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“Are we still in danger?”he questions, a hint of worry in his voice.
I shake my head.“Nope.It took us almost a month, but we made sure each and every person on that list was taken care of.You can go on with your life.”I then turn to Aerin.“Your mom is now living in South Carolina.”
Aerin’s forehead creases.“How do you know?”
“I wanted to check her whereabouts,”I respond, explaining my motive.
“Is she okay?”She’s concerned but not that much.
“As far as I could tell, she’s fine.She’s on her third marriage,” I reveal.“This guy has three adult children and two grandsons.But I’ll make sure to keep an eye on her.If there’s a granddaughter, we’ll warn them of her crazy antics.”
“I don’t think she would meddle with someone else’s child,” she says.
“You don’t think she still needs to live her dream through someone else?”I ask because, in my experience, people like her never change.They have a pattern, and I don’t want her to manipulate some little girl with the illusion that she’ll get her dream.
Aerin presses her lips together, contemplating the possibility, before nodding in agreement.“Probably.”
Greyson takes her hand and asks, “What’s your dream?”
“I don’t know yet,” she admits honestly.
I’m about to speak when she says, “All I know is that I want to live it with you two.”Her mischievous eyes twinkle.“Well, also a llama.I mean, we’re still looking for poor Bobby.Where did you put her?”
“Bob, she doesn’t like to be called Bobby.Sounds diminishing,” I joke and then let out a laugh.
Greyson chuckles.“I can’t believe you made that up—or that your date believed you.”
I give a nonchalant shrug, my lips curving into a wry smile.“What can I say?I’ve got a knack for persuasion.Now, can we please put this whole llama incident behind us?”
“Only if we agree on a new pet,” she suggests.
“Why don’t I make us breakfast?”Grey proposes.“We can discuss that while we’re eating.”
We spendthe day figuring out schedules and therapists.I shoot off a message to Lang, giving him the heads-up that I’m taking a whole month off to be there for Aerin and Grey.
Greyson calls all his managers to make sure they know he won’t be going to the bars as often for the next month.Though, today he has to be at Firefly Garden.The place is inviting, and even though I’ve never been here, it feels familiar.
I’ve never worked at a bar.Not in college, while I waited tables or at the bar my bandmates and I own in Luna Harbor.That business is more like an investment and a place where my bandmates and I just play at night when we have nothing to do but don’t want to be among a big crowd.
I find myself standing behind the bar, the familiar weight of the counter a comforting anchor.Greyson and Aerin are flitting around, their movements well-coordinated, their camaraderie undeniable.
“Just look pretty by the bar and pour some beers,” Greyson teases, playfully dishing out assignments.His voice carries a trace of affectionate banter.
I arch an eyebrow, a hint of defiance coloring my expression.“You know I’m capable of much more than that,” I retort.
“He can take orders,” Aerin says.“Remember when he used to wait tables at that super snooty place in Manhattan?”
“Oh right, the one where the wealthy women tipped himreally well.”Greyson chuckles.
“He can wait, and I’ll be behind the bar with you,” Aerin proposes.
“Sounds like a plan.”Grey nods but then gives me a warning look.“Just don’t do lap dances.We’re not that kind of establishment.”
I flip him the finger and head toward the back room, where they have t-shirts with the logo.I change into one of them, and the patrons are already entering when I’m back to the front.I manage well enough to take the orders, but I’m slightly flabbergasted when people begin to order like this is a coffee shop.
It’s okay if they want their sour whiskey with a different brand of alcohol, but one guy asks for a Long Island iced tea with no rum but extra tequila.Another patron asks for a black Russian, but to replace the coffee liqueur with anise.
“Can you make a mojito with tequila?”I ask, frustrated, as I approach the bar.
