Forever This Time (24 page)

Josie calmly pulled his paw from her shoulder and manufactured the brightest smile she owned. “Maybe a
please
would help? I'm sure you can see they're short-staffed.”

“Not my fault. Hey!” He wiggled his empty beer mug at Molly, who was practically running down the bar with more plates. She delivered them efficiently to a group in the corner, and Josie watched in the mirror as she then looked around, trying to figure out who needed what next.

“Is there
nobody
else working in this hole?” The guy slammed his mug on the wooden bar.

Without stopping to think through what she was doing, Josie spun around on her barstool and elbowed the guy. “Follow me.”

“Seriously?”

She cocked her head toward the door that went only to the decrepit old back porch over the riverbank, but he didn't know that. “Come on.”

“That's more like it. I'll follow
you
anywhere, babe.” Josie bristled as he put a hand at the small of her back while she weaved through the patrons.

When she got to the door, she undid the latch and squeaked open the door. “Come on. Right through here.” Once his body cleared the threshold, she slammed the door shut and pulled the latch closed.

Then, before she could talk herself out of it, she headed back to the bar, flipped open the counter, and grabbed an apron that was hanging under the register. She tied on the apron, pulled her hair into a quick ponytail, and scooped up a pen and order pad, then went to the corner of the pub she knew Molly hadn't had time to get to in the past twenty minutes.

She'd done enough shifts here in high school to remember the drill—and, she smiled—the menu. Before Molly emerged once again from the kitchen, Josie had taken orders from three tables and delivered drinks to two others. On her way back to the bar with a stack of new drink orders, she was so busy scribbling that she barely looked up in time to avoid a pile of plates with Molly's legs. She leaped to the side as Molly flew between tables, and was drawing draft beers by the time she got back to the bar.

Molly stopped short when she saw Josie with her hands on the beer levers. “What the hell are you doing?”

“Helping.” Josie shrugged her shoulders.

“Why?”

“Because you're short-staffed and I'm here and I can.”

“We don't need you here, Josie.” Molly practically spat.

“I know.” Josie slid three beers across the bar and gave change, then put a ten-dollar bill in the tip jar as she pulled Cokes with the other hand. “You want me to go?”

“Yeah, I do.”

Josie slid the Cokes down the bar to another couple as she mixed a whiskey sour. “Okay. I'm gone. I'll just finish these drink orders.”

“Good.” Molly slammed through the kitchen doors and Josie couldn't quite hold in a smile. She wasn't going anywhere. She would just stay behind the bar and out of Molly's way, and maybe, just maybe, she could start forging a path toward friendship and forgiveness.

A new pile of plates flew through the kitchen doors and Molly hissed, “Not done yet?” on her way by.

“Big order.”

Molly delivered the meals, stopped at a couple of tables, then came back toward the bar. As she flipped the counter upward, Josie pushed a glass of seltzer into her hand. “Drink.”

Molly held the drink for a moment, and Josie braced herself in case Molly decided to dump it over her head, rather than drink it. Thirst must have overpowered her, because Molly looked down, gave the lime a quick squeeze into the water, and threw a
thank you
over her shoulder as she banged back into the kitchen.

“Wowza. What are you serving with the mostaccioli in here tonight? Gold?” A guy in his mid-twenties nodded his thanks as she slid a draft beer toward his spot at the bar.

“Just Mama's magic sauce.” Josie winked as she pulled two more beers and slid them toward his friends. All three wore T-shirts with the colorful logo of the local river tour company, and she assumed a trailer full of kayaks was somewhere in the parking lot. “How was the river today?”

“Might have been better without the city-slicker guests. Luckily we left them camping downstream.”

“You left them alone beside a raging river? Remind me not to book a tour with you guys anytime soon.”

He took a gulp of his beer, then set it down. “Last time that river raged was April. They're just fine.” He winked. “Have you ever tried rafting?”

“Nope. I would be a disaster on the river.”

