Chapter 10
Dani
I couldn’t stop thinking about Jake. Worse, it was in ways I’d never thought about him before. Sure, he was attractive in high school. When he got his height and put on muscle one summer, the girls at school went feral for him. To me, he was just Jake - my brother from another mother.
But now, I found myself fantasizing about what ifs. What if he was curious, too? What if I wasn’t the only one who thought last night felt like a date? What if dating him didn’t ruin things between us? What if my bad luck was because I’d been blind to the perfect guy all this time?
No, that was selfish and unfair. He moved back after a breakup and drama of his own. My parents were the closest thing he had to family since his mom moved away after his dad died. After years apart, I needed Jake in my life. I wasn’t ready to risk that for a what if.
Plus, it was possible I latched on to him because he was the first person who made me feel safe. He deserved better.
But he was everything I ever wanted in a partner, and it was so easy to imagine Jake as a dad.
“Stop it,” I ordered myself. “You’re a terrible friend by taking advantage of his willingness to help you. Don’t make things weird, too. And don’t hit on your oldest friend simply because you’re curious about what all that muscle feels like.”
It was better to keep things the way they were. I’d never forgive myself if I made things awkward because I was afraid to be alone at thirty-three.
If only I didn’t know how he looked without his shirt or how he smelled fresh from the shower last night.
Twenty minutes before work, and my car wouldn’t start. Damn it. I’d left the interior light on, and the battery was dead. As I hooked it up to the battery charger, Jake parked in his driveway.
“What’s the trouble?”
Embarrassed, I explained.
“If you’re ready to go,” he said, “I’ll give you a ride to the Tavern.”
“That would be great. I don’t mind walking, but I’ll be late.”
We chatted about his day on the way, and things were back to normal. He pulled into the parking lot to drop me off. With a smile and a wave, I thanked him and headed into the tavern. Neil was getting out of his car, and I headed for him.
“Was that delicious snack Jake?” he hissed. “I thought you were with Boring Beau?”
I flushed.
“He’s my oldest friend.”
“No one’s friends with a man who looks like that, honey. Spill. Are you cheating on Beau with that tall drink of water?”
“Of course not!” I insisted “My car wouldn’t start, and he offered me a ride.”
“You’re doing it wrong, baby. That’s not the kind of ride you should be taking with him. Cishet mating habits are so confusing.”
“There’s no mating. We’re friends. I’ve known him since I was eight.”
“He didn’t look like that at eight,” Neil muttered. Then he draped an arm over my shoulder. “But if you’re not interested, send him my way. I can show him a new version of hide and seek.”
“You’re a menace,” I laughed. “He’s recovering from a bad breakup, but I don’t think you’d have much chance anyway. He’s into women.”
“Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve tempted a sweet young thing to the dark side,” Neil said with a wicked grin.
My laughter grew.
“You’re probably the first person who’s ever called him a sweet young thing. He must be at least a foot taller than me.”
“To be fair, you’re a midget. My niece is taller than you, and she’s eleven.”
“I’m not a midget; I’m horizontally challenged.”
“Uh huh, sure. But now that you mention it, it’s probably a good thing you and gorgeous are friends. You don’t go together at all.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I demanded.
“Ah, ha! I knew it! You do want him.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” I glanced around to ensure no one else heard.
We set our things in the back room and got ready for our shift.
“As I said, we’re friends. Besides, I have a boyfriend.”
He scoffed, and it was difficult to hold everything in. I adored Neil, but he was terrible at keeping secrets. Plus, he hated Beau. If Beau showed up here, Neil would take great satisfaction in blabbing the whole thing.
“Please,” Neil said with an eyeroll. “There’s no chemistry between you and Beau the Bland. Be honest. Does he make your toes curl?”
My face screwed up in displeasure, and he snickered.
“That’s what I mean. I bet tall, dark, and friendly would make your toes curl.”
“Enough,” I grumbled. “Jake is my friend, and I really need a friend right now.”
Neil dropped his teasing demeanor and rushed to my side.
“Honey, I’m sorry. What’s wrong? Whose ass do I need to kick?”
I gave a watery laugh and thought hard for a plausible response. After worrying Neil would give me away, I almost ruined it myself.
“I’m really tired. I’ve been working so much lately, and it’s never enough. Now my car won’t start, and I hope it’s something easy, but it never is. My dad’s having a rough time, and it’s a lot to deal with.”
“Oh, no. Is your dad okay? Is there anything I can do to help?”
I felt a rush of affection for Neil. He was an inveterate flirt and an unrepentant gossip, but he was also a dear friend who genuinely cared.
