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I sighed.Why was my chest so tight?Clearing my throat, trying to loosen the tension that was building within, I replied, “Yeah. Feels so long ago now.” My head dipped briefly at the thought, then I gathered my wits. “But we didn’t end badly, and I have no grudge, so I don’t know why I behaved that way. I hope you can accept my apology and we can be friends.”Friends. God that sounded awful.
He turned his head slightly, his features slowly moving from downturned to a hint of upward curve to his mouth. “Friends. I’d like that.”
I smiled back and my hand grew a mind of its own and landed on his forearm. My breath caught at the feel of his skin. Geezus, he stopped playing football a few years ago.Why was he still so beefy? While I was willing my hand to remove itself from his arm, his large, warm hand found its way over mine and gently squeezed.
How could that be?
A wave of emotion washed over me as a familiar, yet distant warmth ran from his hand through every vein in my body. I fought to keep my smile relaxed and not let him see the fire that was building inside. By the grace of God, he patted my hand then reached for the beer. I used the opportunity to pull my hand away.
I reached for my glass and remembered it was empty. Normally I’d be on the other side of the bar and refill it myself. Everything about this moment had me off my game. I was a customer at the club, was in doctor scrubs, and sitting next to the one that got away.Stop that!
“Jaz?”
“Huh?”Oh my God, did he say something?
“Are you alright?” he asked.
I waved him off. “Yeah. This shift will take some getting used to, is all.”
“Weren’t you taking classes and working at night? So like, all day?”
I chuckled, thankful for the break in tension. “Yeah. I like to stay busy.”
“You always were an overachiever.”
I smacked his arm. “Hey, it’s hard to get into medical school. I did what I had to do.” I caught Jason’s eye and he grinned, so I picked up the glass and shook the ice around.
As Jason came back and filled my glass, Lucy came popping from the kitchen with two baskets in her hands. She missed a beat when she looked up and realized I had taken her seat. She shot a very obvious grin at me then put the baskets in front of us. “Wasn’t sure which, so I brought cheese fries and loaded nachos. Mike, do you need another beer?” she asked as her blue eyes twinkled as she looked between us.
“Actually, a water would be great. Shouldn’t tie one on when I gotta be back at work early in the morning.”
Lucy waved to Jason. He came over and made a glass of water for Mike then walked back to the new girl he was training. Shannon was also blonde, but other than that, she was nothing like Lucy. The new bartender had my frame, less a couple inches in height, and was naturally pretty but not in a model way so much as a cute girl-next-door way. I wondered if Matt was going to go for her when she first started, but he didn’t seem interested, which was a good thing since they’d be behind the bar together most nights. I spent a week with her, but Jason insisted he needed to train her as well. He just had serious trust issues, even with the bar. Lucy fixed that mostly, but the club was his baby. Also, he didn’t like change, and me leaving was hard for him. I was a constant in his life longer than I worked for him, thanks to Mike.
Thinking back to those times we had together before everything changed made my chest tighten again. As if he could sense my mind wandering, Mike pushed the nachos in front of me.
“Here, eat something. It’s getting late.”
Grabbing a loaded down chip, I grinned. “Late? Old man. It’s not even nine.” He tossed a fry at me, and I swatted it away. “Oh, you aresolucky that didn’t have cheese on it.”
He winked then we sat and ate, enjoying small talk with Jason and Lucy.
Once the baskets were both empty and our drinks had been refilled and emptied again, we both reached for the napkins. My hand brushed his before we both pulled away.
“Ladies first.”
I took a napkin and wiped my hands as he grabbed one and did the same.
Lucy followed suit and then asked, “Babe, when are we headed home? I gotta be at the station early.” Jason grumbled but held a finger up before walking to speak to Matt and Shannon. She rolled her eyes. “He thinks I’m wearing myself too thin.”
I shrugged. “Well, med student Jaz says you gotta work hard for what you want. Doctor Jaz says he may be right. You’re burning the candle at both ends. Stress is just as harmful as germs or lack of sleep.”
Lucy’s blue eyes nearly rolled to the other side of her head. “Med student Jaz is way more fun than Doctor Jaz. But point taken. I’m just not ready to let it go.”
Mike chimed in. “Jason just worries. Do what you think is best, Lucy. Sometimes you gotta make small sacrifices for what you want in the long haul.”
My eyes shot to him. If he only knew the weight of that statement. Although, it seemed like he was taking a shot at me about going to school on the other side of the country. Maybe not. Maybe he was just trying to make Lucy feel better about her choices. Regardless, it was not lost on me that I felt like shit without him saying that.
Everything I pushed down and hid away kept bubbling to the surface. I had to get a grip, especially if we were going to be friends.
