Page 19 of Versions Of Us

She wanders over to me, lacing her arms around my waist as EJ smears a fistful of cake in Liv’s face. She laughs and even though there’s a darkness inside of her, it lights up the room.

God, she’s so beautiful and she doesn’t even know it.

I’m observing her so intently I don’t notice when Steve comes to stand on my other side.

“Kristen, you don’t mind if I borrow your man for a second, do you?”

My head swivels in Steve’s direction and Kristen loosens her arms from around me.

“Sure. If you promise to return him to me,” she replies.

I aim a grin at her and then Steve gestures for me to follow him to the side exit, presumably opting for a quiet place to talk. Once we’re outside, he grips my shoulder firmly with his one good hand.

“Alex,” he says, rolling his lips together to form a thin line.

It’s not often he calls me by my first name. His formal manner has me worried.

“Is everything okay, Steve?”

“Yeah. Yeah, it is.” He nods and then a slow grin transforms his expression to one of contentment. “In fact, I’d say things are better than they’ve been for a long while.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” I tell him.

If anyone deserves happiness, it’s this man standing right in front of me. He continues to give so much of himself, even after all he’s been through. God knows he’s gotten me out of some tough situations. Let me crash at his place when my parents fighting became too much. Offered me a job when I’d needed it.

“I have a proposal for you,” he states bluntly.

I eye him suspiciously. “What are you talking about, man? What kind of proposal?”

I’m starting to wonder if Steve has had one too many drinks, but his eyes don’t falter from mine. “I want you to run my bar.”

“What?” I look for a sign that he’s messing with me, that he’s playing some kind of practical joke, but his expression is one of the most serious I’ve seen on him.

“I want you to manage it.”

“Wh-what? But EJ…” I begin.

“EJ has his music career now,” he says, cutting me off. “He doesn’t have the time.”

It was true that EJ’s music career meant that he was often out of town, either recording or off touring somewhere. He still did the odd shift at the tavern here and there but only when we were in a bind.

I started filling in for EJ at Steve’s Tavern when he’d needed to leave Cliff Haven not long after he and Liv had met. I’d just been fired from my job as a surf instructor at the Surf Shack after I’d failed, repeatedly I admit, to show up on time to give lessons.

I’d often wondered what lead Steve to take a chance on a screw-up kid like me. I figured he was just desperate to find a replacement for EJ in the bar. But here he was, taking an even bigger leap of faith.

“Wow. Steve, I don’t know what to say. I don’t know if…”

He brings a palm up between us. “Before you start giving me some spiel about how you don’t think you’re capable or that you’re the wrong guy for the job or some other bullshit, know this.” He looks me square in the eyes. “I’m not taking no for an answer. You’ve been working for me for two and a half years and you’ve come a long way. I know you won’t let me down.”

I shake my head in disbelief. “I don’t get it. Why now? Are you retiring or something?”

“Pretty much,” he says, a giant belly laugh erupting from him. “Maggie and I have always wanted to see the world. Now that EJ is settling down, we’ve decided to take a road trip around the country. Bought a campervan and all.”

My incredulity turns into amazement. I’m sincerely happy to hear this. After enduring such pain and heartache, Maggie and Steve deserve this. They’ve spent their entire lives putting everyone else first, even in the aftermath of tragedy. It’s time for them to have an adventure for themselves.

“That’s fantastic! I’m so stoked for you guys.” I pull him into a hug, and he slaps me firmly on the back.

“So, what do you say?” he asks as he pulls away. “Let me hand the bar over to you. I’ll still own it obviously, but it will be yours to manage.”

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