Page 6 of Turning Tides
“Noted.” Archer motioned to an empty booth. “I’ll be waiting right over there for you. Promise.”
Cyrus stormed off back to his kitchen and Archer went to the booth leaving me standing there with Mickey’s burger. I walked it over to him and he rolled his eyes.
“Is there any point in ever telling him that I can feed myself?”
“Probably not.” I handed the burger off. “Grab a seat, fill your face. It’s fucking slow tonight.”
“It’s always slow on Tuesdays.” Mickey took the plate from me and went around to the other side of the bar. He grabbed a stool and dug into his food. I left him to eat and tried not to watch Archer. I half expected him to still be stirring the ice in his glass, but he’d taken something out of his messenger bag and it was currently occupying all his attention.
Keeping one eye on him in case he decided to bolt, I remembered Cyrus telling me that his brother was an artist of some kind. A tattoo artist. My skin itched with a renewed interest in adding more ink to my collection.
I watched Archer for longer than was reasonable or proper. Longer than Cyrus would have let me get away with, but he was in the back. Sounds of his cursing and swearing filtered out from time to time. Even when Cyrus appeared with two burgers, I couldn’t pry my gaze away from Archer.
When Cyrus sat down, Archer slammed his book shut and stuffed it into his bag. His gaze flicked up and caught mine—caught me, really.Instead of being embarrassed, I shrugged a shoulder, letting him see me not care that I’d been caught checking him out.
Cyrus wouldn’t actually kill me. He might talk a big game, but the man was a softie. He nudged Archer’s plate toward him and I finally made myself look away.
Mickey ducked into the kitchen to get rid of his plate and I busied myself by doing a round in the bar, tucking chairs in and bussing tables. The Anchor had a small stage, a more generous dance floor, and a DJ booth, but mostly we were the sit down and eat a burger and have a few beers kind of place. The pool tables and the darts brought people in, but tonight the place was a ghost town.
“Hey, Mickey, it’s quieter than a cemetery in here. How about you go home early?”
Mickey’s boyfriend owned a diner and was up at the ass crack of dawn every day. Not my favorite time to be alive, but it worked for some people.
“You don’t mind?” Mickey was already reaching for his apron strings.
“I wouldn’t have suggested it if I did.”
I needed the distraction of working alone more than I needed the help. My gaze still wanted to slide over to Archer and Cyrus and when it did, they looked… animated. Cyrus was probably doing his typical big brothering that he inflicted on Mickey. But where Mickey blossomed under the attention, even from here I saw Archer bristling.
His plump lips were pulled into a flat line and he’d pulled his shoulders back. Fire danced in his eyes and I wondered if I was going to have to break up a fight between my cook and his brother in the middle of my bar.
Before things got out of hand, I poured two new drinks and carried them over to the table. Cyrus was talking with his hands again. The more agitated he got, the more he sliced at the air.
“Thought you boys could use a refill.” I set the drinks down and grabbed the empty glass. Archer’s hand shot out and he grabbed his straw and stuffed it into his new cup. I watched him lock eyes with Cyrus and stir the ice faster and faster. The corner of his mouth twitched and Cyrus let out a sigh.
“You’re a nuisance, Archer.” Cyrus sounded tired and dejected and I knew I’d probably get way more information than I needed later. Cyrus had a big heart, but his big heart came with a big mouth.
Archer flicked his gaze to me and raised his eyebrow, silently questioning what I was doing still standing there. I refused to feel sheepish, but I did leave the table.
I poured a few beers for some locals who liked to come here on quiet nights to play pool. The tables I’d invested in were coin operated and any money they made went to the community food bank. When I first won the money, I promised myself that I wouldn’t be one of those people who always said they’d help people if they won, but then spent it on cars that were too powerful and houses that were too big.
Kieran thought I gave too much away, but he’d long since stopped commenting on my charitable endeavors. Promising him that he could veto any of my harebrained ideas that could actually ruin me seemed to help. I didn’t want to go broke, after all. Even my generosity had its limits.
A flurry of movement caught my attention and I looked over in time to see Archer stand up and toss a couple of bills on the table. He snatched up his bag and was gone even quicker than he’d come.
Cyrus stomped into the kitchen and I glanced around, making sure everyone was good before I ducked into the back to check on him.
“That insufferable child.” Cyrus loaded dirty dishes into the tray to get them ready for the dishwasher. He slammed the plates in like they’d personally offended him.
“He’s hardly a child.”
Oh boy, if looks could kill. Cyrus glared at me.
“If he wants me to call him an adult, he can act like one.”
I folded my arms over my chest. I didn’t know Archer, but I wanted to stick up for him. He looked like he had walls that went ten feet high and just as thick. And clearly Cyrus had been slamming into them like the battering ram he was.
“Mickey has spoiled you.”
