Page 21 of Forgive Me Father: For I Have Sinned

IT ONLY TOOKAcouple of months to build up a regular clientele and drive home Daniel’s initial point about letting him know if the double shifts became too much for me. We reached an agreement that I would continue to do both jobs until they could find a viable replacement for the busser position, which didn’t take long to do given the reputationThe Nookhad recently gained. With the new kid trained we added two more nights of dancing to my schedule, so I was on stage from nine p.m. to close Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Thursday was ladies night and Sunday was LGBT night, but to anyone who frequented our bar, they knew every night was LGBT night.

Sometimes with my regulars, I would actually go down into the crowd and dance with them off and on throughout the night. For some reason, that seemed to be a highlight for them. The guys told me as long as I was comfortable with it to go for it, but if anyone got too handsy to let them know and they’d take care of it. So far, so good.

One night I eyed a group of guys, well they looked like a team of football players crammed into a booth that was far too small for them. That was a sight you couldn’t miss.

“I think you have an admirer,” Daniel told me when I came to the bar for a drink.

“Oh yeah, what makes you say that?” I asked.

“See that table of Marines over there?” he pointed to the table crammed full of oversized bodies.

“Yeah, I thought they were football players or something like that.”

“Nope, Marines. I’ve seen them here before but the big guy at the end, crew cut, dimples, plain white tee,” he paused, watching me as I glanced over at them spotting the watchful eyes of the guy in question.

“Yeah, what about him?”

“He’s had his eyes glued to your ass all night long.”

“Right, those guys reek of straight genes. He’s got to be watching that chick out there dancing.” There was no way that hot as hell guy was interested in me.

“Really? Care to put a little wager on it?” Daniel teased. He knew I didn’t gamble, hell I wasn’t even twenty-one yet so I knew his bet wouldn’t be more than washing dishes for a week.

“You’re on. What’s the wager?” I asked, setting my empty glass down on the bar top.

“If I’m right and he’s interested in you then you have to wash my car,” Daniel wagered.

“And if I’m right you have to install a private dressing room downstairs for me,” I’d mentioned needing this before so I wouldn’t have to keep going out into the rain to go upstairs and check my make-up between dances only to have to traipse back through the rain again.

We shook on it, and I headed back to the stage, glancing over at their table numerous times throughout the night. Maybe my evil side tempted the burly man a time or two by bending over and shaking my ass provocatively in his direction. Maybe… but when all was said and done, he and his friends were gone, and I was well on my way to winning the bet, yet when I went to bed that night, I felt slightly defeated.

A few weeks passed and no more Marines, they must’ve just been passing through town and stopped in on a fluke. Part of me was sad, but it was time to give up that pipe dream and ask Marcus to start designing my new dressing room.

“Hey Jamie,” Marcus stopped me in the hallway outside Daniel’s office when I came down for my shift.

“What’s up?” I asked, looking down at my shoes, debating on running back up to change them.

“There’s a girl in the booth by the front door. She says she’s your sister.”

That got my attention, I hadn’t seen my sister in what, five, almost six years. “This can’t be good.”

“We’ll be at the bar if you need us,” he said.

“Thanks.”

Nearing, I half expected to see some stranger I’d never met before but was shocked when I saw my little sister who wasn’t so little anymore staring up at me. “Liv?” I asked, looking into the eyes of a beautiful woman who was the mirror image of me but with long, blonde curls falling to her waist.

She smiled. “Jamie, no one’s called me that in years,” Olivia said, wrapping her arms around my midsection. “I’ve missed you so much.”

“Liv are you okay? Why are you here? How did you find me?” The questions just came pouring out, making her giggle and me realizing how much I missed her sweet laughter.

“Jamie, breathe,” she smiled. “Do you have some time to talk?”

I looked over at Daniel and Marcus, both shot me a thumbs up. “Yeah, I’m good. Tell me everything. God Liv, I’ve missed you so much.”

“And I, you. You didn’t deserve what they did to you Jamie, and I hate them for it. After that day I promised myself as soon as I was eighteen, I was out of there. I heard dad telling mom where he sent you. So, when I started applying to colleges, the University of Washington was the one I set my sights on, and I got in. I moved up here on Monday and saw a poster on the bulletin board of the campus café with my handsome brother’s face on it. I was so relieved, I had no idea where to start looking for you. Jamie,” she started crying. I moved over to her side of the booth and wrapped my arms around her. It felt so good to have her in them.

“It’s not your fault Liv had you not called the cops he probably would’ve killed me. I’ve got a good life now, it wasn’t always that way, but I’m finally doing what I always dreamed of. I’m dancing Liv, and not dad nor mom or anyone else can take it away from me, and I’m really good if I do say so myself.”

---