AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He scowled at me and let go of my hand. Funny, when it was me pulling away I was running, and he called me out on it, but I was nice enough to let his hand go and not try to hold on to him when he wanted to be let go.
“Ariel,” he said my name in a pained voice. “You don’t want to know my shit, trust me.”
I did trust him, but he was wrong. I always wanted to know everything about everything. I’d thought he knew that.
The waitress came back with a tray held high in one hand that was loaded down with a clear water pitcher, two plastic tumblers, coffee cups on saucers and a bunch of cream and sugar packets. Her other hand was wrapped around the black handle of a coffee carafe. She placed both on the table like she’d been doing it a while and it came easy to her.
I took the time to look her over, which I hadn’t gotten the chance to do the first time she’d come around, all I’d seen was Tyson. She was pretty, in the traditional, girl next door type of way. She had light brown hair that hung down around her shoulders in soft waves. Her eyes were the color of honey, and she had peaches and cream skin, the perfect complexion. She was on the short side and very, very pretty. Why, oh why, couldn’t she at least have a little acne on that sweet face of hers? Some people had all the luck.
My hand twitched involuntarily, I wanted to reach up and trace fingertips over the smooth, almost white scar on my face. If Julian hadn’t used his healing magic on me, there would be a wicked angry, jagged, curved, red scar on my face. Julian had an impressive skill set, and I’d barely breached the surface of knowledge where Julian’s skills were concerned.
“Coffee,” she muttered. “Water. And menus.”
She plucked two menus that had been smooshed between her body and her arm out, and slapped them down on the table. She really was not happy with my presence, and I wondered if maybe she knew him. He didn’t seem to know her.
Hmm…
“Thanks,” I said sweetly, because what else could I do? I wasn’t into making a scene, besides, she’d only looked so far, and that wasn’t overstepping or worth a drink splashed in her face.
She glared at me and said in a snotty voice, “Just so you know, I don’t like you, and if I could refuse you service without losing my job, then I would.”
Whoa…
I blinked slowly, in shock. I hadn’t expected that to come out of her mouth.
“Excuse me?” I asked, too shocked to come up with anything else to say. I couldn’t understand why she would have such a strong dislike of me upon just meeting me, it couldn’t only be because she wanted Ty.
She sneered down at me. “You heard me,Ariel.”
I did not like the ugly way she’d said my name. Hell, I didn’t even like that she knew my name. How did she know me? I had never seen her before in my entire life.
Becca the hostess strolled up to our table. “Is there a problem here?” she purred.
I noticed she didn’t look concerned. Instead, she looked excited, almost eager. If I hadn’t liked her before, that look alone would have done it for me.
“We’d like a new waitress, if you don’t mind.” Tyson growled in a low, angry voice. “This one sucks at her job.”
I thought she’d been good at her job until she’d opened her mouth and said that last bit.
“Sorry,” the hostess said, not sounding like she was sorry at all. “We don’t have a problem with you, Tyson, you’re welcome here any time. But, this bitch,” she lifted her hand and waved vaguely in my direction, “needs to leave. We grew up with Chucky; most of us in town are good friends with him. I don’t know what’s happening with him, no one does, because he won’t talk to anyone, but I do know it’s bad news and it’s all because ofher.There’s something not right about her.”
She was, of course, right – in part. But then it hadn’t been me who’d done something to him. And, what had Adrian said earlier? That Chucky had planned on doing something awful to me? So, really Quinton messing with his mind had actually done me a favor. I had wronged Chucky in no way, I couldn’t control what other people did, just like I couldn’t control what Chucky had thought or did, I couldn’t control Quinton. And I didn’t want to be able to.
“Fuck this,” Tyson snapped as he began to slide out of the booth. “Neither of you knows what the fuck you’re talking about. If your friend wasn’t a fucking psycho, he wouldn’t be in the position he’s found himself in. He attacked Ariel with a knife, and he stabbed our friend. They both had to be hospitalized, for Christ’s sake. How in the hell you can stand there and defend someone like that is beyond me, but I know it makes you an asshole, and certainly not someone I want to know anymore about, not even so much as your stupid fucking name.”
“I know she’s a freak,” the waitress spat out as she jabbed her finger angrily in my direction, completely missing Tyson’s point, that whatever happened to Chucky was justly deserved. “And her mother is a dirty, gold digging whore. Must be what she sees in you. Green.”
The hostess gasped, shocked, I think. She hadn’t expected her buddy to take it so far. Neither had I.
I didn’t care what she said about my dead fake mother, or that she’d called me a freak. Maybe I even was one. But mean words out of the mouths of people like this chick no longer held any weight with me. She called me names like freak because she wasn’t entirely happy with herself. If she was happy with herself, I was convinced she wouldn’t be looking for reasons to tear other people down. Have I mentioned how much I think girls suck? Yeah? Well, I hadn’t even been lying.
Tyson rose to his feet and held his hand out to me. I slide to the end of the booth and reached for his outstretched hand as I stood. He held on tight as he pulled me in close to his side. I didn’t protest him pulling me around, a united front was what we needed at the moment, what I needed.
“You’re a slut, too.” The waitress spat out angrily. To my utter surprise, she was glaring at Tyson when she said it, her words meant for him.
My eyes widened in shock and my mouth dropped open. Tyson was a slut? This was news to me. I knew both Dash and Damien had been with a whole lot of women, but as far as I knew, Tyson hadn’t been.
What was going on? Was this jealousy speaking? Probably.
