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“Hey hon, do you mind closing up tonight with Cole? Mimi’s been a little out of sorts lately. She burnt her forearm on the grill at the diner, and I need to go pick her up from the emergency room.”
“Of course Rico! I don’t mind. Give her a hug for me, I’ll stop by later this week and check on her,” I respond, busying myself with pouring lemon drop shots for the bachelorette party that’s celebrating in the corner by the vacant DJ booth.
“Hey Ar, you doing ok?” he whispers, gently grabbing my elbow to make me stop what I'm doing and face him.
“I-I’m fine. Just a busy night that’s all,” I smile.
He looks at me with sad eyes that tell me he knows I’m lying, but he lets it go. “Alright, you know if you need anything, I’m here right?”
I nod and smile, “I know Rico, I’m fine though, really.”
“Well I’m going to let Cole know I’m heading out, call me for anything, k? Anything at all.”
“I will, I will. Drive safe old man,” I wrap my arms around him in a quick hug. When he leaves, I pick up the tray of shots and carry them over to the group of women.
As the night kicks up into full swing, I’m eternally grateful that I’m too busy to get lost in my own thoughts. I even smile a few times, laughing with groups of patrons while I get their drinks or take a few celebratory shots with them. Before I know it, Cole is hollering out last call, and customers start making their way to the register to settle their tabs.
Once the groups of customers disseminate, Cole disappears into the back to carry out bags of trash, and start on kitchen clean up, so I begin with counting out the register. Once I separate any owed tips, I pull a bank deposit bag out from under the register and as I’m stuffing it with the receipts and earnings from the night, a deep voice stops me in my tracks.
“Hey, red.”
As I suck in a sharp breath, the bag slips from my hands. Dollar bills and coins scatter as the bag and all of its contents hit the floor; my breath sticking in my chest. Trembling, I turn around, sliding on my mask of apathy, determined not to let him see the effect he still has on me.
Looking up, I drink in his tall, muscled form. His messy, light brown hair, nose ring and neck tattoos.
Then my eyes meet those soulful honeyed eyes that always made me weak.
The eyes that I never wanted to see again.
The eyes that used to hold so many promises.
The lake was frozen over, and Travis showed up at my front door, insisting that we get some ice skates from the store in town, and go out onto the ice. I love the winter. I love the snow. But ice? The frozen lake? Honestly, I was a little bit petrified. I’m clumsy as fuck on a good day, so I didn’t exactly want to take my chances at falling into the frozen abyss when the ice inevitably cracked beneath my feet.
But here I am anyway.
Because it’s Travis, and there’s no universe that exists where I can tell him no. All he has to do is look at me with those honey eyes and I’m done for. I glance at him, crouched down on one knee, lacing up my skate, the white puffs of snow falling into his brown hair, and my heart tingles.
Life has been terrifying and hollow lately. Ever since mom got sick, I feel like I’m living on borrowed time. Every day is like a bad dream. I sit by her bed when I’m home, just watching her sleep, and half the time she doesn’t even know I’m there. The only time I can breathe is when Travis climbs through my window and holds me while I cry myself to sleep. He’s my safe haven. He keeps me sane.
“Give me your hand,” I blink and Travis is standing in front of me, his arm outstretched, waiting for me to take his hand. Warily, I place my gloved hand in his as he steps onto the ice, “Ready?”
“No. Nope. I’m going to fall.”
“Babygirl, you got this. You think I’d let you fall?” his gorgeous light brown eyes twinkle, looking down at me from beneath the scattered strands of his hair.
No. Of course he’d never let me fall.
I shake my head and he grins. Stretching his opposite arm out, he takes my other hand in his and I take one step forward. My feet slip beneath me, and my body instantly goes rigid. Squeezing his hands for dear life, I suck in a breath and bite back a shriek, but I manage to steady myself against him.
“Relax, just relax. Steady. You got this,” his soothing words wash over me like a warm blanket. Making me feel settled. He glides backward a bit, and I slide one foot forward, then the next, and he lets one of my hands go. My heart briefly flutters like crazy, nervous that I’ll fall, but I move slowly, hand in hand with Travis. He speeds up just a bit, and I move to follow. The cold breeze bites through me, but I barely notice.
All I feel is him.
As we glide across the lake, we near the opposite edge when I guess I get a little too confident and the tip of my right skate clips the back of my left skate, and down I go.
Yep, this is it, I’m going to fall through the ice and die.
I close my eyes, but I don’t hit the ice.