Chapter 82 Lonesome Again
“Drop me a line sometime,” Terry mumbled as she left the room.
Hallie was pretty sure Terry actually meant it because of how bashful she seemed. She pictured texting or emailing Terry and actually getting a response. It was too strange to comprehend.
Maybe it was all worth it if she and Terry could finally become real sisters and this rivalry would be over.
At least, it was a start.
Hallie snuck out of the house as soon as everyone went back to their rooms after dinner.
Once she got into her truck, it was easy to drive the usual route back to Austin almost on auto-pilot, while her mind and her emotions churned in utter chaos.
The shadows of evening fell over the landscape. Not too many other cars were on the road, this being Thanksgiving weekend.
She decided to look for jobs first thing in the morning. It was probably going to be impossible to work for Luke after what happened, and the least he could do was give her a good reference.
The further she traveled away from the ranch, the sadder she got. Here she was again, starting over.
The lights of the Lonesome Cactus blazed into view. Hallie thought it would have been closed for the holidays, but she was glad of the opportunity to have a bite to eat and maybe a drink.
She found Maria behind the bar talking with some tired-looking older man over a glass of whiskey.
“Well, well, if it isn’t the wise bar tender,” Hallie said, “I’m amazed you guys are open on Thanksgiving.”
“Someone’s got to take care of all the sad bums out there,” the bar tender replied.
This made Hallie suddenly think that Luke probably wouldn’t have had anyone to spend Thanksgiving with. It always sucked to be alone over the holidays. Her mama must have thought of that when she invited him.
Hallie hoped one day to be the kind of person who thinks of others, like her mama.
“Then pour me a drink, I guess,” she said.
“You’re going to think I’m being nosy,” Maria said, pouring her a rum and coke, which was her favorite cocktail, “But what the hell are you doing here on Thanksgiving?”
“Yeah,” Hallie said, folding her arms on top of the bar, “You are nosy.”
“Okay, it’s pretty obvious either your family kicked you out, or you left because of some disagreement.”
Hallie sometimes wished Maria wasn’t so perceptive. “I left, okay? I wanted to be alone.”
“Maybe you didn’t want to be so alone since you came here?” Maria suggested, raising her eyebrows.
“I came for the drinks and food, not for you to babble in my ear,” Hallie retorted.
“Okay, okay. What are you going to do now?”
“Start over, I guess. New job, new boyfriend. Maybe even a new city?” The idea seemed appealing since she was too embarrassed to be close to her family at the moment.
Maria pursed her lips. “Wow, must have been quite a blowup.”
“You have no idea. But I’m sure Terry will fill you in on all the gory details.”
“You know,” Maria began, leaning forward on the counter, “I had two older brothers who used to boss me around, beat me up. When I was ten years old, I finally realized I could get stronger and one day they wouldn’t be the boss of me.
I worked really hard building up my muscles until one day I was pretty sure I could take on anyone, not to mention my stupid brothers.
But at that point, I was just proud of what I had accomplished; wasn’t really interested in beating them up anymore.
They knew well enough not to mess with me, so they didn’t give me any more grief, and I didn’t need to beat them to be happy. ”
“I suppose there’s a moral to your story,” Hallie said with a hint of sarcasm.
“No, there isn’t,” Maria said with a light shrug. “I’m just babbling away in your ear.”
Maria went to take the order of another sad old man sitting at the bar, and Hallie instantly felt lonely again.
Of course, Maria was right. If she focused more on her own life, she would feel better. But it felt like a very lonely endeavor at the moment.
The music changed to a new song with a dramatic guitar intro just as a tall, well-dressed man walked into the bar.
Hallie realized that even if she had never met him before, she would have been intrigued and mesmerized by his perfect body and the way he walked with effortless grace.
No matter where they were, no matter who else was around, her heart always hopelessly gravitated towards him, like a moth to a flame.
Not that the other men in the bar could put up much of a competition, but Hallie was sure that even if the entire Cactus were filled with handsome news anchors, male models, and Olympic athletes, Luke would stand out among them.
Luke didn’t seem surprised to see her. He walked over to the bar to take a seat next to her, as if they had arranged to meet there.
As usual, Maria was right: Hallie didn’t want to be so alone.