Knocking Boots - Willow Winters Page 0,68
looks at me as I right myself, giving me a half smile.
“Hey,” I say. I should thank her for convincing me to come although I’m sure she really does just want to get wasted. The booze here is way cheaper than anywhere else around.
“Hey yourself.” She sips amber liquid from a rocks glass. Guess she finished her beer already.
Putting my clutch on the bar, I search for Charlie, but the bar’s empty.
“Where’d Charlie go?” I ask Diane. I can still feel the awkward tension between us. I just need to spit it out.
She shrugs. “He’s around. I think the other bartender is here now, though.”
Other bartender? I wonder.
The double doors to the back swing open and grab my attention. Maggie makes an appearance, hauling a big bucket full of ice. She dumps it in the well behind the bar, then hides the bucket. Oh, the other girl. I get what Diane’s saying now.
“You want something to drink?” Maggie asks. “Charlie’s finishing up some stuff in the back.”
I glance down to where my beer was when I left and then over to the two empty bottles in front of Diane. “A glass of white zinfandel pretty please.”
She pours the wine and sets the glass down in front of me, and all the while it’s quiet. My eyes keep flickering back up to the doors. I feel like I need to get these words out now and go tell him, but I can’t force myself to interrupt him.
“Wanna go somewhere else?” Diane asks.
Already? We literally just got here. I take her in before answering. She’s drunk, or well on her way there. I can tell by her almost-slurred speech, her rumpled clothes.
“No,” I say, firming my resolve to talk to Charlie. “I’m going to hang out here for a while longer.” I’m careful as I tell her, “If you want to go though, that’s fine.”
“Whatever,” Diane says. I knew she’d take it offensively, but I don’t mean it like that. She’s just simply had too much to drink.
“You want me to call a cab for you?” I offer.
“I’ll get an Uber,” she rolls her eyes and snatches her clutch before pushing off of the stool.
“You need help?” I ask her, but she makes a face and turns away from me.
“Hey, Diane.” God, I feel horrible. I turn in my seat, but she yells out, “I’m fine,” and keeps moving.
I try to shake off the feeling that I should go help Diane. I really don’t want to. She’s a grown woman… and kind of a bitch. The last thought makes me relax some as I sip my wine.
My anxiety comes back every time I eye the double doors. I keep my butt planted right where I am and wait for him.
It’s now or never. I guess I’m going with option 1 after all.
Time moves slowly as it ticks by. Maggie’s in and out and so is the other bartender, I forget his name. Customers start to dwindle and that sick feeling grows in my stomach. I check my phone here and there. Charlie knows I’m here. The feeling that he’s ignoring me is growing stronger. I shake out the tension and sip my wine. It’s practically room temperature now, but I don’t care. I had too many glasses before I came here anyway.
The bar grows quieter and quieter and time keeps going until my phone tells me it’s closing time. It’s just me and Maggie, although she’s in the back with Charlie now. I look around the empty bar and get the urge to go back there, but I don’t. He knows I’m here.
After a while, Charlie and Maggie both come back out front. Charlie sees me, and a little bit of a frown crosses his face.
“Hey, I got this,” he tells Maggie. Although he’s speaking to her, his eyes never leave mine. The way he says it makes my stomach turn.
Maggie slides me a questioning look. “Sure thing, boss.”
A few seconds later, the back door bangs shut as she heads out.
Charlie and I are alone.
“I’m supposed to be closing…” he says, walking around the bar. He sits on the barstool next to mine.
“I know. I just… I wanted to see you. Maybe I can help you close?”
He looks at me for a long second, then holds out his hand.
“Come here,” he says, pulling me closer to him. I feel the air change between us, and his expression shows something I’ve never seen before.
“You okay?” I ask him, suddenly feeling like he’s breaking