AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Okay, that was rude.Of course there is.
Lora: Like what?
Bile rose in my throat. I hated that she would ask me that. And even more, I hated not having an answer to her question.
Me: Fuck all of you. I’m doing this. And it’s going to work. You’ll see.
I was going to prove them all wrong. My friends with their laughter, my parents with their disapproving sneers—they’d all see how wrong they’d been.
I threw my phone across the room. It bounced off the wall and onto the floor.
I sank back into my nest of pillows. My man-free year was starting today.
2
Chelsea
What else was there to me besides chasing guys? The question haunted me for the rest of the weekend.
I had a job—and one I loved. I was a beer distributor for NorthCorp. It kept me active all day, lugging kegs and barrels from the warehouse to various bars, and I got to socialize and meet different people at the businesses I distributed to. I’d also learned a ton about beer since I’d taken the position, which gave me a certain amount of clout around the kind of party people I hung out with.
It was always fun when I heard a guy rambling about craft beer when it was clear he knew absolutely nothing about it. Sometimes I just snickered to myself, and the odd time I’d schooled him about brews. Seeing the blood drain from his face at being outsmarted by a girl gave me life.
I was an intelligent person, too. I’d always gotten good grades at school—seventies and eighties, with that one damn sixty-seven in grade 12 physics.
I had friends. I had hobbies. My family loved me.
There was a whole lot more to me than being “boy-crazy.” So why couldn’t the people closest to me see that?
I stepped out of the truck outside of Vino and Veritas, a bookstore-slash-wine bar on Church Street. It was quickly becoming one of my favorite stops, especially since it came right after the bar that my ex-fling Alec owned. Our encounters were always awkward, and coming to V&V gave me a sense of relief.
It had opened relatively recently, and it had a different vibe from any other place in town. The left side was a wine bar, while the right was a bookstore. Harrison and Tanner, the owner and manager, were both total sweethearts, although Tanner didn’t know a damn thing about wine.
The inside was nice and cozy, with warm, smoky décor and soft jazz playing during the day. The riot of rainbow stickers in the windows were the only sign that it was targeted specifically toward the LGBTQ community. Really, it felt like a safe space for anyone to hang out.
Here, I had to get barrels of beer in from outside. I rolled the first one down the slope of the truck and onto the dolly. It was heavy work, even with the mechanical assistance—but that meant I’d never have to spend hours at the gym. My coworker Kevin helped with the larger deliveries. I handled V&V on my own while he was in charge of another smaller customer.
I rolled the barrel in through the main door. V&V patrons could turn left for the bar or right for the bookstore, and while my destination was the bar, I always said hi to the bookstore employee who was usually reshelving books when I came in. Briar was so quiet that I’d made it a mission to get more than a few words out of him. As of yet, no success, but sometimes he’d get the door for me, so I knew he didn’t hate me. The bartenders were nice, too, but the bar tended to be busier.
Today, Briar wasn’t there. Another guy had his back to me as he bent over the cart.
He had a nice butt, too.Stop it, Chelsea.Besides, he was too short and skinny for me. I liked them tall and a little muscular. Then again, shouldn’t I go outside my usual type since it had never worked out for me so far? Well, I’d think about that in a year.No more men!
I coughed. “Hi, there.”
The guy looked up and turned around, and… oh.Oh. That wasn’t a guy at all. Her short, dark hair had misled me. Her clothes seemed masculine, too—jeans baggier than girls usually wore, although still snug enough to hug that round bottom, and a loose gray vest.
Now that I was looking at her face, though, there was no way to mistake her for a man. She had piercing dark eyes, thick arched brows, and the most flawless olive-toned skin. I wondered what she used to keep her complexion so clear. She was probably one of those people that just washed their faces with a bar of soap. Based on my first impression, I could guess she wasn’t one to wander around drugstores for hours, looking for the right product.
“Hi, I’m Tara.” She reached out a hand. “I’m new here.”
I shook her hand, still speechless. Her skin was soft and surprisingly warm, given that it was November.
“And you are…?” she prompted. “Other than beautiful.”
My eyes widened. Was she hitting on me? If she were a guy, I would’ve laughed and taken the compliment. She was a girl—but then, some girls were into girls. She could still be hitting on me.
“I’m Chelsea,” I finally said. “The beer distributor. I come by three times a week, keep the bar stocked up on everything they need.” I was babbling now. I gestured at the beer barrel behind me as if she hadn’t already seen it.
