Page 36 of Here In Your Arms

“Ohhhh, I’m going to have to keep my hands to myself? Big words, over there, mister,” Rory teases.

“Comes with Pool God territory,” I lament jokingly.

She giggles and agrees on the condition that she asks her niece first. We agree and pass time with a second drink before leaving the bar. Rory’s on closing duties tonight, but neither of us is up for staying that late on a work night. We walk out of the building together, and I grab Wes’ hand once we’re outside.

“You got it bad,” I tell Wes as we approach his car.

“You’re one to talk,” Wes teases back.

“Do you think she has it bad?”

“Definitely.”

“I’ll see you at home, love,” I tell him before pulling him in for a kiss.

I don’t mind quick pecks when we’re in a hurry, but there’s no hurry now so while I’m not shoving my tongue down his throat, I’m definitely taking it slow and sweet. We break apart and I wave him off. As I climb into my vehicle, I glance in the rearview mirror and see Baldie standing there, just staring at my car. This guy needs to fuck right off.

Chapter 13

Rory

Friday evening comes and I’m watching movies with Claire. Mom needed a break and I never say no to Claire time, so I swapped my Friday shift for Sunday so she could stay over for the night. It means missing out on good tips, but she’s worth it and I can make the tips up tomorrow. I look over at Claire, who is nestled in next to me on the couch, not really snuggling since she’s “too old” for that, but it’s close enough to count.

“Hey, I have an idea I’d like to suggest,” I tell her.

She grabs the remote and pauses the movie. “What?”

“You know you’ve seen this movie before, right? You didn’t need to pause it.”

“It’s disrespectful to talk through movies,” she says, trying for haughty with her tone.

“It’s Cinderella.”

“And?”

“You’re impossible.”

“You love me.” She smiles.

“Unfortunately,” I tell her, tugging on her hair. “You wanna go to the farmer’s market tomorrow morning?”

“Yeah, that sounds fun! Just us?”

“Well, Kyle and Wes would like to go too, if you’re okay with it.”

“Oh, good, I was hoping they asked you out again! Okay, I’m in if they are.”

“Wait, what? How is this contingent on my dating life?”

She grabs my hand solemnly. “Aunt Rory, you need to find someone to love you as much as I do, but who has time for you. I can only be here for you once in a while.”

This kid and the audacity in her veins.

“Claire, you DO realize that I’m the adult here. I take care of you, not the other way around.”

She pats my hand condescendingly. “Whatever you say, Aunt Rory.”

Then, she grabs the remote and resumes watching the carriage turn into a pumpkin. Smiling, I shake my head at her and settle in. She takes way too much upon herself, and as much as I try to make light of things with her, I know she weighs herself down too often. She only has another year or two before high school drama and peer pressure kicks in. I’d hate for her to miss out on the last year or two of being totally carefree.

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