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I jab my thumb toward the door. “It’s locked, actually.”
He smiles. “Figuratively. Not literally.”
I nod. “I’ll remember that.” I run a hand nervously throughmy hair, then stuff my hands in my apron, wrapping them protectively over the loose cash I’m responsible for.
“Have you learned anything interesting today?”
I glance around him at the computer, and the login screen I now have a password for. “Yeah,” I answer. “It’s been enlightening.”
“Good,” he says. “I’m going to have you close with us tonight so you can experience all the sidework. There’s a concert tomorrow night, Raven’s band is playing at the Sheds, so I’m cutting most of you guys early tomorrow. Rhonda and Natalie volunteered to close.”
“You want me to go to a concert?” I question, raising an eyebrow at him.
“Everyone goes, you should check it out. Get wasted, bond with the team,” he suggests.
“I’ll think about it,” I reply, reaching up to place my hand on his arm, and lingering there for just a little too long. “Thank you for all your help today. It’s been nice getting to know more about you. And the restaurant.”
He nods as we walk out into the bar. “Like I said. Anytime. Open door.” His statement is punctuated by the slamming of the office door as it closes, and locks, just behind us.
As Evan strides into the dining room, I turn back toward the server station and see Zaden standing at the drink machine filling his water glass. His ice-blue eyes are fixed on me, so intently I can feel his attention like a weight in my chest. My pulse quickens, and I lick my bottom lip nervously.
He disappears back into the kitchen, and I don’t know how to feel about this exchange. Or him. For a moment, that look feltalmost possessive, and part of me liked it way more than I should. But that’s not why I’m here.
Yet, I still can’t help the curiosity that lingers, toying with the loose threads at the edge of my sanity like a playful kitten. The urge to explore whatever this is, and not give a fuck about tomorrow.
What does it matter in the end, if Paige is really gone?
Chapter 8
Zaden
With the flick of my wrist, the low rumble of the Chevy pickup dissipates, and the silence creeps in. I open the door and step out of the cab, shoving my keys into my pocket as I grab a surfboard out of the back. It’s nearly two in the morning, but the lights are still on inside the Sandbar. Surprising, but not unusual for a Tuesday. Evan regularly plans weeknight projects to ramp up for the weekend.
I begin descending the catwalk to the marina when I hear a voice call out to me, and I glance over at the restaurant.
“Nick?” I ask, my attention drawn to the darkened figure lounging on the picnic table. “How are you still here? Didn’t you get cut with the servers?”
He laughs. “Fucking Mia, man. Signed us up for deep cleaning tonight. She may need the hours, but I need sleep.” He takes a pull off his cigarette, and I stride over to the deck to join him, leaning my board up against the back of the building.
“You about done?”
Nick shakes his head and flops back onto the tabletop. “No idea.” He sighs. “You just get back from Ava’s?”
I nod. “Yeah, we had a lot to catch up on.”
He glances over his shoulder. “Is that a new board?”
I stuff my hands into my pockets and wander out to the railing. “It’s a new shape I’m testing. A swallowtail with some updates and a different skeg design.”
“Looks killer, man.Let me know if you want my opinion on how it rides.”
I smile. “If I need someone to tumble it around on the ocean floor, you’ll be my first call.”
“Hey, you want it broken in or not?” He argues, and I laugh.
Light lingers along the ocean curl and the slide of the whitewater toward the shore. At first, I think it’s moonlight. But it’s not.
“Bioluminescence?” I ask, watching the swirl of blue water race along the sand. Nick leans up on his hands to peer into the ocean, and makes a satisfied sound.
