Chapter 7
“I want you to go handle things, but I also need my best friend.” She yelled after Brandi. But she was already gone.
After the day she’d had, Willow was ready to give up. Talking to Mark hadn’t brought any clarity. Her best friend ran off halfway through their dinner together. It was at this point that she was ready to give up for the night. Nothing made sense and everything made her upset. Willow felt like she was losing her mind.
Maybe Mark was right. Maybe she should just cut her losses and give up on the relationship all together. After all, she was in Sanibel and it’s not like there was a shortage of good-looking men around. She imagined crawling up into bed and crying herself to sleep, but she wasn’t ready to become a hermit just yet. She needed an outlet. Bad. She just wanted to let loose. The only place she could think to go was the bar.
So she decided to head to the same bar that she left earlier. She had hoped to run into Micah again.
She drove back to town and made her way into the bar. And sure enough, Micah was there; only this time, he was on the other side of the bar.
“Imagine my surprise to see you’re still here.” She smiled.
“You’re surprised to see I’m still here? I practically live behind that bar.”
“You don’t look so bad in front of it either.” She flirted. She was only there to have a good time. It wasn’t really a big deal.
“What are you drinking?”
“What are you buying?”
“Well, that all just depends on what’s in it for me.” He joked.
“You’re a gentleman, remember?” She smiled brightly. She was having fun. He was having fun as well.
“I am indeed a gentleman. If you stick around long enough, you’ll find out.” He walked behind the bar and poured her a drink. He was smooth. As smooth as he had been earlier, but this time, he was off the clock. Or so she thought.
“When do you actually get off?” she asked.
“Oh. Whenever I want.” He smiled.
“No but really,” she asked while taking back her drink. She had a habit of taking them back so she couldn’t taste them all the way. She wanted to be drunk. She didn’t want to taste a thing.
“So, plot twist. I own this bar. It’s why I can afford to walk back there and give you a shot of whatever you want. It’s why I can tell you not to trust other bars out here. It’s why I can tell you that you’re not driving home tonight because I’m going to get you plastered.”
“If I didn’t know any better I would say you were trying to take advantage of me.”
“I need you to know better.” He smiled.
Just as she was about to continue her conversation, she looked to her left and the guy from the grocery store walked in. He was quiet but cool. He didn’t say anything to anyone but he made his way through the small crowd and to the bar. She couldn’t help but watch him. She was enamored by him.
Micah took notice but he didn’t say anything.
“What’ll it be, Tommy?” Micah asked. She kept her ears open. She had hoped to learn something about Tommy. So far, all she knew was his name was Tommy and that was only because Micah had name dropped it so casually.
Tommy sat next to Willow and smiled her way.
“You look different outside of a grocery store.” Willow smirked. She didn’t know what to say to break the ice so she tried her hardest to play it cool. She was hoping not to embarrass herself.
“Do I?” He smiled shyly. He didn’t say much. He was and always had been a man of few words. He was gorgeous to her. She was really in awe at the way he sat there. It was like watching a statue.
“Yea. What are you drinking? Can I get you a drink?”
“No. I wouldn’t dare. I’m a gentleman ma’am.” He declined. She cocked her head back and wondered what that meant. A gentleman. Buying a drink was just her way of doing a nice gesture for a man she was trying to get to know. But he obviously wasn’t interested in getting to know her. Or was he? He was very hard to read.
“My name is Willow. And yours?”
“Tommy. Nice to meet you, Willow.” He was so quiet and reserved. That behavior didn’t belong in a bar as far as she was concerned.
“Micah, can you get Tommy a round of whatever I’m drinking? I hate drinking alone.” She smiled.
Micah smiled and obliged. He brought out three shot glasses and filled them to the brim. He passed one to each of them and proposed a toast.
“To making new friends,” Micah called out. They clinked their glasses and took back the shots rapidly. Each of them felt a burning sensation but they laughed together.
It was clear to her at the time that Tommy was shy. She was trying her hardest to bring him out of his shell but nothing was working. Nothing at all.
He appeared to oblige her in conversation but his words fell short each time. He smiled in her face. She could read his body language and tell he was into her, but she needed him to loosen up.
“Another round?” Micah asked.
They shook their heads in agreement. Yes. Another round. She wanted to leave the place in bad shape, maybe even with Tommy. It was clear that Micah was smitten with her, too, but as a newly single girl who was trying to get over her husband, she knew better. She had to play it aloof. She hadn’t done this in a while but she knew how to keep a man on her line. Even a shy one.
“You have to excuse my friend Tommy here, he’s a tad shy. Great guy and all but he doesn’t talk much. He’s kinda grumpy too but we love him anyway,” Micah explained.
She knew he was telling the truth. Tommy surely didn’t speak on his own behalf. He seemed to like to play the game as well. So it left Willow to pull out the big guns.
“He doesn’t look shy at all. He’s actually got a pretty welcoming face.” She smiled at Tommy. He looked down at his shoes. He wanted to say something but his words kept failing him. He hadn’t been around a pretty woman in a while. In fact, he’d pretty much been a recluse the last couple of years. He was grumpy but misunderstood. Socially he was awkward and just didn’t know how to open up or engage. But she was so pretty he wanted to.