“Can you swim?”

Josie raised her eyebrows. “I shouldn't need to, should I?”

He laughed. “No, but if you can, then there's nothing to worry about. Worst case, you get dumped. Then you swim.”

“Well, as fun as that sounds…”

“You should try it sometime. Book a tour. Or a lesson.”

Josie felt her eyebrows crinkle as she looked at him. Was he flirting with her? His open posture spoke volumes, as did the eyes that followed her every movement.

“I'm … just visiting, but thanks.”

“How long are you here for?”

“Not sure yet, but I'm not big on being left as bear bait.”

“I didn't really leave them alone down there. Promise.” He brushed sandy-colored hair away from his eyes, which were a riveting blue. His face was tanned, but paler around the eyes, where his sunglasses probably sat all day long, every day. “They've got three guides with them still.”

“Ah. More for the bears.”

“The bears are fine if you throw them a kid every couple of weeks. You really should try it someday. It's fun.”

“Maybe. You never know.” Josie smiled quickly and moved down the bar to take other orders.

For the half hour that followed, as she bustled up and down the bar collecting orders and pouring drinks, she glanced his way every once in a while. Every time, he met her eyes. He was a normal, hot-ish, fit, pleasant male of a similar age who was clearly interested in getting to know her better. But as much as she wished it would do something for her,
anything
for her, it just … didn't.

Ethan, on the other hand … She just had to
think
about his lips on hers last night, and her face went all hot and bothered.

She finally stopped in front of river-guide guy again, noticing his beer was almost gone. “Can I get you anything else?”

“All set for tonight, thanks.” He put a twenty on the bar and slid off his stool. “But really, if you ever want to head out to the river, give me a call.” He pulled a card out of his pocket and put it over the twenty, then winked. “I'd love to take you out.”

As he left, she fingered the card, smiling just a little at his efforts. Then she felt her smile turn to a frown as she realized she had no desire at all to go near the river. Not with this guy, not with anyone.

The lake, on the other hand, was a different story.

*   *   *

Ethan pushed his French fries around his plate as he waited for Pops to finish his lasagna. Bellinis was so busy they'd been lucky to score a booth, and even then, they were stuck in the back near the bathrooms.

“Whatsa matta? You not hungry?” Pops squirted more ketchup on his already saturated meal.

“Guess not.”

“Something on your mind, son?”

Ethan looked at Pops, surprised. He sounded so lucid, so present. He was having a good day, so Ethan had decided to take advantage of it by getting him out of the house for his favorite dinner.

“Just the usual, I guess.”

“Boston princess?”

Ethan laughed softly. “Yeah, Pops. Boston princess is definitely taking up some space.”

“Not gone yet, huh?”

“Nope. Still here.”

As if he'd conjured it, he suddenly heard what he swore was Josie's laugh coming from the bar. But it couldn't be. She wouldn't set foot in here again of her own accord, would she?

But there it was again. He slid farther out of the booth and craned his neck to see the end of the bar where the register was.

“Well, I'll be damned.” There she was. In a frigging apron.
Behind
the bar. He shook his head. What the hell was going on?

“You'll be damned why?” Pops forked another mouthful in as he turned his head to see what Ethan was looking at. “Oh. Well, I'll be damned, too. We'll be damned together.”

“God forbid,” Ethan muttered.

“I heard that. My hearing's not going—just my mind.”

“Sorry.” Ethan took another drink, watching Josie over the rim of his cup. Molly had been moving so fast as she took their orders and delivered their dinners that she hadn't stopped to even say hello, let alone explain what Josie was doing here.

If he didn't know better, he'd think she'd been working
here
every night for years, not at some hoity-toity Boston office. She covered the bar like a pro, pulling beers with one hand while flipping glasses with the other. She had roped her hair into some twisty configuration that corralled her curls and left her creamy neck exposed. The apron did nothing to hide the curves beneath, damn it.

