Page 5

5

T alia felt giddy walking into the coffee shop. No one had ever invited her to coffee, and no one polite had ever wanted to hang out with her. Her family had done a number on her.

She pushed away thoughts of the crap in her past and looked for the woman wearing the green t-shirt. She spied a woman sitting in the corner, and her stomach dropped. Ellis looked like she had her shit together. Her dark hair and pale skin made her look elegant, and Talia was anything but elegant.

“Oh, Talia.” Ellis waved from her seat and stood, moving to her.

Talia froze. Was this woman connected to her family? There was no way. Her family didn’t know everyone, or did they?

Ellis pulled her into a hug. She sucked in a sharp breath, trying to figure out what was going on. Ellis leaned back, not giving any indication she’d noticed Talia’s stiffness or the ugly bruises and cuts she’d gotten from the beating.

“I’m Ellis. It’s nice to meet you. I’m so glad I could help you. I ordered a latte for you. I hope that’s okay.”

Talia would normally turn on the snark, but this wasn’t her family or their friends. “Thank you.”

“I also got a few scones. I love scones. Have you ever been to England?”

Talia shook her head. “No. I’ve hardly left San Diego.”

“Well, these scones aren’t as good as what you get in England, but they are okay.” Ellis flashed a smile. “Come sit. We can chat over there.”

Talia nodded, hoping she could recover and have a normal conversation without being snarky and offending Ellis. No way would Zip want her in his life. She was hard edges and vinegar, and Ellis was sweetness and sugar. She could never compete with someone like this.

Ellis took a seat just as their coffees came. The scones were round, and there was jam and something else on the table that Ellis indicated was for the scones.

She wasn’t sure, but Ellis seemed to notice how uncomfortable she was and picked up a scone, showing Talia what to do. She felt absolutely out of her depths. No question that her upbringing had severely lacked key activities that would help her know how to act in this situation.

She mimicked Ellis’s actions and took a bite of the scone. It was decent. A bagel would have been better, maybe.

“How do you know Zip?” Ellis asked after she swallowed her bite of food.

Talia washed down the scone with some coffee. She wondered if Ellis would go back to Zip and tell him everything. But this wasn’t her family.

“Um, I don’t really know him. He was at the bar that night and pulled the guy off me.”

Ellis put her coffee down and reached across the table to squeeze her hand. “I’m sorry that happened to you. At least Zip was there. Are you pressing charges?”

Talia couldn’t help but laugh. “No. Sorry, but that’s just part of going to see my sister.”

Ellis froze. “What?”

“My family is messed up. They don’t like me.”

“Not liking family is one thing, but sending someone to beat you up, that’s unconscionable.”

Talia stared at Ellis for a moment. “You think so?”

Ellis nodded. “Yes. That’s totally wrong. Do you want to press charges?”

Talia shook her head. “No. The last time I tried to do something like that, I ended up charged with assault.”

“Wait, what?”

“Yeah. They dropped the charges, but I spent four months in jail because of my family.”

Ellis gasped, then shook her head. “I’m sorry. That’s awful. How did you cope?”

Talia shrugged. “It’s not the worst thing they’ve done to me. It sucked, but it was better than being at home.” She couldn’t tell Ellis what else her family had forced her into. Few people could reconcile what she’d done. She’d lost friends once they found out, and she didn’t want to lose Ellis. “After that, I got my own place. It’s not much, but I couldn’t live with my family. Now I live in that apartment above the restaurant. It’s only one room, but it’s mine, and I don’t have to worry about them coming into my room while I sleep.”

Ellis looked disgusted, no, shocked. Talia hadn’t even told her the bad stuff. No question, she had to keep a lid on all the other stuff that happened.

Ellis squeezed her hand again. “You’re strong. No wonder Zip likes you.”

“What?” She sat up and leaned forward. Ellis’s words were shocking. She’d thought for sure Zip wouldn’t be interested. “How do you know he likes me?”

Ellis’s lips quirked up. “He asked me to give you his number.”

“Oh.” She’d wondered how she would get his number, and she hadn’t needed to worry. Zip wanted her to have it.

“He’s a good guy.”

Talia nodded. “He seems like it. How long have you known him?”

“Since I started dating Trip. Some of the guys are rough around the edges, but once you get to know them, you see they are good.”

She wouldn’t reveal her theory that Zip was a cinnamon roll. He would probably be embarrassed and she didn’t want to do that. At least not behind his back. If his cheeks went red, she wanted to see.

A woman with red hair came over to the table and Ellis jumped up, giving her a hug. “Ginger, this is Talia. Ginger has been one of my best friends for years.”

Ginger didn’t blink or make a face when she turned to Talia. Either these women knew to expect the cuts and bruises, or they were great actors. The woman smiled and shook her hand, acting like her sitting in this coffee shop with her messed up face was normal. “Talia, it’s nice to meet you. I hope Ellis brings you around for girls’ night out.” Ginger’s phone buzzed and she rolled her eyes. “Sorry, Kent and the child are waiting for me in the car.”

Ellis pulled Ginger close for another hug before stepping back. “I’ll talk to you later. Bye.”

“She seems nice,” Talia said as Ellis took her seat.

Ellis chuckled. “Don’t let her fool you, she’s a snarky bitch when we’re alone but I love her.”

Wistfulness filled Talia and she might have even sighed. “That’s good.”

Ellis leaned in. “I don’t want to overstep any boundaries, but if you’re good with it, would you like to come to dinner on Friday?”

“Oh, I’m working Friday evening.”

“How about on Saturday?”

Talia nodded. “Yes. That would be good.”

“Awesome. You can meet Trip, and we can get to know each other better. I have a feeling we’re going to be friends.”

Talia smiled, but inside, her stomach clenched. What would this woman say if she knew the truth of her past? Most women didn’t want her near their men once they learned about her past sex work. She’d been thirteen when her sister forced her into the business. Her work paid their bills back then. She’d brought in all the money for food and the mortgage. She’d also sent her family on fabulous trips while she was literally working her ass off.