texas.
Goldie
The bartender at Elm & Echo?
That’s the one.
Goldie
He’s cute! :D Oh, this is gonna be so fun. Hahahaha
What’s so funny?
Erin
Where’s he taking you?
I have no idea.
Erin
Well, let us know when you get there. I don’t want to have to send a search party out for you.
Goldie
Do not put that out there. Hold on. Let me ask Camden about him.
No! Do not ask Camden about him.
Goldie
Too late.
I curse under my breath.
Goldie
He hasn’t answered yet, but I’ll keep you posted. Erin’s right. Let us know where he takes you. If possible, send a picture of his license plate before you get in the car with him.
You can’t be serious.
Goldie
I’m entirely serious! He might be working for Camden, but we don’t know what he’s like with women! His dark side might come out, for all we know.
You guys are making me nervous now. The doorbell just rang. He’s here.
Erin
Have fun. In the sheets.
You’re too much, both of you.
Goldie
That’s why you love us.
Erin
What she said.
I open the door, and Bentley looks me over appreciatively.
“You look beautiful,” he says.
“You look great too,” I tell him.
He’s wearing a button-down shirt and a leather jacket with jeans. I’m glad I went with a pretty sweater and jeans instead of a dress.
He holds out his arm for me to take as we walk on the sidewalk. We’ve put salt down, so it’s not slippery at all, but it’s a sweet gesture.
“I thought we could go to Elm & Echo, if that’s okay with you,” he says when we reach his car.
“Oh.” I swallow and nod. “You’re not sick of it from working there?”
“Not at all. I love the atmosphere and the food.”
“Okay, sure. Sounds good.”
Inside, I’m cringing because I don’t want to spend an evening on the alert for Camden.
But Bentley doesn’t see my reluctance. He smiles as he opens my car door. “Great. I had a sample of tonight’s specials, and they were so delicious, it made me excited to be at work on my day off.” He shuts my door and walks around.
The second we pull into the parking lot of Elm & Echo, I know this is a bad idea. Bentley has the kind of confidence that makes him easy to be around, sweet and sure without being too cocky. It’s not him that’s making my stomach twist. It’s the fact that we’re going into Camden’s orbit.
The last time I saw him wasn’t a disaster. Awkward, sure. But I can handle awkward.
Elm & Echo looks gorgeous. Soft lights spill out the windows, and the glisten of the moon bouncing off the water beyond the lights on the deck is enticing. My eyes scan every corner when we walk inside, preparing myself for the moment Camden appears.
“I’m so glad you agreed to go out with me,” Bentley says once we’re seated. He leans in conspiratorially. “I created a drink last week that is delicious, if you like oranges and pomegranates…and vodka.” He laughs.
I smile. “I do like those things.”
He waves at Katie, the bartender working tonight, and she waves back.
Bentley tells me about the dish he tried and a bourbon that just came in, but my head keeps snapping toward the kitchen entrance, the bar, the hallway to the office…
Nicole, our waitress, brings a bread basket and takes our drink order, and we go ahead and tell her what we’d like to eat too.
I order the special that Bentley said was the best—the pistachio-crusted halibut with a truffle-pureed cauliflower and asparagus.
Bentley orders the bourbon pork chops, and we decide to share a pear-berry salad.
Our drinks come, and Bentley is right—the drink is delicious. I tell myself to sip it slowly, and I’m in the middle of my third tiny sip when Camden comes out of the kitchen.
The air in the whole room changes.
He’s walking with that Camden Whitman swagger that I swear he’s had since the day I met him.
And then he sees me. And he freezes. For a moment, I don’t know how long, we stare at each other across the room.
Then he looks at Bentley, and his face hardens.
His expression shifts to a scowl, and not a subtle one either.
It reminds me of the time I went out with Mitch Williams, who was friends with Jackson and Camden. The look on Camden’s face cut through me like a newly sharpened knife.
Back then it gave me a thrill, but it was short-lived, once I realized he wasn’t jealous at all—he was just irritated with me over something I could never figure out.
That’s how I feel now. Like our brief window of a peace treaty is over.
I close him out. I lean in and listen to Bentley.
I ask questions and laugh at his stories.
When he teases me about finishing my drink already, I tease him back, saying he must have put a magic potion in there.
Slowly, the nerves melt off of me. The next time I catch Camden’s gaze from across the restaurant, still watching and glowering, I get a hit of adrenaline.
I get another drink and feel warm all over.
It’s easy to laugh, and Bentley’s right—the food is delicious.
Bentley reaches his hand out, and I take it.
“I’m having such a good time,” he says.
“I am too,” I say, and it’s true.
I’m just not sure it’s because of Bentley.
But then I see a gorgeous woman I don’t recognize walk up to Camden. She’s definitely not a local. He smiles politely at her, and her head falls back in laughter like he’s just said something hilarious.
I look away because I don’t want to see anymore, and before long, a dark shadow falls over the table. I glance up to see Camden standing there, his arms folded across his chest.
“Bentley, Juliana,” he says formally.
“Camden,” I say in a low voice like his.
“The food is delicious, boss,” Bentley says.
“Thank you,” he says, nodding but looking at me. “Juliana, can I speak with you for a moment?”
I falter for a second and then giggle. “I suppose, Mr. Whitman.” Again, in that low voice, mocking him.
I stand up and walk toward the bar, but Camden points toward the hallway, so I go to the hall.
When we get there, he crosses his arms and stares at me.
“What?” I ask.
“Have you had too much to drink?”
“What?”
“I’m just making sure because the last time you had several drinks, you ended up in my bed.”
My eyebrows lift, and my hands move to my hips. “Because you put me there.”
“Because you couldn’t walk in a straight line.” He shifts closer, his face lowering to get in mine.
“Well, I’m walking in a straight line tonight, as you can see.”
He takes another step closer, and I back into the wall. He puts his arm on the wall next to my face and leans in until I can smell citrus on his breath. Maybe he’s had one of the drinks I’m having.
“We don’t know Bentley well enough for you to get drunk around, Juliana.”
“I’m not drunk, Camden. And it’s not your business whether I am or not. And you hired Bentley, so I think you must trust him enough to be a decent human being.”
“You have an answer for everything, don’t you?”
“When it comes to the decisions I make about my life, yes, I do.” I stare at him defiantly.
He puts his other hand on the wall, blocking me in, and my heart kicks into overdrive. Our chests are rising and falling so hard and fast that they bump into each other. My nerves are standing at attention.
“I’ll be sure to let Jackson know you’re being irresponsible,” he says, his voice hoarse.
“You do that,” I whisper.
His eyes drop to my mouth, and Christmas night comes flooding back. I didn’t dream it. We almost kissed that night. And I think he wants to kiss me now!
What is this?
His hands drop, and he takes a large step back.
“You better get back to your date,” he says.
“I will,” I say with as much indignation as I can muster.
But my legs are shaky as I walk back to the table.
“Everything okay?” Bentley asks.
“Just Camden being his annoying self.” I try to laugh it off, but it sounds forced. “He’s my brother’s best friend,” I say, as if that should explain everything.
“Ah, so he’s super protective of you, I take it. Like a big brother.” He nods.
He is absolutely nothing like a brother to me.
“I have a younger sister, and I wouldn’t let any guy near her,” he continues.
“Ugh. You’re one of those.”
He laughs. “It’s just because we love our sisters so much.”
I sigh. All love was lost between Camden and me a long time ago.