He dragged his eyes back up to her face, watching as she served draft beers to three guys from Rugged River Tours. Two of them were locked onto the game above Josie's head, but one was definitely making moves, and Ethan noticed his own hands clenching. She served them their beers, then leaned down to talk with Nathan, the owner of the company.

As she gestured and smiled, Ethan found himself increasingly irritated. She'd been kissing him breathless just last night, then practically running away—and now here she was at the bar talking with Nathan like he was the only guy in the room.

“She's not gonna stay here, y'know.” Pops sopped up the last of his sauce with his bread. “You ought not get your heart all broke up again.”

“I know, Pops.”

“You know, but you don't
know
. Time to get over her, boy. She left you once. She'll do it again.”

“I know.”

“Well, maybe somebody needs to hit you over the head with a hammer. You were, what, eighteen when you got engaged? It's been ten years, son. You gonna wait forever? Or you gonna live your life?”

Ethan felt a familiar stab in his gut at Pops's words. It'd been a long time since Pops had taken him to task over his life choices, but the memories of him doing so were still crystal-clear.

*   *   *

“Well.” Pops's jaw was tight after they came out of the doctor's office.

“I know.” Ethan was barely holding it together after hearing the doc utter the words that had summarily ended his military dreams.

“I'm gonna get Coach on the phone. Gonna sue his ass.”

“Pops, he had nothing to do with this.”

“Bullshit. If he'd trained you better, we wouldn't be in this position.”

Ethan paused. “
We
aren't in this position, Pops.
I
am.”

Pops turned on him. “You were gonna be a Marine, son. A Marine. You were gonna make me proud.”

Ethan felt a knife edge through his gut. He'd always known his dad believed military service was the only path to greatness, and until now, that had sat pretty well with him. He got good grades, his teachers called him a natural leader, and he'd impressed Norwich into a scholarship. He was on his dad's ideal path, and he was okay with it.

It was his dream, too.

Now it was neither of theirs, and he didn't have any idea what came next. That night he hobbled to Mom's gravestone in the family plot way out back, and he sat there for hours, until the frost chilled him numb.

Mom would have had wise words to comfort him with. She would have said something about God closing doors and opening windows, in that gentle way she had. She would have talked to him, instead of coming home, closing the bedroom door, and slamming things around until long after dinnertime had passed with nothing on the table.

Yes, with one freak play in the state finals, he'd somehow crashed and burned his entire life plan. But until it happened, he didn't realize how much it would crash and burn his own father.

*   *   *

Ethan shook his head. Long time ago, that play.

Long time ago, that Pops.

“So…” Pops looked up. “What are you gonna do about her?”

“I don't know, Pops. Maybe we just need to start over. Put the past behind us. You know, all that stuff.”

“What? You gonna date her now?
After
she already did you in?”

“The thought has crossed my mind.”

Pops shifted his weight, glancing over his shoulder at Josie, then back at Ethan. “Listen to me, Ethan. Listen while I make some sense. That girl? She ripped you to pieces once, and it almost killed you.

“Don't let her do it again, Ethan. Don't let her do it again.”

 

Chapter 25

“Have a happy ho-ho day!” Josie handed candy canes to three little girls in pigtails, then straightened back up to continue down the pathway. Her calves were still screaming from last night's marathon at Bellinis, so she'd decided to don a costume this morning instead of sitting in the office.

It had nothing to do with avoiding Ethan. She was almost sure of it. Yes, she just wanted to stretch her legs, though the twenty-pound fake head she was wearing was bleeping heavy.

“Wow. You sound like you almost meant that.” Ethan's voice startled her from behind.

She turned toward him, which was kind of a feat in this costume. “Hey! Don't sneak up on Sno-Cone Sally. She has no peripheral vision.”

“Sorry. How
is
Sno-Cone Sally today?”

“Very blue.” Josie pointed at her costume head, then at the neon pants. “And green.”