Chapter Three #3
A bar was not really where Mo preferred to spend her time.
People frequented bars, and she had kind of given up on people as a whole.
But nothing hit like a warm meal, so Mo crossed to the double doors, pushing her way inside.
The place was dim, eclectically decorated, and reminded her immediately of every dive country-western bar she had performed in with Annie and the band.
But instead of being purposefully decorated that way, this was definitely styled to fit someone’s personal tastes, making it all the more comfortable to her.
There was a decent crowd for late afternoon, mostly elderly couples or groups of middle-aged men watching repeats of popular sports games on one of the many TVs hanging throughout.
Mo moved purposefully to the farthest edge of the bar, hopping into a barstool that was intentionally far away from any of the other patrons.
She squinted her eyes toward the beer taps, trying her best to recognize the brands on the handles just as the kitchen door popped open.
Mo forgot about the beer.
The woman, dressed in normal bartender fare but with her own charming style choices, was unconventionally gorgeous in a way that felt illegal.
She was carrying two large plates of what looked like chicken-fried steaks with one hand and a pitcher of iced tea in the other.
Mo watched as she made unadulterated eye contact with a man sitting by himself at a table, her eyes mesmerizing as she flashed a quirky smile at him while refilling his iced tea.
She laughed a genuinely full laugh before walking away, almost skipping to a corner booth where she delivered the plates of food.
Mo could hear notes of her singsong voice across the bar.
She sounded undeniably pleasant and attentive.
At this point Mo was twisted on her stool, her heart skipping a beat as she watched how sensuously the adorably curvy woman leaned over the table.
While her eyes were locked on the woman’s shapely butt, Mo didn’t notice that another, older woman had placed a glass of water and a menu behind her.
“Aspen will be with you soon.”
Mo shot around, almost knocking over the water, her face showing all the signs of someone who had been caught staring for too long. “Uh…”
This woman, much older and much grumpier looking, definitely knew what Mo had been doing. Before Mo could come up with a suitable excuse, the woman slyly winked at her before repeating herself, “Aspen…” She was now nodding toward the woman Mo had been staring at. “Will be with you soon.”
“Okay,” was all Mo could mutter before the older woman hobbled off and she was left blinking down at a menu, heat radiating off her ears in embarrassment.
So the undeniably hot woman’s name was Aspen.
Mo felt her mind wobble back and forth, thinking about what she could possibly do with that information.
Before she could decide, a flash of movement appeared in her peripheral vision and she was suddenly back to looking at Aspen, who was now at the taps, expertly pouring a beer.
This was not what Mo had planned to do with her evening, so even as she studied Aspen’s soft features, Mo was considering just running for the door.
As her left leg began to spin her body off the stool, Aspen’s brown eyes caught her hazel ones, and Mo forgot about anything else.
They couldn’t have held the gaze for more than a few seconds, but Mo definitely saw light dance across Aspen’s features.
Aspen placed the beer down in front of a man farther down the bar before quickly making her way toward Mo.
Just as she got within ten feet of her, a much older, rather stern-looking man came out of nowhere and leaned across the bar top toward Aspen. Mo saw the woman’s face fall a tad as she finally broke her gaze to give the man her attention.
“Mr. Pearson,” Aspen greeted. “Do you need a refill?”
“No. Can you just tell Virginia I forgot my wallet at home? I promise I ain’t walking out, I just need to go pick up my grandkids, go home, then I’ll grab it and come back before close.”
Aspen leaned away from him, but her voice stayed bubbly. “I don’t think all of that is necessary, Mr. Pearson. Your store is right next to the bar, you can come in tomorrow and pay up your tab.”
“This isn’t your establishment,” Mr. Pearson responded, obvious annoyance in his voice.
“No, but this has happened before with Odessa.” Mo watched as Aspen smiled wide. “I promise Virginia won’t ban you from your nightly BLTs.”
“Just go tell her,” he grumbled before turning quickly, ambling out of the bar without another word.
“Good night, Mr. Pearson. See you tomorrow!” Aspen yelled after him before turning to finally stand in front of Mo, all of that precious attention solely placed on her. “Hi, newcomer. I haven’t seen you here before.”
Mo felt herself blush deeply, suddenly very aware that she had been ogling Aspen for far longer than was appropriate. She turned down to focus on the menu instead of Aspen’s face, hoping it would allow her to string together a sentence properly. “Yeah, I’ve uh…never been here before.”
“I know,” Aspen responded deliberately. “I definitely would have remembered you.”