Page 15 of Beneath Your Beautiful

“What do you want?” Killian asked, his voice devoid of all emotion.

“When are you gonna smarten up and get back to fighting? It’s the only thing you’re good at.”

Killian kept his voice low, so I couldn’t catch any more of the conversation. Not that it was intended for my ears anyway.

Chapter Seven

Eden

As I exited the employee restroom, I ran into Ava coming out of the office. “You’re taking a break?”

I nodded.

“Me too. I’m addicted to Jimmy’s tacos. It’s a serious problem.”

I looked at her rail-thin body and laughed. Ava was tiny, built like a ballet dancer, and a few inches shorter than me. “It doesn’t look like a problem to me.”

The courtyard was heaving with people crowding the picnic tables. Zeke and Brody were whipping up frozen drinks, and a group I’d served earlier was dancing under hundreds of fairy lights strung from the foliage-covered rafters.

We lined up behind a few people waiting for tacos, and I studied the menu on the side of Jimmy’s truck. “What do you recommend?” I asked Ava. “Since you’re such an addict.”

“The chorizo. Or the shrimp and mole. Or the carnitas…” She stopped and laughed. “They’re all good.”

“I’ll go with your first choice.”

Jimmy took our orders, and a few minutes later, handed us our tacos in cardboard containers. My soft taco was loaded with guacamole, sour cream, cheese, lettuce, and salsa verde. “Come back and tell me it’s the best taco you’ve ever eaten.” Jimmy pointed at me. “Or no more tacos for you.” He laughed to let me know it was a joke.

Ava and I found a quiet spot along the back wall and sat on the ground, our legs kicked out in front of us. While I’d been working, I’d forgotten about my ankle, but now that I was sitting, it was throbbing.

I folded my taco, trying to contain all the ingredients, as that man’s words ran through my head. Why had he put Killian down? I wanted to swoop in and defend him, not that he’d allow that or even want it. I didn’t even know Killian. Why did I feel so defensive on his behalf? And what kind of fighting was the man talking about?

“How’s your first night going?” Ava asked.

“It’s good. I’m having fun.” Except for a few glitches and that man. Could he be Killian’s dad?

I took a big bite of my taco, not realizing how hungry I was. It was delicious, and nothing like the Old El Paso tacos we used to make from a kit when we were growing up.

“How long has this bar been open?” I asked.

“A year and a half. But Killian didn’t get actively involved until a year ago. He put the money in from the start, but he didn’t spend as much time here in the beginning. Now, he practically lives here.”

“Has he always been in the bar business?”

“He did other things too,” she said vaguely.

I waited for her to expand, but she didn’t. I guessed that was all the information I was going to get.

“So, what’s your job here?” I asked, taking another bite of my taco.

“I do the social media and promotions. Book the entertainment, the accounting, general office work…whatever they need.”

“Sounds like you really are the brains behind the operation.”

She laughed. “That was a joke. It’s a shitload of work running a bar, and between you and I, Louis, the other owner, is a good front man. He’s even-keeled, and an all-around good guy. But Killian is better at taking charge and running things.” I heard the pride in her voice, but I couldn’t tell whether she had a crush on Killian, was his girlfriend, or it was something else.

“Have you known Killian a long time?”

“Since ninth grade. Killian was a senior. I mean, I knew who he was before that. We grew up in the same neighborhood in Bay Ridge and went to the same school. But I didn’t get to know him until he rescued me from getting bullied. Nobody messed with me after that. If they tried, they’d have to get through him first. Good luck with that.”