Page 18 of The Lost and the Found

We had about thirty minutes before closing time, and I still needed to do my closing duties. Dave was in his office, trying to get everything in order for tomorrow’s shipments, and all of the servers had gone home. I was the only one left.

I heard the customer pull out the bar stool and sit down. I couldn’t bring myself to smile when I turned around to greet him.

But whatever I was about to say died on my lips when I caught sight of Logan.

He smiled, teeth and all. “Hi.”

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I figured you were almost out of here and would be too stubborn or prideful to text me tonight.”

I raised one eyebrow at his description. “Or maybe I’m being smart. After all, I don’t know you very well. Why would I ask you for rides?”

“Because it’s snowing outside, and I know you don’t have the appropriate clothing for that. I also know it’s dangerous for you to be out and about at this time of night. Besides, I’ve been to your apartment. If I really wanted to hurt you, don’t you think I would have done it by now?”

When I didn’t say anything, he stood up and walked behind the bar. I shot a glance back to the door leading to Dave’s office. “What are you doing?”

“Helping you. Tell me what I need to do.”

I shook my head in protest. “It’s fine. You don’t have to help.”

Logan shrugged, like it was no big deal. But it was. Why was he doing this? “I want to. Let me help. I’m sure between the two of us, we’d get done faster and could be out of here in no time.”

“Logan…”

“Hayden. It’s okay to ask for help. To accept it when it’s given to you. It doesn’t make you any less capable.”

“That’s not what this is about.”

“Isn’t it?”

“I wouldn’t feel right. It’ll make me feel like I’m taking advantage of you.”

“Not if I’m offering. Now, tell me.”

Maybe because he sounded so sincere, or maybe because I was tired, but I caved like a house of cards in a child’s hands. “I still need to take out the trash. And wipe down the bar top after I clean these glasses.”

“Got it.”

He walked away without another word. We worked in silence and finished everything in fifteen minutes. It usually took me thirty. After that, I turned the open sign off and knocked on Dave’s door.

“Come in.”

I opened the door and found Dave sitting behind his desk. He seemed distracted. “Hey, do you mind if I head out early? The place is empty, and I finished cleaning up.”

He nodded. “Of course. Be safe tonight, Hayden.”

“Thanks. You, too.”

I closed the door behind me, grateful he didn’t see Logan hanging around in the background. Logan waited for me to grab my things, and we walked out. And for the first time in a very long time, I actually enjoyed watching the silent snow fall outside.

I stopped in my steps, completely enchanted by the way the streetlight illuminated the snow so clearly, by the way it swirled on the way down. Logan stopped with me.

“What is it?” he asked softly.

I shook my head, getting away from my whimsical thoughts, and shot him a genuine smile. “Nothing.”

He smiled back, and though his smile was soft, there was still an undercurrent of danger that surrounded him. It was in his eyes, I decided. They were the eyes of a man who had seen too much, had done too much, to ever be considered innocent.

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