Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 62710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 314(@200wpm)___ 251(@250wpm)___ 209(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 314(@200wpm)___ 251(@250wpm)___ 209(@300wpm)
10
“Can you run out the back and grab a few more bottles of alcohol?” Luna asks me later that night as the club is pumping.
It’s going to be a busy night, and we’re already powering through alcohol quickly. Nodding, I do as she asks, and rush out back. I get a few bottles that have run out, and make my way back out, stacking them on the shelves behind the bar. I serve a few customers and begin washing a few glasses when I catch a familiar face in the corner of my eye, one that wasn’t there a few minutes ago.
As if I’m being taken back to months ago, to the place I first saw him, I focus on the man sitting at the end of the bar, a glass of whiskey in front of him. Instead of looking down at that glass, he’s looking right at me. I haven’t seen Western in here since my article came out, and I sure wasn’t expecting him. He looks just like he did the first time I saw him, and I can’t stop my heart from automatically fluttering as I lay eyes on him.
I can’t help it.
There is something about him that sparks a desire deep within me, and even though I can fight it, it doesn’t mean it won’t linger there, probably for the rest of my life.
Western has a hold on me, but I have to stop it before I am unable to escape.
Luna comes up beside me and leans in close. “He just came in. Sorry.”
“It’s not your fault,” I say, dragging my gaze away from Western’s and getting back to work.
He can sit there all night, but that doesn’t mean I have to go over there. Instead, I keep myself busy, serving and cleaning, for hours. I let Luna serve him, and she does so without question. When the night quiets down, I know I can’t avoid him any longer. He will sit there until this place closes then follow me to my car; of that, I’m sure. I am exhausted. I want to go home and sleep, so I guess it’s best to face this now. Throwing my towel down after wiping the bar, I walk over to where he sits, stopping in front of him.
His eyes slowly lift until they’re locked with mine.
There was a time I couldn’t get him to look at me, to talk to me, and now he’s here ... waiting for me to be the one to talk.
How the tables have turned.
“If you’re here to demand something of me, I’m going to turn around and leave,” I say to him. “I’m tired, and I don’t want to get into anything tonight.”
“I’m not leavin’ until you speak to me.”
“Can we not do this now?” I grind out. “I’m keeping my distance for a reason, Western.”
“I’m not,” he drags out, “leavin’ ... until you speak to me.”
I let out a low growl and then exhale loudly. “Say what you want to say so I can go home.”
“Didn’t mean to hurt you, Bonnie.”
Those words send a little jolt through me, and I have no doubt he notices as I jerk slightly in front of him. Every single time I close my eyes, I relive that moment. I don’t blame him for that– after all, he wasn’t even awake–but it made me see something in him that I was avoiding for so long. He’s damaged, the kind of broken there might not be a fix for. I don’t know if I want to spend the rest of my life attempting to repair him.
“I know you didn’t mean to,” I say, my eyes avoiding his, “but you did.”
His eyes flash. “Lost a brother, it was a hard night. Never had somethin’ like that happen before, and it won’t happen again.”
“You can’t be sure of that,” I point out. “You can’t promise that when you fall asleep, your demons won’t raise their ugly heads. I could have died, Western. Do you understand that?”
“Bonnie ...”
“Look, you and I both know that you don’t want anything from me, so what does it matter if I step away from this? You have made it clear how you feel. You’ve been making it clear since that stupid article came out. You don’t want me in your life, so why are you here?”
He doesn’t answer me, his intense gaze just remains firmly fixed on my face.
Western doesn’t have to speak for you to be able to read his thoughts. He has that gift. He knows that I know what he’s thinking. He’s thinking that he isn’t going to back away from this any time soon, and that he’s not going to just let me walk away. There is a determination in his eyes that tells me I’m not going anywhere. I can’t have that. Not when he’s very likely the person causing so much chaos in this town.