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“Winner’s tan.” Atlas nods.
Nova’s only a few feet away, and I’m aware of all of her.
“Clay, you want a drink?” the waitress, the owner’s daughter, asks as if I never left Denver.
Jay stands suddenly. “I gotta go. I’m late for some shit.”
We watch him head out, banging the door against the frame.
Guess some things change and others don’t.
Over by the bar, the waitress is struggling with a tray.
“Thanks,” she says as I help her right it.
“How’s business?” I ask. On paper, I own just less than half of the place, but I rarely review the financial statements that come through.
“You’d be proud of Dad. He modernized the system back here.” She shows me the new register. “It’s faster for customers during busy times and easier for accounting.” Her phone beeps, and she swears. “Can’t fix everything. Someone left some pallets out in the alley.”
“I’m on it.”
“Below your paygrade, champ.” She cocks her head.
“I’m off the clock, and you have customers.”
I head to the alley. I know I’ve been absorbed in my own stuff these past months—didn’t need Kat to put a fine point on my ahead-of-schedule mid-life crisis.
Still, seeing Nova in person, this break feels like an extra shitty idea.
She looks good. Is she really getting what she wants here instead of with me?
I grab a few cases and bring them into the storage room. On my second trip, she’s gone from the booth. I push out the door and pull up when I see the flash of pink hair on someone kneeling in the alley.
“What are you doing?”
She straightens to face me, tossing her ponytail over her shoulder. “I tripped over this case and broke a bottle.”
“On your way to what exactly?”
She doesn’t answer but lifts a hand.
I grab her hand and yank her toward me. There’s blood oozing from a shallow slice half an inch long. “Don’t move.”
I go inside to get a first aid kit before returning to the privacy of the alley.
“How’re Mari and the baby?” I ask as I set the kit on a barrel and open it.
“Mari’s exhausted, but she’s obsessed with Emily,” she says.
I take out the gauze and disinfectant. “Amazing.”
Nova cocks her head. “Did you just say ‘amazing’?”
I ignore her and swipe at the cut. Her blue eyes peer up at me from under dark lashes. Nova stiffens but doesn’t move away.
“The ring as massive as it looked? I saw the pics,” she goes on.
“It’s two pounds. Ideal for pawning to fund a gambling debt or smashing through drywall.”
