Page 8 of Mending Me

“What was that?” Ophelia asked, looking at my reflection again in the mirror.

“Nothing. Just talking to myself. What about this?” I pulled out a daisy printed sundress and held it up in front of me.

“Cute! You should totally wear that tonight.” We were heading to one of the bars on the water for a drink. Since the majority of my closet was workout gear, she was letting me borrow something from hers.

“Okay, I’m going to go put it on,” I added, heading to my own room to change.

“And put some makeup on. Not that you don’t look incredible without it, but think about how drop dead, boner inducing you could be with some blush,” my friend yelled at me through the walls.

I rolled my eyes and ignored her comment. Makeup wasn’t something I ever got into. Not that I had any issue with women who enjoyed wearing it, I just thought it was a waste of money. And whenever I tried to wear some I always ended up looking like a drunken circus clown.

I stripped out of the loungewear I had been wearing and pulled on the dress. It hugged my hips and fell just above my knees, showing off my muscular, defined calves. Doing a spin in the mirror, I looked at myself and leaned in to study my face. I pouted at myself and ran my fingers through my shoulder-length hair. I felt pretty. Hell, I looked pretty. And I knew it.

“If only Hank wasn’t so fucking shy. Maybe I could be getting a drink with him instead of Ophelia,” I whispered as I turned to look at myself one more time in the mirror. I slipped on a pair of brown strappy sandals and grabbed my bag off the bedpost.

As I exited the room, I caught my reflection one more time in the mirror. Without warning, the image of my bloodied lip and bruised eye flashed in front of my eyes and the sounds of me crying rang in my ears. I felt my feet stop where they were as my hands covered my face.

“B, are you okay?” Ophelia’s concerned voice pulled me out of the memory.

“What? Yeah. Yes, I’m fine.” I gave her a fake smile I hoped was convincing. “A bug just flew into my face.”

“Oh my god, I wish they would spray for those. The last thing we need is a god damn bug infestation in here.” She rolled her eyes and grabbed her purse off the bar before turning to me. “You ready?”

“Yep,” I chirped, trying to push the flashback out of my head for good.

Tonight was about having fun with my best friend, not about digging up past traumas and dwelling on them. She was going to be with me the whole time. I was safe. Nothing was going to happen.

And besides, even if anything did happen, I would be ready. I had been working hard to get stronger over the last two years for a reason.

To be able to protect myself. To be able to fight for myself. To make sure that no one would ever be able to hurt me again.

As we walkedinto the bar, the loud pumping music filled my ears and Ophelia turned to me with a grin. This was definitely more her scene than mine but the view was pretty and I knew how excited she’d been when I told her I would go out with her tonight.

We found an open hightop and took our seats. Looking around the bar, I could understand why it was so crowded.

The place sat right on the water and had a wall of opened doors leading out to the patio which then led to a dock that you could pull your boat up to. The white walls and plush chairs gave it a modern look, while the worn wooden floors and decorations paid homage to the history of the place. They were playing country music through the speakers and there was a live band out on the patio for people sitting outside. It had a luxe feel to it while still maintaining a homey atmosphere.

“This is my favorite place to come for drinks. The bartenders are amazing here and the food is so fucking good,” Ophelia hummed, looking at the drink menu. “What are you drinking?”

“Uhhh….” I wasn’t much of a drinker so I didn’t really know what to get. “Maybe just a mule?”

“Oh come on, not a mule, you always get those. Get something fun for once. First drink is on me, so the price doesn’t matter.” She gave me a wink and bumped her shoulder into mine. We had been friends for over five years, meeting at an event I was organizing at my old job. She came up to me to complain that none of the servers were cute and we had been friends ever since. She was there for me after the night that changed everything and I was grateful for her friendship. She never made me feel bad for being between jobs and always offered to help me when it came to money.

Some people might be embarrassed to be in my position, but I was grateful. I didn’t have any family here and Ophie had become more like my sister over the last few years. Plus, I would be paying her back for everything plus a little more on top once I figured things out again.

We both ordered our drinks, Ophelia ordering me some $14 fruity cocktail I would most likely hate, and were chatting as music played loudly over the speakers. The weather was perfectfor this time of year—hot but not stuffy. With the patio doors open and being right on the water, a warm sea breeze passed through the crowded bar, mixing together all the scents and smells of the drinks and people inside of it.

Ophelia was telling me about some guy at work she thought was cute when my eyes glanced over to the bar. All the stools were filled and people were crowded around it, attempting to order a drink. My time as an event planner made me keenly aware of people and how they interacted. Watching people like this was one of my favorite things to do. When someone stepped away from the bar, my eyes caught the image of someone I’d seen before.

Someone I’d seen in the early morning hours of the day for the last couple weeks, hoping he would come up to me and say hi. There, sitting at the bar with two other guys, was Hank.

He was wearing dark faded jeans and a black T-shirt that showed off his strong, caramel toned arms. The tattoo on his left arm flexed as he spoke with his friends. When one of the guys he was sitting with said something, he threw his head back and laughed deeply, causing my thighs to squeeze together in response. There was nothing I wanted to do more than go and run my fingers through his dark curls that had grown out over the last couple weeks. I couldn’t peel my eyes away from him until Ophelia’s voice cut through my brain like a knife.

“Bailey…hello? Are you even listening to me?” She gave my arm a shove which pulled me from the trance I was in. She followed my gaze to see what I was staring at. “Holy shit, what a beautiful specimen of a man HE is.”

“Ophie,” I hissed at her. She was nearly yelling and the people seated around us had all turned to see what she was looking at. The last thing I wanted was for Hank to notice and realize I had caused everyone in the bar to stare at him.

“What? He’s so cute,” she leaned in and whispered, wiggling her eyebrows at me with a smirk.

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