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“So, I round the table to stand in front of him. And girls, I tell you what, the man was shocked stupid when he looked up at me, like a man who's seen Jesus himself. Next thing I know he’s squeezing his beer in his fist, and glass is flying everywhere.”
Sara gasped, raising her hand to her throat. “Was he alright?”
Marianne shrugged a slim shoulder. “He looked pretty cut up to me. I offered him some paper towels and next thing I know; he was out the door.” She flicked her hair over her shoulder. “I figure he was just embarrassed at having seen such a pretty thing like me.” She smoothed her hands down her curvaceous figure. “Few men can handle all this.”
Terri rolled her eyes at the same time Luke decided to make an appearance. “Get back to work,” he hollered.
The women leapt off their stools and tore off in opposite directions, searching for something to do. Seeing that his foul mood was still firmly intact, Terri kept her eyes down and found some glasses that could use polishing.
Luke stomped across the floor and poured himself a glass of water. Gulping it down, he placed the empty cup in the small sink basin and turned to survey the room.
Terri didn’t try to make small talk this time, not after what happened the last time. Instead, she cleaned around the human pillar parked in front of the taps. He would have to move sometime, but she wasn’t about to tell him that.
She could feel his eyes on her as she moved about the confined area.
“The police said it was a hit and run.” Luke’s voice was gruff, tortured.
Sensing his need to unburden himself, she put the glass she was cleaning down and met his eyes. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.” He broke eye contact, staring at the shelves of liquor above her head as if deep in thought. Eventually, his gaze shifted back to hers. “They said since it was on my property, I might be facing a lawsuit.”
Terri rose up straight. “How is that possible? You weren’t the one that ran someone over.” Anger for Luke’s situation had her fisting her hands against her sides.
A shoulder lifted and fell. Luke sighed deeply, as if he were exhausted by the whole ordeal. “It all depends on whether the guy lives or not and how much he can tell the detective about what happened tonight.”
“What do you mean, if he lives? How serious was it?”
Luke smirked humorlessly. “Every hit and run is serious, Terri.”
She raised an eyebrow at that. “Duh. What I meant was…” She shook her head. “Yeah, I don’t know what I meant.” She huffed at her own stupid remark.
Retrieving his cup, Luke poured himself another glass of water. He sipped it slowly, thinking. “The guy was only twenty-one,” he stated, as if that should clarify everything. The look she gave him said it didn’t. “He left my club falling-down drunk, intending to drive home.”
Terri winced. The dram laws said that bartenders, and anyone else who served alcoholic drinks, were supposed to monitor how much was too much for any one customer. If they looked like they weren’t handling it so well, they weren’t allowed to leave unless it was by cab or some other designated driver. It was a good rule that kept a lot of heat off of the Sunset Black.
“Okay, but how can this be held over your head? He never drove away, and they can’t prove the guy who hit him was drunk,” she pointed out.
“Maybe not, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have some responsibility to make sure my customers make it home safely.” Pushing off the bar, Luke returned his glass to the sink without finishing it. “If he wakes up, he might decide I didn’t hold up my end. If I’m sued, I’ll probably lose this place in legal fees alone.”
“Well what about this driver? Didn’t anyone see who it was? What kind of car they were driving? Anything?” Terri felt desperate for answers. It wasn’t even her business to save, but she felt a kinship with Luke, and that made her concerned with what happened to him in his life.
He had offered her a job when no one else would. She was uneducated and hadn’t worked since the day she married. To top it off, he treated her kindly, something she hadn’t experienced in years, and he was her friend. Those she called a friend she stood behind fully. His fight was now her fight, as far as she was concerned, and anything she could do to keep him from losing his livelihood—his dream—she would do.
“One of the witnesses said they saw a late model blue pickup speeding away. They didn’t get the plates or see who was driving, though. So they probably won’t catch the guy, which leaves just me, unless that boy recovers and gives us something good to go on.” Reaching out, Luke placed a gentle hand against Terri’s cheek. “Hey, you’re all pale. What’s wrong?”
She didn’t know how she could’ve missed it, but her eyes were wide open now. The guy at the club earlier with the broken beer bottle and the driver of the truck in the parking lot responsible for running down one of their patrons…
Shaking now, Terri peered up at Luke hoping he wouldn’t confirm her worst fears. “Who was the victim? The guy they took to the hospital.”
“Terri, I don’t see how—”
“Please,” she pleaded, “I have to know.”
“It was that guy who hassled you tonight. The college kid.”
Terri’s legs crumbled beneath her. Luke’s quick reflexes made sure she didn’t fall. Scooping her into his arms, Luke carried her quickly to his office before anyone noticed what had happened.
Luke place Terri on a very smart-looking sofa in his office. He left her long enough to close the door, then returned, pulling up his desk chair and sitting down to face her.
