Page 5 of Skid
She stood from the table and pushed her chair back under as she explained, “No one has the right to touch me without permission.” Turning, she walked to the back door of the bar, but before she opened it to enter, she looked over her shoulder at me and reasoned, “I’ve seen you watching me. You’re barking up the wrong tree. I’m not on the menu.”
I stood just as she opened the door, letting the loud music flood the quiet space. “I’m not looking at a menu, Grace. I’m looking at you.”
“Don’t bother. I’m not worth the effort.”
With those sad words, she walked inside and the door closed behind her, leaving me in stunned silence. I could see deep pain in her eyes behind the fake smile she gave everyone, and all I wanted to do was pull her into my arms. She needed to know she was special and worth any effort it took to win her heart.
Chapter 3
Grace
Itried to keep thepast where it belonged, but some days, it was harder than others. I’d been gone for ten years, and no one had come looking for me, so I assumed they wrote me off like so many others. I would say I prayed for them to forget me, but prayers didn’t pass my lips. Not after them.
Returning to my usual spot next to Eddie behind the bar, I jumped back into work, refilling drinks for the regulars and trying to keep the angry tremors from overtaking me. It was the memories that threatened to break through my skin that were keeping me on edge. I knew those frat boys were going to be trouble the second they walked through the door. They all dressed similarly, with faded blue jeans, a douche slogan T-shirt, and boots that cost what most of the customers made in a week.
Eddie watched while I gave another fake smile to a customer as I handed them their drink, and he shook his head, his disappointment in me palpable. Since he helped me all those years ago, he’d encouraged me to live my life, to experience the joys and heartbreaks that came with it, but I never stepped out of my bubble to give anyone a chance. I still was afraid deep inside me, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t shake it.
“You’ve got to let all that shit go, Grace. It’s an anchor around your neck, dragging you down.” I snapped my head to Eddie as he slid a beer across the bar and turned back to me.
“I have let it go,” I responded, hearing the lie fall from my lips.
“Bullshit,” he muttered and slipped out from the side of the bar to grab another case of beer stacked in the hallway.
Looking across the room, I could see the guy from earlier in his usual spot, slowly sipping on a whiskey, and watching me with heat in his eyes. The first time he walked into the bar, my heart leaped into my throat, and I felt desire coursing through my veins as he silently watched me. It was a strange occurrence, and I feared my reaction to him. I asked one of the waitresses to put the moves on him, to see if he would take the bait, but he turned her down every time.
Each time he returned, I smiled a little more inside. Of course, I wouldn’t tell him that I thought his black hair and thick beard were sexy, or that his blue eyes pierced through me the first time our gazes locked across the room. Just knowing he kept coming back, for what I assumed was me, was flattering, even if I never allowed it to go any further than the conversation we had.
His deep voice curled around me like smoke, and I wanted to fall at his feet. That had never happened before, so when he walked outside to talk to me, I kept the hard persona firmly in place, hoping to push him away before I made a fool of myself.
“You should go have a drink with the man since he can’t keep his eyes off you,” Eddie commented as the bar started to empty shortly after midnight.
Last call was in thirty minutes, and I’d completed all my prep work for closing. The band was packing up their equipment, so the jukebox was turned on, its volume much lower than the live music we had whenever they decided to show up. I looked at my boss, my friend, and shook my head as I wiped down the wooden bar with a towel.
“That’s not a good idea, Eddie. I don’t know anything about him. He could be a serial killer for all I know.”
“Then having a drink will give you a chance to learn a few things. You deserve to have a little fun, Grace. And I seriously doubt he’s a serial killer. Looks more like a guy who enjoys a little freedom in his life.”