“He fell a few days ago,” I repeated the lie my parents and I concocted, “so I’ve been staying with my folks to help out around the house and make sure he doesn’t overdo it. It’s nothing serious, but mom isn’t up to helping him when he’s hurt. Hopefully, he’ll be right as rain again in a few days.”
“Let me know how I can help. Do you need a ride home?”
“That’d be great. Jake said he’d pick me up, but—“
“If that man is giving you a ride, my offer’s retracted.”
I sputtered a laugh.
“What?”
“I’m doing you a favor. Spend more time with Jake and less with your Beau-ring boyfriend.”
“You don’t know Jake. Maybe he’s selfish and boring, too.”
I slapped a hand over my mouth when I realized what I’d admitted. It was hard to remember everyone thought I was still happy with Beau.
“Ah ha,” he crowed.
“Please don’t say anything,” I begged. “I’m serious.”
His face softened.
“Honey, I’m a blabber-mouth, but I don’t say things that would hurt people. Your secret is safe with me, but we’d better get out there before Dakota sends the dayshift after us.”
With a heavy heart, we left the break room and headed for the main bar. Dakota had taken me on with very little experience, and the last thing I wanted was to cause any trouble.
I set everything up the way I liked it on my end of the bar while Neil did the same thing on his end. We had a steady, busy evening. Most of our customers were townsfolk, but we had a few people from further out.
Shortly before dinner service ended at nine, Beau shocked me when he sat down across from me. It had been months since Beau last visited me at work.
“Beau. What are you doing here?”
He gifted me with his most charming smile which instantly put me on edge.
“I didn’t like how we left things yesterday, darlin’. I never see you anymore.”
“Since everything’s gotten so expensive these days, I work seven days a week.”
He winced but quickly smoothed his expression.
“About that,” he said.
I couldn’t bear to hear him lie about money again. Not when I was so close to being out from under his thumb.
“If you’re here to ask about our camping trip, I need to wait until my dad’s back to normal. If he fell again, my mom’s not strong enough to help him off the floor.”
It was obvious from his expression he forgot about the camping trip. My heart hurt from wasting so much time with someone who saw me as an ATM. While I hadn’t been in love with him, I did care about him. Now it was hard to pretend I didn’t hate the sight of him.
“I’ve also taken on some extra work to help with the new bills, so I’ll have even less time off,” I added with a shrug of apology. “But maybe we can talk about camping next month.”
The camping trip was a lie, a lure he dangled to keep me on the line, and it almost worked.
“Sure. That’s fine.” He cleared his throat. I steeled myself against whatever lie he queued up next. “There seems to be a problem with your debit card.”
“My debit card?” I repeated slowly.
My confusion was real. There were no problems with my debit card, but the lawyer recommended I change all my passwords and replace my cards. I thought it was unnecessary because I never gave Beau any of my banking or credit card information, since I transferred funds to him through an app.
She assured me it saved many of her clients, so I took her advice.
I changed everything, but he shouldn’t know that. In addition to ordering all new cards, I forwarded my mail to my parents’ house, and I updated my address directly with all of my financial institutions a few days ago.
“Yeah,” he continued. “You got a letter from your bank today saying there was a problem. I tried to take care of it for you because I know you’re so busy, but they wouldn’t let me since I wasn’t on the account.”
“That’s upsetting, but I’ll have to call them tomorrow since I’m sure they’re closed by now.”
He waved his hand airily.
“I can take care of it for you. Let me know your account password, and I’ll square everything away. You know how you can be sometimes, always putting off important things until they become a major problem.”
He smirked at me in that smug, condescending way I hated.
“But they won’t talk to you since you’re not the cardholder,” I argued.
“It’s fine. If I have your information, I’ll tell them my name is Daniel, and there’s a typo on the account. It’s not a big deal.”
The off-hand way he trotted out that solution made my blood run cold. Had he done that before? Did I need to go through my accounts with a fine-toothed comb? Clearly, I needed to prioritize getting those credit reports like the lawyer said.
Shit, shit, shit.
I deflated at the prospect of not only adding more to my already insurmountable to-do list but having more financial catastrophes to handle.
“Order up,” Dakota called out.
Startled, I made eye contact with my boss.
Sometimes, if we weren’t busy, he delivered the food he cooked directly to the tables himself.
He was a real people person, in addition to being a great short-order cook and boss, and he loved connecting with his customers.
Right now, he was giving me an escape route.
“I’ve got to get back to work,” I said.
“But what about your debit card?” Beau whined.
“I can’t afford to lose this job, Beau.”
He scoffed, but I ran off to the kitchen before he harangued me further.
“You okay, girlie?” Dakota asked. “Is that boy bothering you? I thought he was your special friend, but you didn’t look too happy to see him. Did y’all break up, and he didn’t get the memo?”
I chuckled sadly.
“Something like that. I’d better get this order out.”