“I-I… well.” He stuttered. He was already frustrated. She thought he was cute as hell. Especially once she heard his voice. You’d think that with his job he’d be more talkative but he was not the type to do small talk anyway. He had a reputation for being no nonsense. She was still trying to find out more about him but so far, all she had was a name. The mystery of who he was excited her.
“Tommy, you’d better finish your drink so you can get the courage to talk to me without looking at your laces.” She teased. His shyness didn’t even phase Willow. She wanted to know more. Micah watched as she got nowhere. Truthfully, he was a bit jealous. He wanted her all to himself but he could see she had eyes for Tommy.
“Have you been out on the beach yet?” Micah quizzed as he brought her a new drink. If she was determined to be plastered, Micah was sure to get her there.
“Are you kidding me? It’s been my favorite place to be since I got here. It’s so beautiful. I could literally stay here my whole life. I can see why people never leave this place.” She gushed with excitement.
Tommy held up his hand in protest of another drink. He was responsible. He wouldn’t drink more than he could handle as he had to drive himself back home. What a scandal it would be, the town’s Sheriff drinking and driving. He would never live that down. He was determined to keep a low profile and didn’t know whether or not she’d need a ride home. Micah seemed to pour them on kind of strong. He was heavy-handed, and while that would be a dream for most, Tommy knew it could also be a nightmare.
Years ago, in Sanibel, there was a guy who had come through the town like lightning in the night sky. He’d been a drunken mess. The thing about drunken messes was that they don’t usually hurt themselves. They usually hurt others. And that was exactly what happened. A guy from Sanibel was trying to get out of town in a hurry, and he struck and killed Tommy’s fiancé.
Tommy was so heartbroken after that he just buried himself in his work. They never found the guy who did it but he’d been looking for him ever since. While Tommy used to be lighthearted and fun, someone came and took his joy from him that night. He’d never been the same since. Probably wouldn’t ever be. Tommy actually couldn’t stand tourists because of it. He wished they’d never come to Sanibel.
After all, he was certain no one from Sanibel would ever do such a thing. They lived by a certain code. So he kept his eyes open. He didn’t want anything to happen to the new girl, even if he couldn’t stomach being around tourists. He knew something about her was different. He couldn’t quite put his finger on what, though. He just knew she had something about her he enjoyed. She was pleasant and he hadn’t been around pleasant folks in a while.
“Ms. Willow, I’d be happy to take you home when you’re done here,” Tommy muttered under his breath. He wasn’t sure how she would receive the offer but he wanted to make sure she was safe.
“Why, Thomas, I would be more than happy for you to do that. If it’s okay with Micah to leave my car here tonight.”
“I’m sure he’d have no problem with that. Right, Micah?” Tommy smiled.
Micah obliged. They were both kind gentlemen. She contemplated dating them both. She didn’t see any reason she couldn’t. She was newly single in a geographical sense, so why not?
“You do this to all the girls, Tommy?” she asked. She was clearly a tad inebriated.
“No, ma’am. Just the new ones who haven’t gotten the hospitality of the city.” He smiled.
Willow took back another shot and touched Tommy’s face. He hadn’t been touched so intimately in a while and it made him feel different.
“You’re a saint. You know that?” She smiled and kissed his cheek. He didn’t think he was a saint. He just thought he was doing everyone a favor by keeping a drunk driver off the road. She wasn’t slurring her words or anything but she definitely had a few and it was taking its toll on her lightweight frame.
“Where do you live?”
“Summerland Cottage.”
“That’s right up the road. Come on, let’s get you home safely,” Tommy said. He wasn’t ready to leave, but he knew if they didn’t, she’d drink more and more. He didn’t want her to get herself sick. Tommy was a lot of things—shy, a little awkward, a hard ass—but he was also genuine and kind. A true friend.
They left the bar together and Tommy opened his door for her. A true gentleman. He helped her in and encouraged her to put on her seat belt so as not to touch her inappropriately. He was indeed a gentleman. As he drove her to the cottage, he looked over at Willow passed out in the seat, sleeping peacefully, and deep down, it triggered him. The last person to be in his passenger seat was his fiancé. He missed her greatly. He was still learning how to cope with things. How could he, if everything reminded him of her even after all these years?
When he pulled up, he noticed another car he recognized.
“Ahem. Ms. Willow, we’re here.” Willow hadn’t budged. He parked and got out of the car and walked over to her side to let her out. He knew he’d have to carry her. It wasn’t his favorite idea though. He unbuckled her seat belt and swooped her in his arms. She nuzzled up into his neck and wrapped her arms around him as he carried her to her front door. Before he could reach for her keys, the door opened.
“You got a lot of nerve showing your face around here, Thomas Rodgers!” He looked as if he’d seen a ghost! And he had.
“Your friend needed a ride, as you can see. Why you making such a stink out of this?”
“Because, you haven’t even figured out who killed my sister! You wanna be the man on campus so bad, but you’re just as lost as the rest of us! Stay away from this house, Thomas. I’m warning you.”
He left Willow with Brandi and drove away. He hadn’t known she was angry with him. He had no clue. But, now that he did, he knew to steer clear from Summerland cottage. He didn’t want ANY trouble. He knew Brandi was a hotshot attorney and she could make things difficult for him.