Page 15 of Massive Size Mountain Man
I laugh again, loving the banter between us. But then I grow serious.
“So where are your daughters right now?” I ask. “Oh wait, you already said,” I say quickly. “With their moms. And I know this isn’t supposed to be that kind of thing, so you don’t have to answer any personal questions if you don’t want to. But what are your daughters like?”
Liam looks unperturbed, flashing me another Crest-white grin.
“No, it’s fine, I don’t mind answering. And yes, I have two daughters with my two exes,” he says easily. “Madison is nine, and Ellie is five. The girls are the light of my lives, but when they’re together, they can fight like cats and dogs. And Ellie’s fierce,” he says in a wry tone. “It doesn’t matter that she’s eight inches shorter than her sister. She’ll fly at Madison, biting, kicking, scratching, whatever. She’s hell on wheels.”
“Oh my god, the girls fight? As in physically tussling?”
Liam smiles wryly again.
“Unfortunately, yes. At that age, little girls can be just as wild as little boys, and they’re basically savages. They’re unsocialized small humans with poor impulse control. It can make for some insane brouhahas.”
I shake my head.
“Goodness,” I murmur. “It’s good that I didn’t actually come up here to babysit because it would have been total disaster. I mean, I don’t even know how to break apart something like that!”
Liam gets a grim look on his face.
“By force,” he says. “You wade in and pull them apart, and yes, I’ve taken a few blows in the process. But the good part is that small fists aren’t that powerful, so they’re more like taps than actual punches. But yeah, do you have any experience babysitting?” he asks with a smile. “Or was it all a ruse?”
“A ruse,” I admit immediately. “But I figured I could wing it. I mean, kids are kids, and it’s not like I’ve never been around children before. I’d feed them a few snacks, play games, read a story, and then put them to bed before taking up with their dad. How hard could it be?” I tease.
Liam grins wryly.
“Way harder than you think, baby girl. Way harder. But that brings me to another good point,” he says in a deep voice. “What brought you to Sweet Lies? Why are you doing what you do?”
Ah, the million dollar question. I pause to consider a moment before answering.
“Well, I have a job outside of Sweet Lies. I’m a barista at the Northstar Café, and it’s fine. I pull shots, deal with customers, and wipe tables. It’s fine.”
Liam nods, blue eyes thoughtful.
“But this is a way to make more money.”
“Yes,” I confirm. “A lot of it, and fast. I’m not broke or anything, don’t worry. Being a barista keeps me afloat, and I can pay rent, and buy food, and all that stuff. But I don’t have any breathing room, much less savings, so I can’t afford even the small stuff. I can’t afford the special semi-cured gel nails that all the girls are doing these days, much less a full-blown salon manicure. I do my own hair, and all my make-up is drugstore. I can’t even afford Netflix,” I say in a wry tone. “Because they have so many add-ons, and I know myself. I press click without thinking, and then the monthly subscription doubles in price.”
Liam thinks for a moment.
“That’s fair,” he says. “The system these days doesn’t guarantee anything, and especially not for our young people. It’s almost impossible to make a living wage even working forty hours a week.”
I smile, a little sadly.
“Yeah, sometimes I work fifty just for the overtime because you know I get time and a half. But there’s something else in the air these days. Customers used to tip more, but now, it seems like everyone’s pinching pennies. People who used to order large espresso drinks, now get smalls, and they don’t get a pastry for breakfast. We used to even have free dog treats for people who brought their pets in, but no longer. My manager said it cost too much.”
“Wow,” Liam says in a thoughtful tone. “Yeah, that’s rough. I had no idea that dog treats were a line item. I thought they were just something tossed in because they were easy.”
I shrug.
“I don’t know that much about the café’s finances because I’m just a barista. I don’t look at the books or anything, but yeah, my sense is that things are dire. My friend who works at another café was actually propositioned by a run club for a gang-bang while on shift. They wanted her to service them in the café bathroom,” I add. “And instead of being outraged, her manager thought she should have done it!”
“You’re joking,” Liam says in a deadpan voice. “No fucking way.”
I shake my head.
“No, it’s true. It’s my friend’s older sister, Annabel. Obviously, Annabel didn’t do it, but yeah, that’s how bad things are these days.”
“Shit,” Liam muses. “I had no idea.”
