"He's doing a lot better. I think I'll be able to sleep tonight. If I can't then I'll let you give me a break tomorrow. Deal?"
I can tell by his heavy exhalation that he doesn't like it, so I add on, "Please. I just don't want to leave him yet. Just … not yet."
His features soften and I know he's reading between the lines. If for some reason my father should take a turn for the worse, I want to be here.
He reaches up to stroke his fingertips down my cheek and then he kisses the corner of my mouth. "For you, I will."
"Thank you."
"Call me if anything changes, okay?"
"I will," I agree. Then, with a gulp, I broach the subject I find myself less and less anxious to broach. "You probably need to run by and check on the club at some point, too."
"I'm not worried about the club. Gavin's got it all under control."
I nod. I have no doubts that Gavin does, but what about the matters behind the club? I clear my throat. "What about … what about the little girl?"
"What about her?"
"You should probably check on her. And maybe on where to get the test. You know, when everything opens back up." I add the last to try and sound casual. I feel anything but casual.
"Please don't worry about them. You've got enough on your mind without adding that to the mix."
"I can't not worry about them, Cash. I just feel … uncomfortable. On edge. I just want to know if she's yours and then we can go from there."
"I agree, but right now, you and your father are the most important things. They'll be fine at Dual. The test can wait another day or two. I don't even want to think about them until you can come home."
I nod again. "Did you get our stuff?"
"I did. It's all at the condo."
"Good. Thank you. I just … I wanted it out of there. I know that sounds silly, but I don't want her near our stuff. The thought of her going through it or something … " I shudder in response. But then I look up at Cash's expression and rush to add, "Not that I think she's a creeper. The type of person to go through our belongings or anything."
His smile is tight. God, I hate bumbling through a discussion about his ex and the could-be daughter. I feel like I'm never on the right side of some sort of imaginary line.
"Well, you go on then. I'll see you in the morning, okay?"
Cash holds my eyes for several long seconds. Then, with a tenderness that he might use with a tiny wounded bird or a newborn baby, he pulls me back into his arms and holds me. Like he knows I need to be held. Just like this. Just by him. It doesn't really change anything, but maybe … hopefully … it doesn't have to.
CHAPTER TWO
Cash
When i walk into Dual, I expected to see Sophie behind the bar. Gavin has been keeping me posted on the schedule and how she's progressing. I knew she'd be working tonight. What I didn't expect to see was the line in front of Sophie's end. It appears she's become quite the popular bartender here.
I stop and move to stand in the shadows right inside the door so that I can watch her for a few minutes, unnoticed. She handles the bottles competently, pours beers like a pro and runs the register like she's worked here for weeks rather than just a couple of shifts. I watch her laugh and tease and flirt, and I'm reminded of the Sophie from my youth. She was captivating back then. Back before I knew better than to fall for a pretty face and a hot lay. We used to be friends. Good friends. Because of our parents. And then we became more. I loved her, I guess. As much as a teenager can love anyway. But even as I see the traits of the old Sophie coming out, I'm still all too aware of something just beneath the surface. Something different. Dark. Calculating.
As if she can feel my eyes on her, all the way from across the room and into the shadows, she looks up through the crowd and pins me with her stare. Her smile widens and she gives me a sassy wink before returning her attention to her customers. She didn't get to see my frown.
"She's got a way with the cocks, mate," Gavin says from my right. I don't jump or start when I hear him. I felt him move up beside me in that oddly liquid way he has. Like he was trained to sneak up on people. Which he was. I've gotten used to it, though. I can pick up on it, on whatever small way he disturbs the air around him when he moves.
"So it seems," I say in a low voice.
"Took to the bar like a duck to water."
"So you said."
"Keeps the women engaged, too." As if to give credence to his words, a group of women squeal and throw back a row of shots Sophie laid down. She high-fives them all.