The Running Series Complete Collection: 3-Book Set plus Bonus Novella (32 page)

As I’m waiting, Adam arrives with a rep from a private security company.  He inspects all entrances, exits, and windows.  I answer all his questions, and he seems to be taking copious notes.  He talks with Adam and Evan about different options: cameras, motion sensors, and about four or five other kinds of sensors, too.  Since I don’t own the house, I convince them to limit it to just door and window sensors for now, along with one motion activated outdoor light, but no cameras.  The rep assures us that if we choose to add more features later, it won’t be a problem since he’s already been here to do the inspection.

Unfortunately, the installation is not going to happen today.  Hopefully, they can do it tomorrow, but the rep won’t know for sure until he gets to his warehouse to check materials.

I give Adam my keys so he can make a copy for himself.  He’ll be the one to let the installers in and check on everything.  Evan trusts him, and I trust Evan.

While Evan goes over a few last details with Adam, I grab some more clothes from the closet, and then we are on our way back to his place. 

“You know you can’t go back home tonight, right?”

“I know, sorry about all of this craziness.  I wish things would go back to normal.”

“Please don’t apologize.  It will be difficult, but I suppose I can sleep with you again, if I have to.”

“Do I have to teach you a lesson about
your
manners?  It’s not nice to insult your house guest, you know.”

W
hen we arrive at Evan’s, my phone rings.  I look down and see it’s Reese.  I promised her days ago I would call her back, but I never did.  “Evan, do you mind if I take this?  It’s Reese.  She’s been calling me for days now.”

“I’ll be in my office going over a few things for work.  Take your time, baby.”  Evan slips away and I decide to step onto the deck for some privacy.

“Hey, Reese.  What’s going on in the Badger State?”

“You know, same shit, different day.  There’s absolutely nothing going on here.  How about you?  How’s the new man in your life?”

“If I tell you something, do you swear not to say anything to anyone?  Not even Sara?” 

“Of course.  Are you OK?  Did something happen?”

“I’m fine.  Better than fine, actually.  It’s about my boyfriend.  Here’s the thing.  I told you his name was Evan right?”

“Yeah, Evan Michaels or Evan Roberts, or something like that, right?”

“Close.  It’s Evan Thomas.  It turns out that Thomas is his middle name.  His full name is Evan Thomas McGuire.  Have you ever heard of him?”

“What?!”  Reese is screaming at the phone, I can barely make out what she’s saying.  I think she’s heard of him.

.

“H
ey, Jette, it’s your lucky night tonight.”  Marcus is already setting up the speed rack on the patio bar.  I haven’t worked with Marcus in a few days and I’m glad he’ll be behind the bar with me.

“Lucky?” I replied with a forced smile.  I can’t help but feel extremely anxious tonight.  Each incident with my stalker started here at work.  I’m sure there’s a connection, but I don’t yet know what it is. 

“You bet!  We’re going to have fun tonight, kiddo.”  God, I hope he’s right. 

I turn around to start wiping down the bar with some club soda as Derek comes striding towards us.  “Hey guys, what’s up?  You ready to rock it tonight?”  It looks like it will be the three of us on the patio tonight. 

“Guys, listen, Evan’s coming tonight, so please be cool around him.”  I know I’ll feel better when Evan gets here later.  I told him not to come until after ten or eleven o’clock since he’s staying with me until closing. 

Customers start filtering into the bar even before the DJ finishes setting up his equipment.  Tonight’s Karaoke night, so there should be a lot of energy in the room. In my short time here, I’ve learned that good entertainment can dramatically increase the positive energy in a bar. When the guests are properly entertained and happy with the music, tips go up and time crawls a little faster.

As the crowd grows thicker, I begin to release the stress that I’ve been carrying with me and start to enjoy myself behind the bar again.  Marcus and Derek have been teasing me and trying to get me to loosen up, and it’s beginning to work. 

Suddenly, one customer begins singing Bon Jovi’s ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ and the crowd erupts, singing along and sometimes even screaming along.  The three of us enjoy singing, too, as we pour drinks.  When everyone is singing, it doesn’t matter how good or bad of a singer you are.  What counts is how much enthusiasm you put into your performance, and we give it all we’ve got.

The next song selected is ‘I Wanna Dance with Somebody’ by Whitney Houston.  Unable to miss an opportunity to flirt with me, Derek gives a little bump and grind each time Whitney sings, ‘I wanna feel the heat with somebody’
.
  I dramatically push him away, give him the universal gesture for
shame on you
and feign shock each time, but in truth, it is a lot of fun.

The customers are enjoying themselves tonight, too.  I’m getting a lot of smiles and compliments on my drinks.  One customer hands me a business card from a bar in Asbury. 

“If you want to make some real money behind the bar, honey, come see me.  We take good care of our girls at Pinocchio’s,” he tells me.  I love that bar.  It’s one of the first bars I ever went to once I turned twenty-one.  Their slogan is, ‘The Place to Come and Tell Lies’.  My friends and I would go night after night during the summer, dance for hours, and hardly ever did we have to buy our own drinks.  That’s when Auggie started calling me Jepetto.

Even though I’m not interested right now, I pocket his card.  Auggie is always talking about the importance of networking and you never know when I’ll need to make a professional connection in the future.

I’m also starting to get to know my regular customers.  There’s a group of girls a few years younger than me that come three or four nights a week.  They remind me of my college friends.  They aren’t overly flirty or ostentatious, but they get plenty of attention from the male clientele.  Tonight, one of the girls whose name I don’t know seems down in the dumps.  She’s sitting at the bar watching her friends carry on and have fun.

