“Thanks Uncle Jack.” I hug him and he wraps an arm around my shoulders, kissing the top of my head lightly.
I pull out my phone and text Gwen and Aaron to meet me after work at Terry’s across the street.
∞∞∞
The day passes steadily, picking up every now and again, flurries of customers coming and going. I’m relieved when the clock strikes five, signalling that my shift is over. I pull the apron over my head and rub my aching temples.
“Hayley!” Gwen shouts as she skips through the door towards me, closely followed by Aaron.
“Hey,” I say as she slams into me wrapping her arms tight around me, the force almost knocking me over.
“How are you? What’s been going on? Where have you been for the past few days? What’s wi-”
“Gwen, slow down. I’ll tell you everything, okay? Let’s just get out of here first.” She nods.
I look to Aaron and smile. “Hey.”
His face remains stern. “Hi.” The look he gives me tells me he’s still mad at me.
I grab my belongings from the storage closet and wave goodbye to Uncle Jack before heading out into the cool evening.
We make our way to the bar across the street from the diner and take a seat at a small table in a quiet corner. The air is thick with the smell of stale beer that lingers in the air.
A waitress takes our drinks order and returns with them a few minutes later. It’s Wednesday night so the bar isn’t overly busy.
Gwen leans forward on the table opposite me, Aaron angled towards me, his elbow resting on the cool, somewhat sticky surface.
“So come on, spill,” Gwen prompts.
I recount every detail of how my father exchanged me for money, the guys in the alley and how Kyle protected me. I tell them everything. I decide to leave out the details on Kyle’s past and my assault when I was seventeen.
“So what happened then, after dinner?”
“He pulled me up to dance and Is This Love started playing, he planned the whole thing. You know how much that song means to me and I... I kissed him,” I confess. A slight blush creeping up my neck to my cheeks.
Gwen lets out a gasp. “So, you kissed him first, like you made the first move?”
“Yeah. It was crazy I didn’t even know what I was doing until my brain final caught up.”
“Was it a good kiss?” she asks.
I nod.
“I’m so proud of you girl! Didn’t think you’d have it in you. So, are you going to call him or something? I mean, if he’s a good kisser, imagine how good he’ll be at... other things...” She smiles suggestively, wiggling an eyebrow.
“Gwen, seriously?” Aaron asks.
I tear away from her gaze, my cheeks burning, even in the dingy lighting in the bar, Gwen must be able to see the best in my cheeks that expose my embarrassment, my silent confession.
“Wait. Did you...?” She leans forward further. “Did you fuck him?” she asks in a hushed voice.
I say nothing, avoiding her gaze, giving her my answer without having to say it out loud.
“Holy shit!” She claps her hand over her mouth and lets out an astonished laugh. “No way,” she draws out slowly. A sly smile touches her lips. “Was it good?”
“Gwen, we don’t need to know this,” Aaron protests.
“Speak for yourself.” She turns her attention back to me. “So?”
I hesitate to answer. I give her a slight nod.
She lets out a squeal, seemingly unable to keep still in her seat. “I’m so fucking happy for you, about time you got some.”
Aaron lets out a deep breath beside me, leaning back against his seat.
“Don’t be, I probably won’t see him again.” I look down at my hands in my lap, picking at the skin around my fingers, a trace of disappointment in my voice.
“Why the fuck would you want to see him again?” Aaron barks. “He fucks over your dad to get close to you, then forces you to stay with him in his cushy penthouse like some fucking prisoner. This isn’t fucking Beauty and the Beast so stop romanticising it. Why would you want someone like that? He sounds like an asshole, and I’m not going to sit here and listen to you gushing about how good he is in bed, for fuck’s sake.”
“What the fuck Aaron?” Gwen yells.
He jerks up out of his seat and storm away.
“Aaron,” I call after him, but he just keeps walking.
I sit stock still, stunned into silence as I watch my best friend walk out of the bar, the door slamming closed behind him. Aaron has never spoken to me like that before, never got so angry. He’s always been so easy-going which is why his reaction is such a shock.
“What was that?” I ask.
“Just ignore him, he’s just being a dick.”
I nod slowly, letting it lie, for now, though I’m not convinced. There’s something more going on with him, I want to know what it is.
Chapter 18
Kyle
“Another?” The beautiful redhead behind the bar asks, exposing her tits over the top of her thin strappy tank as she leans forward.
“Yeah.” I push the empty towards her across the smooth mahogany top.
She lingers for a moment before she takes the empty glass and exchanges it for a new one.
I bring it to my lips and down it in one.
“Looks like you needed that,” the redhead says, leaning her hip against the bar, her arms folded across her chest.
“You could say that.” I wipe my mouth on the back of my hand and exhale deeply.
She cocks an eyebrow. “A girl?”
“How can you tell?”
“Baby, I work behind a bar, I have guys comin’ in every night tellin’ me their problems, drownin’ their sorrows in booze, hopin’ they’ll find the answers in the bottom of their glasses.”
“And do they, find the
