“Yes Avery, I promise you. If you knew what I thought about you... you might run.”
“Would you want to tell me over a drink?”
“I'll be there in twenty minutes,” I say and hang up not giving her time to change her mind.
Grabbing the Impala keys, I dart out the door.
I make it there in fifteen minutes. I know it may show how eager I am but I don't feel like playing any bullshit games. If I seem eager it’s because I am.
Something my dad said before I left replays in my head. The hottest flames can burn out the fastest, don't forget to take time to get to know her. He's right of course, I think as she opens the door and I lean down to kiss those amazingly soft lips while she molds herself to me.
I step back and smile. “Well, hello there.”
“Hello, yourself.” She turns to the door and locks up behind her. I take her hand as we walk down the stairs and lead her out to the car, opening the door for her.
We don't say much on the drive over, but I can't help but look down at where our hands are still connected. I like this girl and Dad is right, I need to get to know her.
At a local tavern I know of, we sit in our out of the way booth and wait for the server.
“So what will you guys be drinking?” the guy asks us over the low murmur of people ordering food and talking.
Thankfully there is no music being played in the background. I want to hear what she has to talk about and not have to shout out how absolutely beautiful she is. I don't mind proclaiming that to the world, but it seems kinda like a bit of a pickup line if I am yelling it.
“I'll have a hard cider,” she says then looks to me.
“Virgin rum and diet coke,” I say with a grin to the server. He rolls his eyes and I think Avery does as well.
He leaves us shortly after making sure we don't want anything to eat.
“Why a diet coke?”
“I don't drink often, especially when I am driving, and I am in training again.”
“Ha, I thought you were just being a pussy,” she giggles out before taking my hand across the table and holding it.
“Hah!” I burst out laughing. “Yeah, probably.” I hold her hand and smile. “So how was your day?”
Her giggling stops short as she sighs to herself. “School was okay. Ethan called right as I got out of class. He was waiting at school to talk to me.”
I grunt, the little fucker has had a very busy day.
“What?” she asks as she notices me tense up just a bit.
Shaking my head, I frown. “You go first and then I will.”
“Well, he started with apologizing. He is going to anger management classes. I'm not really sure what to think. I was prepared to push him completely away from me. I might forgive him for what he did, but I certainly won't forget it.”
She frowns and pauses. Her cheeks darken with color and I get the impression she’s a bit embarrassed or ashamed of what she’s about to admit. “He pulled me off the schedule for a few days. He said he did it so I can rest and recover. I can't just take days off. I mean, I really can't...”
The waiter sets our drinks down. Before his back is even turned she takes a huge gulp from her bottle.
“Can't afford to?” I ask quietly.
Nodding her head, she goes on. “Right, because between school and rent I’m strapped tight.”
She looks down at her bottle and her fingers nervously pick and peel at the label. “Missing a couple of days of work would put me in a very bad spot. At the time, I didn't know he was putting them down as paid time off, so I was worried. But now, it looks like he’s going to pay me for all the time off. And he offered me a new job, too. Wants me to be his personal assistant. His just got married or something, so he needs a new one. He also wants to increase my pay.”
I bet he does, the little fucker. If she is really in a bad enough spot as it looks like, and I really don't doubt she is, I remember what her kitchen cabinets held, then I can understand how thin the line is between a home and the streets.
“So I told him I needed time to think about it. I’m not sure if I’ll turn it down, at least for now anyway. I applied at school for a paid internship with a youth program. It would be amazing if I got picked.”
She looks up at me and smiles. It’s not the biggest I have seen from her, but it has determination to it. “So tell me about your dad.
I smile, not the most subtle change in topics, but I don't comment on it. “He just had his knee replaced but it’s not stopping him. He’s been really itching to go back to work. Probably would already be there if he could. He's a real estate broker. He's also one of my best friends. Ever since my mother passed when I was six, he has been the there for me any time, day or night, no matter what. And he's always put everything on hold if I needed him. Probably the best dad a guy like me can have.”
“I'm so sorry about your mom, it must have been really difficult for you,” she says and her eyes hold a sadness there.
“Yeah, it was but he was there for me. When she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer my dad was positive she would make it through, and for that matter I think she was too. It wasn't two months later though that she was laid to rest with a six year old boy and father left behind.”
“He has been like a mother and father ever since then,” I chuckle quietly, trying to lighten the mood. “He has never once pushed me away or told me he was too busy. I think after the first couple of months, when the grieving had subsided a little, I started trying to be there for him too.”
I look to her and she has a sad smile still. “What about your parents?” I ask.
“My grandmother raised me. I was five when my mother told me she was tired of dealing with a damn mistake and dumped me on my grandmother’s doorstep. My dad has never been around, I doubt my mom even knew who he was.”
She shakes her head and does the what can you do shrug of her shoulders. “So when I was dropped off, my grandmother took me in. Raised me as if I was her own daughter. She died a year and a half ago, and she was all I had… besides Ethan.”
Avery stops and tips her bottle back, drinking deeply from it. Sighing, she sets the bottle down and looks a million miles away until I reach across the table and squeeze her hand. She jerks at first, as if she forgot where she was, then seems to shake the cobwebs from her head.
“What money my grandmother had was eaten up by the bills. She received assistance so there wasn’t much in the first place. I couldn't even afford to give her a funeral. They mentioned cremation but she wanted to be buried near my grandfather. Ethan swooped in and he paid for the funeral. Didn’t even give me a chance to argue, he just did it. It feels like that was the one thing he has ever done where strings weren't attached.”
I nod my head, “Yeah, I can understand that I think.”
The waiter arrives again and asks if we would like refills. I nod my head for myself and Avery nods as well.
“When my mom died, we weren't in dire financial straits, but we were not really mentally available for much beyond one or two word sentences. It was hard. I can't imagine the grief you must have gone through and probably still are.”
“It's better now, emotionally at least. I know she’s at peace.” She sucks in a sharp breath after saying that and fans her face with her hand until her eyes stop watering. The waiter reappears and she seems to be able to get herself together. I get the impression she’s the kind of girl who doesn’t like to cry in front of others. I feel my heart aching at the thought of her crying alone, somewhere in private. Then I feel like I want to crush something when I wonder if Ethan has ever been there to comfort her.
“Financially it’s still tough, but it has to get better,” she says, as if saying it is believing it.
I nod and accept my second drink from the waiter. I want to know more about Avery but the conversation has definitely taken a somber turn. I don’t want to talk about the past anymore, I want to think towards the future, and all the things I’m going to do to her to help her feel better. I want her to remember this night with a smile.
“After this, do you wanna come home with me? If you still want more alcohol, I have some at the house though it’s a bit stiffer than what you’re drinking.”
Avery
I nod my head at Chase. The buzz is kicking in. I’m definitely starting to feel number, warmer.
“I’d love to check your place out,” I tell him. I’m just dying to see where Chase lives. After talking to him tonight, I’ve been pleased to discover that underneath all his hard, sexy, bulging muscles is a real person. A real person I’d really like to get to know more.
I tip back my bottle and finish it off, ready to get out of here. Licking the last drops of the cider from my lips, I set my empty bottle down on the table. Chase watches me a little too closely, too eagerly while fishing out his wallet. My cheeks warm as I smile.
“Ready?” he asks and pulls out a few bills, slapping them down on the table.
I nod and stand, slinging my purse over my shoulder. Chase slips out of his booth and reaches for my hand. All night, we’ve been connected by our hands as if it’s difficult being near each other without touching. It’s strange really. You’d think after sleeping with each other twice in the past twenty-four hours it would have dulled the electrical attraction between us at least a little.