6. Rock
6
ROCK
I don’t know why Emily thinks we need to change things around here. If tonight isn’t evidence that we’re doing just fine, I don’t know what is. The bar is busy tonight, and we don’t have any stupid trivia nights or flashy signs to draw people in. The locals like our bar, and I’m convinced we’ll be just fine after that obnoxiously slick sports bar opens up. There’s no need to freak out or waste our money on things that aren’t right for Blackbear.
I set two freshly poured pints in front of a couple of guys sitting at the bar, then move over to wipe down the other side of the bar, where a few seats have just opened up. As I’m doing so, a blonde in a low-cut top comes up and smiles at me, leaning against the bar to show off her cleavage.
“Hey, handsome,” she purrs.
I ignore her flirtatiousness. “What can I get you?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” she says, leaning harder against the bar, as if I was too fucking dense to get it the first time. “Make me something creative?”
There’s nothing I hate more than someone asking me to make them something creative.
“I can make you a gin and tonic or a martini.” I nod toward the taps. “We’ve also got some good local beers on tap. If you want to try any of them, I can give you a sample.”
“Sure. I’d love a sample. What’s the creamiest one?”
“That’d be the cream ale.”
“A taste of that, then, please.”
I pour a little into a shot glass. She sips it and immediately grins at me. It’s obvious she didn’t give a second’s thought to how it tasted. “ Ooh. Delicious.”
“You want a pint?”
“Yes, please.”
I pour her a pint, take her credit card to open a tab, and tell her to enjoy her beer. I can feel her eyes following me as I walk away, but I don’t look back. This isn’t the first time a woman has tried to flirt with me at the bar. I’ve learned the best thing to do is ignore it. Eventually they always get the point and give up.
No one else needs anything right now, and I need to restock a few things, so I use the opportunity to step into the stockroom. When I walk in there, I find Emily with a pack of napkins under her arm and her face tilted down at her phone.
For a second, my mind reels back to this morning, when I was half-awake and Emily’s body was curled up against mine. I’ve been trying really damn hard to not think about it, but it’s a battle I’ve been struggling with all day. I could have laid there for hours, just feeling her next to me. Experiencing what I can never have for real. It was so fucking nice to feel her curves nestled against me and the warmth of her relaxed breath against my skin.
But then she woke up and jerked away, as if she was yanking a hand from a hot stove.
“My mom is unbelievable,” Emily says, shaking her head as she tucks her phone back into her pocket.
I frown. “What’s up?”
“She’s still trying to set me up. Even after I told her about ‘us.’ I can’t believe it.”
Fresh irritation flares inside me. My relationship with Emily might not be real, but as far as her parents should be concerned, it is. They need to respect that. “What the hell? Seriously?”
Emily rolls her eyes. “I don’t think my mom is going to be happy until I marry one of her rich friends’ sons. Which is never going to happen.”
“When’s that dinner again?” I ask through clenched teeth.
Emily gives me a strange look. “Sunday. Why?”
“Tell your parents I’m coming.”
“Uh…Rock…I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” She pauses. “We would have to make it convincing.”
“So?”
“I just…do you…are you sure you want to do that? You know how bad I am at acting.”
It’s a fair point. Our junior year of high school, she tried out for drama club. She was given a small part in the spring play, and she got so flustered on stage that she blurted out another actor’s line instead of her own. I tried to encourage her to give acting another shot, but she was too mortified to try again.
“This is different,” I say. “It’ll be fine.”
Emily doesn’t look convinced.
“You want to get your mom off your back, right?” I press.
She sighs. “Yes.”
“Then let’s get her off your back.”
“Uh…let me think about it, okay?”
I don’t know what there is to think about, but if she needs time to think it over, fine. I give a single nod of my head.
Emily smiles at me, although there’s something troubled in her eyes. She looks away from me and looks up at the top of the shelf behind us. “Could you get that box down for me?”
I reach for it and hand it to her. “Anything else?”
“Nope. I’m good.”
When she squeezes past me to leave the room, I try to not notice how good she smells. But she does. She’s always smelled amazing.
I put my hand in my pocket and check to make sure the ribbon is still there. It is. Sighing, I let go of it and walk out of the stockroom.