Page 5 of Betrayal & New Beginnings

“There’s aTargetandWalmart, both just two miles down the street if that works,” she said quietly.

I found myself wondering how she worked as a receptionist when she clearly was uncomfortable talking with people.MaybeIcould take some time and chat with her.Ididn’t know anyone else here, soIcould certainly use some new girlfriends.Plus,Iwould be seeing her almost daily for the next few weeks whileIlived here, so it would be polite to get to know her a little better.

“Thanks.HeyRuthie, would you like to get some lunch together sometime or go shopping?”Iasked taking a chance. “Idon’t know the area, andIwould love to know what there is to do around here that’s fun.”

She stared at me for a few seconds andIrealized maybeIhad overstepped.Shewas obviously very shy, so maybe hanging out wasn’t really her thing.Iwas about to tell her never mind when she spoke up, albeit quietly.

“Umm, okay,” she said with the faintest smile.

WhileIgave her my number,Inoticed a man standing off to the other side ofRuthie’sdesk, looking down at his phone.WhenIlisted off my phone number,Inoticed the man was now staring right at me.Helooked familiar, butIcouldn’t quite figure out how.

“You must beEllie,” the man said with his hand outstretched. “I’mArcher.I’veheard a lot about you fromJack.”

Oh!Yes,IrememberedJacktalking about him and even showed me a few pictures of him when he was home.

“Hi.It’snice to meet you,”Isaid asIshook his hand.

“If you need anything while you’re here, just letVince,Wade, or me know, okay.”

I felt like there was some deeper meaning there, but it was likely him just being nice becauseIwasJack’ssister.

“Thank you.I’llsee you guys around,”Isaid asIturned and walked out.

Archer seemed friendly and was definitely attractive.Hehad theGreekGodvibe going.OrmaybeItalianorSpanish,Iwasn’t sure.Hehad olive-tone skin and black hair that hung a little over his ears and forehead.Hewas either going for the messy look or was past due to get a haircut.

WhileArcherwas good-looking, he couldn’t hold a candle toWade.

Jack had talked aboutArcher,Vince, andWadea lot.VinceandWadewere in his army squadron, andJackreferred to them as his brothers.ArcherwasVince’scousin or brother or some kind of relative.Hehadn’t served overseas with them, but was still part of their tight-knit group.Iwas happy my brother had them, even if theArmywas the reason our relationship was a bit strained.

From whatIrecalledJacktelling me,Wadewas the squad’s staff sergeant and a few years older than my brother, but my brother really seemed to admire and respect him.Whathe hadn’t mentioned was how good-lookingWadewas.Notthat guys thought about stuff like that.

WhenTammyfirst brought me into the office to meet him,Iwas amazed at how handsome he was.Hehad dark brown hair and stunning milk chocolate eyes.

I’m fairly tall myself at 5’9”, but he easily had half a foot on me.Eventhough he was out of the military, he clearly did not miss a workout.Hehad broad shoulders and muscles upon muscles that looked like they were straining under his blackT-shirt.Icould see some tattoos peeking out from his sleeves and found myself wanting to rip his shirt off soIcould see how far the tattoos went.

I shouldn’t be thinking thoughts like that, though.HewasJack’sfriend, now my boss, and honestly, my track record with men wasn’t the greatest lately.AsImade my way to the store,Ireminded myself thatIjust needed to focus on myself right now and apply to schools locally.Notthink of how smoking hot my new boss was.

Definitely not.

Maybe ifItold myself enough, it would actually sink in.

Maybe.

* * *

After grabbing some new sheets, an extra pillow (Jackonly had one), a throw blanket for the bed and one for the couch, some non-plastic silverware, cups, plates, and some groceries to fill the fridge withrealfood,Iwas set.Atleast for now.

My hope was that over the next few weeks,Icould put some pictures ofJack,Gran, and me in some frames around his place, a houseplant or two, and make this area feel a little homier for him.Notgirly, but just more like a home rather than an empty place to just eat and sleep.

I pulled my hair into a ponytail and tried to do my best to cover up what remained of my bruises and marks on my neck before heading down to the pub to meetTammy.Assoon asIwalked in the door, her loud but friendly voice greeted me.

“Heya,Ellie.Comeon over, dear,”Tammyyelled and waved me over to the bar.

Tammy seemed like a super sweet lady from whatIcould tell.Shewas short, especially compared to me, with a stocky, muscular build.Herdark brown hair was accented by a few strands of gray, and the slight wrinkles around her eyes suggested she might be in her mid-forties.Yet, everything else about her gave the impression she was ten years younger.

“Let’s get you ready so you can start earning us some big tips.Weshare them, by the way,” she told me, leaning in. “Ihave a feeling you are gonna be making our tip jar nice and full.”

“Thanks,Tammy.”Ilaughed at her confidence, butIappreciated her faith in me. “I’lldo whatIcan to pull my weight around here and help out as much as you need me.”

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