CHAPTER FOURTEEN #2
I closed the folder and leaned back in my chair. “I told her she could come back to work. That doesn’t mean I’m suddenly going to stop worrying.”
“I never expected you to,” Paddy replied. “I only hope you remember why she wanted to come back in the first place. Miss Walsh didn’t fight so hard to return here just so she could spend the whole evening feeling like someone was watching over her shoulder.”
His words stayed with me after he walked away. I knew he was right. Nora had asked me to trust her enough to let her live her life again, and I’d given her my word that I would. But trust wasn’t something I could switch on simply because I wanted to.
Every time I looked through that office window and saw her laughing with a customer or carrying another tray across the room, I found myself checking the faces around her before I noticed the smile on hers, and I was beginning to wonder whether that instinct would ever leave me.
I eventually stopped pretending that I was getting any work done.
The papers on my desk had been open for a while, and I hadn’t read a single word.
I just watched Nora. She was doing her thing, moving from one table to another, talking to the regulars.
I closed the folder, left it on my desk, and walked out onto the floor.
I told myself I was just making sure everything was okay.
For a bit, that was what I did. Nora was moving through the evening like she always did. She joked with Ethan behind the bar, thanked Chloe for helping with one of her tables, and then walked across the room with her order pad under her arm.
Then four guys walked in the door. They looked like they were celebrating something. They teased each other as they found a table in Nora’s section. She walked over wearing the same smile she gave to every customer.
“Good evening, guys. Can I get you something to drink?”
One of the guys smiled when he saw her. “I was going to order a beer. Now I think I want your number.” The others laughed.
Nora smiled politely. “I can only help you with the beer.”
“That’s too bad. I thought the smile came with the service.”
“It does,” Nora said with a laugh. “My number does not.”
The man laughed again, and I told myself not to worry. Nora had dealt with guys like this since she’d started working here. But when she reached across the table to get the menus, one of the guys grabbed her wrist.
“Come on,” he said with a grin. “Think about it before you say no.”
I didn’t think; I just moved. Before I knew it, I was standing beside their table. The guy looked up at me, still holding Nora’s wrist for a second before letting go. I looked at him, my eyes locking on his.
“Is there a problem here?” My voice was calm, but the table went quiet.
The guy frowned. “No. We were just talking.”
Nora looked at me, then back at the customers. She didn’t change her face, just picked up the menus and kept smiling.
“I’ll bring your drinks in a minute.” She then turned to me and said quietly, “Can you come with me for a moment?”
She didn’t sound upset or angry. She sounded like she understood what I’d done.
***
Nora didn’t stop walking until we reached my office.
She stepped inside first and waited until I closed the door behind us before turning to face me.
The noise from the bar faded into the background, leaving only the silence between us.
She folded her arms, and I met her eyes without saying anything.
“You know those men weren’t trying to hurt me. They were flirting,” she said. “Poorly, I might add, but that was all they were doing. They came in for a drink, not a fight.”
“One of them grabbed your wrist.”
“It lasted two seconds, Liam. Two seconds isn’t long enough for you to be angry.
” She sighed, not out of frustration, but patience.
“I know why you reacted. I really do. After everything that’s happened, I understand why your mind went there first. What I need you to understand is that things like that are going to happen.
I work in a bar. People flirt. Some are charming, some are awkward, and some think they’re far more attractive than they actually are.
If every man who talks to me ends up with you standing over his table, people are going to think it’s weird. ”
I walked over to the window overlooking the bar and rested a hand on the frame.
“The moment he touched your wrist, I stopped seeing the bar. I saw a situation that could get out of hand, and I dealt with it. Looking back now, I know I misread it. That doesn’t change the fact that I’d make the same decision if I believed you were in danger.
My instincts don’t wait for certainty. They move first and let me sort out the mistakes afterward. ”
Nora came to stand beside me. “And that’s exactly what worries me.
” I turned to look at her. “You promised me I could come back here because you trusted me. I need you to trust me while I’m here, too.
I know the difference between a customer who’s being annoying and a man who actually wants to hurt me.
If I ever feel unsafe, you’ll be the first person I call.
But if you step in every time someone flirts with me, I’ll never get my life back. ”
I let her words settle for a moment before nodding once. “I can give you some space.”
She raised an eyebrow. “You sound like you’re negotiating with yourself. I’m not asking you to stop protecting me. I don’t think you could even if you tried. I’m only asking you to let me do my job.”
A small smile found its way onto my face. “You always did know how to make a convincing argument, Miss Walsh.”
She smiled. I reached out and brushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear before resting my hand lightly against her cheek. She leaned into the touch for just a moment before slipping her arms around my waist. I kissed her gently, and she returned it without hesitation.
Neither of us wanted to rush the moment. We were kissing so slowly that I could feel every movement of her lips. But when she gestured that I should lock the doors, I picked up the tempo.
The moment the door clicked shut, she pulled me closer while my hands immediately gripped her waist. I lifted her onto the edge of the desk, sending a few papers sliding onto the floor.
We both knew we had only a few stolen minutes, and that knowledge made everything more urgent. My jacket became crooked beneath her hands and her hair loosened around her face, and neither of us bothered to fix it.
She talked dirty between hurried kisses, and we held on to each other as the tension between us finally broke. She assured me again that she would be careful. A few minutes later, we stood quietly, catching our breath and straightening our clothes.
“You know, intimidating customers isn’t actually in your job description.”
“That’s unfortunate. I was getting rather good at it.”
She laughed and shook her head. “Come on. Those four men are probably wondering whether they should join a witness protection program. You should send over a complimentary round.”
Together, we walked back toward the office door.
Nora stepped out first and disappeared into the bustle of the bar.
I waited a few seconds before following her, watching as she greeted another table with the same easy confidence she’d always possessed.
I still found myself looking in her direction more often than I should.
Some habits weren’t weaknesses. They were simply the price of caring about someone.