Chapter 30
Kurt
”I was thinking,” I start as I lock the car after we get out. ”Dave mentioned that his wife had talked about us coming over for dinner at their house. We don”t have to if that would make you uncomfortable, but it might be nice to make friends as a couple.”
”Couple of friends,” she smiles. I roll my eyes, trying to pretend I thought her comment was funny. Instead, I watch as she tugs at the hem of her shirt as it rides up exposing her lower belly as she walks and I feel something stirring in my stomach. I shouldn’t be looking at her like that. She shifts a bit when I don’t respond to her play on words. ”Sure, that sounds fun.”
”Great, I”ll let him know we are available whenever they want.” She nods and then stumbles as we make our way down the street. The parking isn’t so great around here so I had to park a couple of blocks away. I grab her elbow and keep her standing, then slide my hand down her arm and our hands find their way to each other, intertwining our fingers. It seems natural and she doesn”t seem to mind. ”Where do you want to eat?” I ask, even though I already have a place in mind.
”Oh,” she pauses, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk. ”I hadn”t actually thought about that. I want chicken strips,” she says, absolutely sure of her decision.
”I agree, that sounds good. I know just the place. And don”t judge it by how it looks on the outside, well, and the inside. But they do have great chicken strips. And fries.” She laughs and I see that twinkle in her eyes again.
”Oh, baby, you should know by now that I never judge anyone by their outward appearance,” she pats her hand on my chest and smirks a little then skips off ahead of me.
”Hey! What is that supposed to mean?” I laugh as I jog to catch up with her. She slows down to wait for me and I drop my arm over her shoulder causing us to jostle together before we figure out how to walk side by side.
“Nothing,” Juliana teases. I roll my eyes but let us fall into a quiet walk. It isn”t awkward, it”s just peaceful.
Juliana trusts me to lead her in the right direction and allows me to steer her over a few blocks and across a couple of streets. We are nearing the more run down part of town but I stop on the outskirts and lead her towards an old bar with the sign barely hanging from a few rusted old nails. I sense her hesitation as I hold the door open for her.
”What happened to not judging outward appearances?” I tease, then gesture for her to keep walking. And she does. She steps into the bar and I follow close behind, putting my hand on the small of her back and ushering her to a booth near the back. The bartender, Benny, catches my eye as he helps a very drunk older gentleman onto a bench in view of the bar so Benny can keep an eye on him. He gives me a nod and grins before gesturing to let me know he”ll be right over.
”So, when and how did you find this place?” Juliana asks as Benny makes his way over to our booth. He delivers a slap on my back making me wince and Juliana smiles up at him.
”Benny and I went to law school together.” Juliana”s eyebrows draw together in confusion.
”I bet you”re wondering why a man who went to law school ended up as a bartender in this dump?” Juliana looks like she is about to protest but Benny”s laugh stops her. ”Don”t worry sweetheart, no offense taken.”
”Benny only went to law school because he got bored sitting around in his mom and dad”s mansion playing video games. Or rather inventing new ones and selling them off for millions of dollars.” I boast about Benny”s accomplishments and enjoy teasing my friend while also watching the look of amusement in Juliana”s eyes.
”Oh, so you own this place?” She guesses correctly, and I can tell she is impressed but also confused as to why he would choose to own this bar.
”Yes, ma”am. Owner, chef, bartender, lawyer, you name it, I can do it.”
”Speaking of, we would like two baskets of your famous chicken strips and fries combo. And yes, I am ordering two because neither of us will want to share, I can promise you that.” I give Juliana a look and she nods, licking her lips hungrily and I can tell she is excited.
”Alright, two chicken strip baskets coming up. Any drinks I can get you before I get started?” Benny asks as he slowly backs away from the table, his fingers twitching and ready to get back to the kitchen.
”Did I mention he also has a passion for cooking?” I look across the table at Juliana and her smile brightens the room. ”No, go have fun in the kitchen, I”ll help ourselves to some water.” I confer with Juliana and she gives a nod of approval so I slide out of the booth and make my way to the side of the bar where Benny keeps a full pitcher of cold water and clean glasses.
”This is kind of a family-style bar, you just help yourself to whatever you need. There are, of course, limitations to that, because of the health code, like not going in the kitchen. We try to make sure the bar wouldn”t be shut down but of course, Benny and I, and other friends from law school would be all willing to fight for this place.” The glasses make a clank on the table as I set them down, Juliana takes the pitcher and fills both cups. She nods while I talk and she watches me closely.
I sit back and take a breath realizing that I am the one now rambling. Normally, I am not one to ramble. I’ve always been able to speak clearly and concisely but ever since Juliana came into my life as my fake fiancée, I have been stumbling over myself trying to figure everything out; I need to find my eloquence again.
Once I pause, Juliana”s eyes dart around the room, taking everything in. She notices every little detail and her eyes stop on a photo of our group of friends that was taken right after we passed the bar.
”That”s you,” she gets up and makes her way over to the photo. I follow behind her to look at it as well.
”Yep, that”s us. That group right there is the only reason I made it out of law school and passed the damn bar.” I let out a puff of breath remembering all the late nights and tough exams before the big one.
”That”s cool,” she says, admiring the picture a little longer before drifting down the wall to look at more of the pictures and posters, some new from Benny and some older from the previous owners.
I hover back a few steps but follow her and point out funny sayings or explain posters to her on the way. By the time we make it around the whole bar and back to our seats, Benny is headed our way carrying two baskets overflowing with fries.
”Dinner is served,” Benny announces and slides our steaming baskets onto the table, pulling a ketchup and ranch bottle out of his apron pockets and plopping them on the table. ”Enjoy,” he says and takes a bow, winking at Juliana before he walks off to talk to a group that just entered the bar.
”Wow, this looks delicious.” Juliana reaches for her chicken strip splitting one open and watches as steam comes billowing out, she blows on them gently before greedily taking a big bite. I wait for her reaction and smile as she closes her eyes. ”Wow, and it tastes as good as it looks.”
”Homemade too,” I comment before beginning to devour mine as well. We fade into silence as we both realize how hungry we are.