AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Because you’re a chickenshit conflict-avoider.
At the loading dock by the alley, she pulls over two empty kegs and pats one for me to sit on. She sits on the other, putting her ankle on her opposite knee and her forearms on her thighs. “Listen. I’m not selling the bar.”
“What? Why?” I’m surprised, especially after the fire. I get that she’d have to use the insurance money to make it decent again, but we could be partners and make it something new.
“Seeing it destroyed made me realize how much I’d miss it. It’s like a husband—it drives you crazy, but at the end of the day, you love it, and it’s been good to you. A lot of people find solace here, a comfort they can’t find anywhere else. That was obvious to me when our regulars reached out to me after the fire. So, you’re off the hook.”
She stands as if that’s the end of the conversation, but what am I supposed to do now?
“Off the hook?”
“Yep. Go find another hobby.” She waves me off.
“Ruby…” I’m set to argue even though I feel a sense of relief set in. I was going to honor my commitment to her, but working the bar late at night and serving the same beers to the same men wasn’t really doing it for me. It was fun at first, something different, but I can see it getting old quickly. And I think maybe she knew that.
“Oh, stop it. I’m not going to apologize. This is my bar. Find something else.”
My throat tightens, and my nose tingles. I want to cry because there’s so much more to Ruby than what she shows the world. “If you ever need someone to cover a night shift?—”
“I’ll call someone else. Now go. I don’t need a lawsuit when your friend slips and breaks an arm because of those ridiculous shoes she’s wearing.” She shoos me away.
I nod, and we walk back out to the main bar.
“It was nice to meet you, Ruby,” Alara says.
“Get your lips off my ass,” Ruby says in response.
Alara crinkles her eyes at me, surely confused as to why Ruby is so mean. I laugh because it’s just her way. You learn to love her though.
“Hey,” Ruby says before I turn to leave. “Don’t give up—he hasn’t.”
I smile, and tears well in my eyes. I’ve cried more in the last month than the five years previous. If this thing with Rowan isn’t fixable, I might never see her again because it would hurt too much to come here and run into him. All the memories that would float to the surface would crush me every time.
“Bye, Ruby.” I raise my hand.
“See ya, Leigh.” She winks and circles back around, walking toward the back hallway.
“Well, she’s a peach,” Alara says once we’re outside.
“Yeah. She is.”
“I’m starving. Let’s go eat,” Alara says, already on her phone and probably calling an Uber.
I look at the security gate. I can almost see him there, standing with his back to the brick wall, head buried in his phone, waiting for me.
Alara tugs on my sleeve. “I knew this was a bad idea. Come on.”
Twenty minutes later, we’re entering our favorite place to go for cheesesteak sandwiches.
Alara goes right to the crane machine game in the waiting area, next to the poker machines. I’m guessing it’s so the kids can try to win a stuffed animal while their parents gamble.
I drag her away by the sleeve. “No, you don’t. You waste so much money on those things.”
“You’re right, but just once isn’t going to hurt.”
“We’re eating first.” I walk over to the hostess. “Two please.”
The place is a bar-slash-restaurant, heavy on the bar.
