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“Well, I’m spending the summer in Aspen, and I wanted to visit my baby brother. What’s wrong with that?” He leans against his car.
“Kind of strange you came unannounced.”
“I like a good surprise,” he admits. “But it looks like you don’t.” Seriously, bro,” Tanner says, crossing his arms over his chest. “How much longer are you going to do this?”
“Do what?” I ask.
“Pretend like your Paul Bunyan.”
“Very funny,” I reply. “This is my new life. I’m not asking you to accept it.”
“Mom’s upset. She thinks that you’re wasting away up here. Don’t let that shit with Eden make you throw your life away. You don’t have to keep running from it.”
“I’m not wasting away, and I don’t give two shits about Eden, and I’m not running from anything. For the first time I’m happy,” I reply.
“It looks like you’ve been hitting the gym,” Tanner says with a laugh. “I’ll tell mom you’re becoming a big boy.” Tanner’s tone is condescending, and I stifle the urge to throw him into his BMW and send him on his way.
“You can also tell mom that I’m happy with where I’m at.”
“Why don’t you tell her yourself?” Tanner replies, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “You’re coming to the anniversary, right?”
“Yes, and I’m bringing my fiancée.”
There again, something flies out of my mouth before I have time to consider it. I still didn’t get a definitive answer from Brianna, but at this point, I’d offer her a million dollars to come.
“I’m impressed. I can’t wait to meet the mountain woman.”
I don’t even dignify his statement with a response, and I begin to walk toward my cabin, turning my back to him.
“I’m glad that we had this delightful encounter,” Tanner calls toward me. “I’ll see you in two weeks.”
I lift a hand in the air to wave goodbye, without turning toward him again. Once I’m inside, I hear the wheels of the BMW skidding down the dirt road. He’ll definitely be getting that car detailed as soon as he reaches fucking Aspen. The Williams’ must have everything immaculate.
Once he’s gone, I go to the truck to get the groceries. I bring them inside, place them on the counter, and let out a huge sigh.
There’s no room for error and Brianna has to say yes to my proposal.
8
Brianna
I’m nervous as hell. It ends up being a large dinner crowd, and it doesn’t even matter. After Tate’s generous tips, and the considerable sum of money he wants to give me to go to Chicago with him, my mind is less focused on my finances. Oh God, if he only knew how much money doesn’t mean anything to me. I’m starting to think I would pay to have his company.
But I have to admit that I need it. Dad was really ill this morning, and I had to take him to the doctor. That’s why I was really late to work, and I just didn’t want to have to explain that to Tate, not yet at least. I’m never late to work, and it makes me feel terrible when I am because I know how much the café depends on me and I rely on them the same way. During my break, I called to check on Dad, and it seems like he’s feeling better. The bill was close to five hundred dollars after insurance with the blood work testing they had to do. Not going to Chicago isn’t an option.
But I’m nervous. There’s an unspoken attraction between Tate and I. The tension is almost unbearable. So, I suppose it’s a good kind of nervousness, but it’s still there, nonetheless. Thinking about him at work scatters my thoughts, and that’s when a woman is pissed about getting a chicken sandwich instead of a hamburger, I realize I need to pay attention.
Ever since Tate stepped into my life, screwing up at work has been my new routine. I’ve come unglued by him and in a short amount of time. I feel undone when he’s around.
I look up at the clock inside the café, and I see it’s nearing the end of my shift. We’re serving food for fifteen more minutes, and then it’s time to go. Once I’m finished with tables and side work, I’ll be out of here and if I’m lucky it’ll be close to nine. I suppose I’ll just leave my car in the parking lot. Then he can drive me back here after dinner.
Just my luck, a party of eight strolls in five minutes before I can lock the door, and there’s no way I can turn them down. Josh, the manager, would be pissed. So, I accept the party and know getting out of here at nine is just a pipe dream.
“Look alive. They’re drinking wine,” Josh says. He always gets excited when guests order alcohol because it makes the café a lot of money.
“I am,” I reply with a smile, though my mind is a hundred miles away.
As I suspected, the table ends up being a total handful, and I’m running back and forth to the kitchen for every little thing. Once nine pm rolls around, I look out to the parking lot to see Tate, leaning against his truck with a smile. He’s watching me intently. I nervously laugh and wave and he waves back. I can’t wait for this shift to be over so I can get out of here.