I pour her another glass of wine and try to talk with her a little bit.  It turns out her name is Maria and she’s a student teacher.  She just found out one of her students is seriously ill with Cystic Fibrosis.  His prognosis is not good.  There’s no way I can cheer her up, so I just listen to her story.  It’s obvious she’s a very caring educator and she’s very deeply affected by her students.  I’m sure she’ll make a great teacher someday.

Suddenly, ‘Don’t go Breaking my Heart’ begins booming from the speakers and something happens to Marcus.  It’s like he’s having an out-of-body experience that overtakes him and he grabs me to sing with him.  He hands me an empty beer bottle as a microphone, and I’m swept into performing a duet with him.  I don’t mind singing with Marcus, I know he’s deeply in love with Camilla, and it’s all in fun, so I really start to get into it.  I’m singing my heart out and giving Marcus my best puppy dog eyes.

Derek is obviously feeling left out, because he’s actually pouting on the other end of the bar.  Pouting.  The female customers are taking pity on him and it looks like he will survive.  A few of Maria’s friends are trying earnestly to cheer him up. 

As we finish our performance, the customers seated around the bar give us a rousing round of applause.  We turn to give a proper bow and courtesy.  Quickly, we rush to fill the empty glasses that are lining our side of the bar.  There’s a young attractive man dressed in a suit.  If I had to guess, I’d assume he just got done with work.  He’s got cash on the bar and is trying to get my attention.

“Hi, what can I get ‘ya?”  I ask the Suit.

“I’d love a cold Sam Adams.  And your name.  You look great tonight, by the way,” the Suit adds.

I grab him a cold Sam Adams, hand it to him, and take his cash.  When I bring him his change, I try to be as polite as possible, “Here you go.  My name’s Jette.  Let me know if you need anything else.”

“As a matter of fact, Jette, I’d really like to get your phone number.  Maybe we can go out together one night.”  He looks at me with a hopeful look and a confident grin on his face. 

“I’m so sorry, but I have a boyfriend.”  I move onto the next customer who asks for a glass of the house Chardonnay.

The Suit won’t take no for an answer.  He follows me as I make my way down the bar.  “Oh, come on, Jette. I’ll show you a good time.  No one has to know.  I won’t tell.”

Trying my best to be firm but professional, I tell him, “I’m really flattered, but the answer’s still no.”  The Suit turns away from the bar and I’m hoping he got my message loud and clear this time.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot Evan and Adam making their way through the crowd towards me.  I toss my bar rag on the bar and slip out from behind the bar to greet them.  “Guys, I’ll be right back.  Cover for me?”

Evan seems like he’s in a good mood tonight.  He’s laughing with Adam and I can see those million dollar dimples.  Tonight he’s wearing a black Genesis concert tee that shows off his broad shoulders.  When he sees me approaching, he smiles a little brighter.

“Hey, beautiful,” Evan says as he wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me in for a kiss.  He lifts me off my feet momentarily and I can’t help but giggle.  “Are you on a break?” he asks.

“No, I just wanted to come say hi.”  Adam and I exchange a quick hello and the boys follow me back to the bar.  They find a couple of empty seats and settle in for a while.

I go straight over to talk to Marcus.  He’s the only one of my close friends that Evan hasn’t met yet.  Things are quiet at the bar for the moment, so I take advantage of the opportunity.

“Evan, I want you to meet Marcus Chase.  Marcus, this is Evan McGuire and Adam Cooke.”  They shake hands and begin chatting.  I try to cover the bar and give them a chance to become acquainted.  I cannot hear what they are discussing, but all three of them seem very animated about whatever the topic may be.  I’d guess the topic is sports related.

I look across the bar to see if anyone needs a drink, and I spot The Suit eyeing me. The glass he’s holding is filled with an amber liquid.  He’s moved from beer to hard liquor.

Derek interrupts my thoughts.  “So, Jette, I guess you and Big Mac kissed and made up?” he asks.  He doesn’t seem too happy for us.  I know he wishes things turned out differently.

“We did.  And I couldn’t be happier.  Will you please try to be happy for me, Derek?”

“So long as you’re happy, that’s all I care about, Jette.  But if you don’t get back to work soon, I’m going to be really pissed off!”  He snaps a bar towel at me.  I get the message and get back to work.

Maria and her friends reappear at the bar asking for a round of Mind Erasers.  I carefully pour the vodka layer first, followed by the Kahlua and ending with the seltzer.  It’s a wonderful creation when you can see each individual layer.  I place the straws in the glasses and watch the girls as they prepare for their challenge.  One of the braver girls starts the countdown.  “3 – 2 – 1 – go!”  All five girls start sucking on their straws, bringing up each layer one at a time without stopping.  I watch to see whom the last one is to finish.  That’s the one who will pay for all the shooters.  I’m pleasantly surprised that it’s not Maria that finishes last, but one of her friends who begrudgingly pays the bar bill.  Maria’s mood seems to be lifting with the help of her friends.

As I make my way up and down the bar, I can’t help but overhear a few conversations among the customers.  A pair of young women has spotted Evan sitting across from them.  They are talking about how hot he is and how much they would like to go home with him tonight.

They start daring each other to go up and talk to him.  I even overhear them discussing potential pick-up lines.  They range from the pathetic like, “Do you come here often,” to the raunchy, “Do you want to melt in my mouth or in my hand?” 

I know it doesn’t mean anything, but my blood is beginning to boil.  I want to scream at them, “Dream on, bitches.  He’s going home with me tonight!”