Page 198 of Finding Delaware

But how do I show him? What can I do to lessen the blow of my absence while still making him feel like he’s wanted and loved? Because that’s what my baby needs; to be needed inreturn. But how the fuck am I supposed to do that from miles away?

With that thought weighing heavily on my mind, I head inside to do my prep work before the bar opens, setting up and ensuring kegs are full. Once we open, it gets busy, as usual, for a Friday night, and I don’t see much of Taylor between making drinks and taking food orders. The few times I spot him running dishes to the back, he refuses to catch my gaze, twisting my stomach into knots. A few hours into the night, when we reach a lull in business, Juanita steps behind the bar and tugs my earlobe painfully hard, making me yelp.

“What did you do to my Taylor, hm? He’s being more bratty than usual!”

“I didn’t do anything,” I refute, yanking myself out of her grasp to massage my ear, and she points a gnarled finger at me.

"Pinche mentiroso, you fix it! Now!"

With an iron grip, she shoves me through the door into the kitchen, where I stumble over the floor mat and slam right into Taylor’s back. He drops all his dishes with anoomph, glass shattering all over the tile.

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” He whirls around, mouth open to shout, but slams it shut when he sees me standing there like a deer in headlights.

“Sorry...Juanita pushed me. I’ll clean it up.”

His eyes follow me as I grab the broom and dustpan, sweeping the sharp shards into a pile. “And why is Juanita pushing you?”

I shrug, depositing the mess into a trash can. “Because she thinks I pissed you off and wants me to make it better.”

Christian smirks over his shoulder from the sink, shaking his head before returning to what he’s doing. When I notice Gale glaring at me, I lift my chin and mouthwhat?He doesn’t break his stare or respond, which isn’t surprising because I don’t even think he talks. Taylor crosses his arms, drawing my attention back to the matter at hand.

“She’s such a mama bear,” my boyfriend huffs, rolling his eyes. “I’m just in a shitty mood.”

“Because of me?”

He drops his head, letting dark strands fall into his eyes as he kicks the trash can. “No...the situation, yes, but not you.”

“Baby,” I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose, “we both knew that I’d be leaving toward the end of summer.”

“Yeah, I know,” he turns away, the defeated tone of his voice making my heart crack. “I’ve got more dishes to grab, Huck. I’ll see you later.”

That’s how the rest of the night goes; Taylor ignoring me and being a beast to everyone else. And because Juanita thinks I’m the reason, so does the whole staff, which means they’re all giving me the cold shoulder, too. I’m not particularly close with most of them, but it still stings.

Two in the morning comes and goes for last call, and once the bar shuts down, I stay behind to help close up like usual. As I’m mopping the front, I hear pounding on the front door, and Salem’s face appears through the glass, scowling at me. I tip-toe over the wet surface and unlock the door, raising a brow at her when I pull it open.

“What are you doing here?”

“Picking up Taylor,” she brushes past me, leaving footprints all over my clean floor as she marches toward the kitchen.

“What the fuck?” My brows slam down as I follow on her heels. “What do you mean, picking him up? It’s the middle of the night.”

Christian and Taylor are putting everything away when we step through, and Taylor’s eyes briefly meet mine before he gives his attention to Salem. “We’re almost finished. Ten more minutes, and we can go.”

“Go? Go where?” I block his path on the way to lock up the walk-in freezer. “Tay, what’s going on?”

He licks his lips, looking everywhere but at my face. “I’m going to stay at Salem and Xed’s tonight. Matty’s gone with Valerie and Hannah, so I’ll chill with them while they get high.”

My jaw tightens painfully, blood pulsing in my veins. “Why?”

“I just...need some space,” he mumbles with his back to me, finishing his work tasks, and it feels like my heart just dropped to the ground. Christian and Salem watch me closely as if waiting for me to react poorly. All I can do is gaze at the ground, feeling like my walls are closing in.

When everything is finished, and we shut off the lights, I trail after them out the employee exit, waiting until Taylor veers off toward Salem’s Jeep before speaking.

“Why are we always running away from each other?”

His steps falter, and he stops, turning his head slightly. The fingers at his sides flex before he continues on, sliding inside the vehicle. They pull out onto the road, and I watch him slip away from me bitterly until he’s nothing but a speck of light against the night sky.

Taylor

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