Chapter Two #2
She let out a sigh that emptied the breath that had been trapped in the bottom of her lungs. “I did tell you,” she said tiredly. “In a way…”
Too many people were still staring at them, and she shook her head. This wasn’t news to a lot of the old-time regulars. At one time, Billy had been around here more than she had.
But she wasn’t going to share her dirty laundry with everyone.
Escape. It was the foremost idea in her head. She had to get out of here.
Her hair tumbled over her shoulders as she searched for somewhere she could go. Her brain just wasn’t working, and so many people were pressed around her.
Maxie showed her the way out. The grip on her arm changed, and Roxie followed along as her sister cleared a path. The door. She hoped they were heading for the door. Or at least her office. Instead, Maxie directed them towards the booth in the very back corner. Somehow it had opened up.
It was something.
Roxie slid onto the bench but felt her knees give out when she was halfway down.
She landed with a plop that stung, but she tried to cover it up.
When she lifted her gaze, she found her sisters watching her like a bug under a microscope.
They’d both taken seats across the table from her. Talk about teaming up against her.
“This isn’t going to be an inquisition,” she said, establishing the ground rules up front.
“We don’t want to pressure you,” Maxie said.
“But honestly, Rox,” Lexie said softly. “You look like you need to talk.”
Their big brown eyes were round and steady. There was no judgment, just curiosity. And caring.
It was the latter that made her throat choke up again.
She raked a hand through her hair. She couldn’t meet their eyes, but when she looked across the room, she found herself watching Billy as he shook Charlie’s hand.
Skeeter gave him a beer and he tilted his head back to take a long drink.
His throat worked as he downed half the bottle without taking a breath, but then he glanced her way.
And time stood still.
She broke the look first. Staring at the table, she ran her fingertips over its uneven surface until they bumped into the salt. Snatching up the little glass shaker, she drummed it rhythmically in time with the music.
Lexie glanced over her shoulder. “I don’t remember you saying anything about him.”
“We would’ve remembered something like that,” Maxie said with a nod.
Roxie rolled her shoulder. “I told you that a friend got me out of the foster care system.”
“That was Billy?” Maxie said, not understanding. “But how—”
“You married him to escape the system?” Lexie gasped.
“Oh my gosh, your name change from Jones to Cannon when you were sixteen.” Maxie’s eyes went wide. “I just thought you did that to make a clean break or something.”
“It was a bit more than that.” Catching herself, Roxie deliberately dropped the edge from her voice. “He was eighteen, and I was sixteen. When he aged out of the system, we got a judge’s order that allowed us to get married.”
“So, you worked the law to your favor,” Lexie said.
“I damn well did.” Because there was no way they were going to be torn apart.
Roxie raked her hand through her hair again, but then draped her arm over the back of the booth.
The marriage hadn’t just been a way out.
It had been a way in. She’d always been the one on the outside with her face pressed against the window.
With Billy, she’d been welcomed inside. She’d been wanted and needed.
They’d had each other’s backs. They protected one another, trusted one another, and had loved each other. Life had dealt them both a pretty harsh set of cards, but together, they’d thought they’d found a royal flush.
“How long did it last?” Lexie asked.
“Two years.”
“Two years?” Reaching across the table, Maxie caught Roxie’s hand. When Roxie tried to pull away, she just gripped her tighter. “You two were really in love.”
Oh, yeah. They might have been young, but their feelings had been very grown up.
“Why did it end?” Lexie asked.
Twisting her wrist, Roxie pulled her arm away. Maxie’s hand fell limp on the table. Roxie sniffed and looked up at the ceiling fans. That old pain had scabbed over, but she didn’t like anyone picking at it. Not even her sister, whom she loved with all her heart.
She cocked her head. “We were too young, too stupid.”
Her throat felt like it had glass shards poking into it. “I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.”
Lexie sat back and let one eyebrow lift. “You could’ve fooled us.”
Maxie’s expression turned gentle. “That was some kiss, Rox.”
Roxie blew out a breath. Hadn’t it been, though? She still couldn’t feel her kneecaps.
“Just because two people are good in the sack, it doesn’t mean there’s something more between them.” Carefully, she put the saltshaker back in its holder. “It takes more than hormones.”
Because hormones led to other complications and the relationship had to be strong enough to handle the fallout.
Theirs hadn’t been.
And that was that. End of story.
She began scooting across the bench seat. “I need to get back to the party. I’m not being a good hostess.”
