Page 4 of The Heart of a Capricorn
“Addison, but everyone calls me Addie.” She stuck her hand out, and I shook it.
“Nice to meet you again, Addie. This is my boy Terrance.”
Addie spoke to Terrance but turned her attention back to me.
“I didn’t know you and Ciara were related. I worked at the company for a while but never saw you before.”
“Right. I travel a lot.”
Addie was a pretty decent looking chick. She had long hair, but I wasn’t sure if it was hers or not. The dress she wore looked painted on, but too short in my opinion.
“Oh, that’s cool. What do you do?”
“I’m an air marshal.”
Her eyes blew up like a balloon as she moved closer to me.
“Wow. So that means you get to carry a gun?” She dragged one of her red painted nails over my bicep.
“I do. At all times.” I winked at her.
She giggled. “I’m sure it’s big.”
By this time, she was damn near in my lap. I played along with it because I was single, and she had my attention for a minute, at least until I who I wanted came around.
“Very. How long are you here for?” I asked, trying to change the subject. I wasn’t trying to mess with the first chick that flirted with me.
“A while. Maybe at least three months, depending on how fast we get this job done.”
“What do you do besides work?” I leaned forward a little.
Terrance had gotten up and walked off somewhere. Knowing him, he found someone else to talk to. We never stayed around when the other talked to a potential. Terrance and I had been friends for years and knew how the other one worked. He knew of Lyric but didn’t know her name or what she looked like.
Addie smirked as her green eyes sparkled. “A little bit of everything.”
I really didn’t care what she did; I was just making conversation. Her response gave me the impression that she didn’t do much of anything.
“Chauncey, what are you doing here?” I heard from the side of me.
Addie didn’t look too pleased when Ciara walked up. I stood to greet Ciara, even though I’d seen her earlier in the day.
“Just getting to know my new friend here.”
Ciara said something to Addie, but I didn’t hear it, because when I looked to my left, I spotted Lyric at a table alone.
Immediately, I stood from the stool, damn near knocking it over. My heart raced, and I couldn’t focus on anything but making my way to Lyric.
“Where are you going?” Addie asked, but I paid her no mind.
I couldn’t even tell Ciara that I would call her later. I had tunnel vision, and the only person in my view was Lyric.
I shouldn’t have toldCiara I would come to the bar, but I was hungry, so it worked out. I didn’t feel like being bothered by people, so once I spoke to the ladies, I found a table in the corner and ordered my food. While I waited, I looked over the plans for the next couple of days, then did a crossword puzzle on my phone. It was one of the only ways I could calm my mind down from the million things that ran through it. Deadlines, making sure things got done correctly, and everything we had to do on this project ran through my mind on a constant loop.
Doing crossword puzzles forced me to think about something other than work. My grandmother was the first person I knew who did them, and one day when I was at her house, she sat me down to do one, and I loved them ever since. Grandma Laurawas my favorite person, and I missed her so much. She was two years shy of a hundred when she went peacefully in her sleep. She loved crossword puzzles so much that my mother buried her with her favorite puzzle book.
I usually had a book of my own, but I thought it would be weird to have a puzzle book in a bar, so I utilized my phone instead.
When my chicken fingers and fries came, I put my phone on the table, sanitized my hands, and dressed my food the way I wanted it: BBQ sauce for the chicken, ketchup, salt, and pepper for the fries. My meal wouldn’t be complete without a root beer. I did order a drink, but I needed the soda too. Some meals required an ice-cold root beer.
