Page 34 of Last First Date
"Shut up." The beer is lukewarm from sitting on the bar and waiting for me, but I appreciate it nonetheless. "But also, thanks for meeting me."
Daniels shrugs. "I told you we'd talk about it later, didn't I? So, I guess this is later."
I freeze, then remember I better answer him. "Talk about what?" It's probably way too late to play dumb on this, but it's worth a shot.
"Don't play with me, Abernathy. Whatever has you drinking at this ugly hour of the morning involves Darcy Albrecht or else I really am the idiot that you keep making me out to be."
I tense up for a moment and don't answer.
K.T. eyes us both. "If this pity party is about Darcy, then I'm checking out. She's a friend and I'm not going to listen to it. Get your own beers but no more hard stuff."
And then she knocks on the counter one time and heads back toward her office.
"Tell me," Daniels says.
I huff out a breath. "Fine. She asked me to help her figure out how to get a date with an upper crust guy. Hesse Kotner, to be more specific."
He nods once, then goes around behind the bar to grab us each another beer. "Go on."
"So yeah. I took her to Cielo and she was like extra sexy asshole bait. Steve Garretson was practically climbing down the front of her dress."
Daniels stops me with a raised palm. "Wait. Dress? Darcy wore a dress?" He pauses and looks off thoughtfully into the distance. “Tell me more about this dress.”
"Quit thinking about her that way, you dirtbag. Yes, she looked fucking incredible, but that's not what this conversation is about."
"Isn't it though?" Ugh. Now he's giving off this weird vibe like he's the all-knowing Zen master of all possible relationship drama. Daniels. As in ridiculous Xeroxed-his-balls Daniels.
"Anyway, we were both a bit fired up after the big job and everything."
"Everything as in that fucking wild pole dance you did. Yes."
I close my eyes for just long enough to stop from killing him or completely freaking out. "Okay, fine. Well afterward, I went into her office and kissed her."
He sucks in a breath, then chugs the rest of his relatively full beer. "Okay. Well, you kissed her. Everyone gets a little wired after their first really big fire. Just explain to her that it was nerves and she'll probably let it go."
He nods his head decisively and smacks his hands together like he’s wiping them off. "There you go. Darcy's cool and she won't hold it against you or anything. She's a good truckie, and she knows how it goes sometimes. Problem solved, little buddy."
I make a face at him and he shakes his head at whatever anguish and bad decisions he sees on my face. "Cripes. We're both getting drunk before noon, aren't we?"
I push my empty toward him, and he slides me another. "She came over to my place after her shift."
"Fuck." Daniels pinches the bridge of his nose like I've given him a migraine, either from my words or from whatever he can see written all over my face.
"Yeah, pretty much."
He stares at me like I admitted that I shot his dog. "You're a filthy pig, Abernathy. Everybody knows Darcy's off limits. Hell, she's your lieutenant, you dumbass."
I shake my head, which is finally buzzing from the alcohol. "I know, man. Obviously, I know all of that stuff, but I couldn't not take a shot with her. Have you seen how fucking amazing she is?"
Daniels flinches at the lovesick tone in my voice. "Shut up. Don't you dare talk about her that way."
K.T. appears in the hallway like a vengeful spirit. "No shit-talking or I'll throw you both out like the trash you are."
"I'm not talking shit, okay? I really like her, and I took my shot. Then she chewed me up and spit me out."
Daniels and K.T. are both struck speechless for a moment by the bare pain radiating in every word of my confession.
Then K.T. shrugs. "Well, if it's an issue where she shut your dumb ass down, then carry on." And with that, she heads back to her office.