“They can wait a little longer,” Maxie insisted.
“Yeah.” Lexie surprised them all when she planted her Steve Madden knee-high boot on the bench across from her, blocking Roxie’s escape. When her sister gave her the evil eye, she lifted a bottle off the seat beside her. “Let’s have the party here for just a little while.”
A weight lifted off Roxie’s shoulders. Just a tiny weight, but it was enough to let her breathe again. The corner of her mouth twitched upwards. “Is that bourbon, Lexie?”
Maxie was a bit more stunned. “I thought you stayed away from that stuff like the plague.”
Lexie also produced three glasses. She poured fast, letting the liquid splash. “Sometimes a girl’s got to do what a girl’s got to do. I’ve just got to say one thing.” She slid the tumbler across the table and leaned forward. “Damn, but he’s pretty.”
Maxie picked up a glass of her own. “Isn’t he, though?”
Roxie swirled the copper-colored liquor around and watched the whirlpool that formed. She could feel it pulling at her, tugging her down. Tilting her head back, she drank a mouthful.
That was Billy.
So pretty, it hurt.
* * * * *
“Hey, Charlie,” Billy said, sticking out his hand and giving his old friend a firm handshake. “Congratulations, man.”
Charlie’s wizened face split into a wide smile, and he stood from his chair. With a yank, he pulled Billy in closer to give him a slap on the back. “I didn’t know if you were going to make it.”
Neither had he. The date and time hadn’t been an issue. He just hadn’t known if he could go through seeing Roxie again.
Or if he could keep his hands off her.
The knot in his chest pulled tighter. Strike number one.
“Are you kidding me?” he said, keeping it light. “I wouldn’t have missed your big send-off.”
Charlie was still patting his shoulder, as if to make sure he was really there. “The season just ended last weekend,” he said, offering an out. “I wasn’t sure if you could get away.”
Actually, that part had been tough. “Yeah, well I had some time coming, and I told them I had to go celebrate with my old man.”
Their gazes connected, and Charlie’s grip tightened on his shoulder.
Billy cleared his throat. Biology had nothing to do with it.
This man had been the steadiest influence he’d ever had on his life.
Too bad he’d already been a wild teen with a chip like a cement block on his shoulder when they’d met.
“How long do you plan on staying?” his mentor asked.
“A few days, maybe a week or so. You know me, I’m not big on planning.”
“Enough time to go fishing?”
Billy grinned. “I’m always up for fun.”
“Speaking of which…” He dug into his jacket pocket and pulled out tickets. The old man’s eyes sparked when he saw them. “These are for when the series starts up again in the spring. I figured you and Lola would be up for some traveling now that you’re retired.”
“Whoa.” Skeeter leaned over his boss’s shoulder, and his eyes bugged out as he read the print. “The Brickyard 400? Are you serious?”
Billy pointed. “VIP passes.”
Charlie got a bit choked up. “Aw, you didn’t need to do that.”
Billy gave him a firm poke in the chest. “But you’re glad I did.”
That got a laugh out of Charlie and the bouncer.
“Damn straight, I am.” The bar proprietor signaled for more drinks. He was still owner for one more night. “Drinks are on me.”
Billy cast a look across the room. The place was busy, but he spotted Roxie heading for a corner booth. She couldn’t get much further away from him than that. “Yeah, I could use one.”
Charlie saw the direction of his attention, and the smile on his face faltered just a bit. “I hope I didn’t stir the pot.”
Billy shook his head and accepted the beer Skeeter passed to him. “Don’t worry about it.”
That pot had been stirred so many times, it was forever running in circles.
Still, that didn’t mean that beer couldn’t help.
He took a long pull on the cold liquid and downed half the bottle before he realized what he was doing.
Wiping the back of his hand across his mouth, he took a deep breath.
He let go some of the weight that was draped all over him and looked around the place.
The bar hadn’t changed much in the past few years. Two, to be exact. He’d managed to stay away from her that long this time.
Finding an open spot, he propped himself up against the wall. The tables were still old and pockmarked, and the Bud sign in the window was still burnt out. But that was a new sound system he heard, and fresh paint had been slapped onto the walls.
He wondered what changes Roxie would make.
He shook his head. Probably tiger-print shades on all the lamps and black leather seats throughout.
Reaching up, he rubbed the back of his neck. He couldn’t believe she owned the place now. He glanced across the room again, unable to help himself. Or that she’d found sisters. Two of them.