Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 107944 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 540(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107944 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 540(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
I stood behind the bar, feeling my chest tighten as Aiden’s eyes locked with mine. His smile evaporated, and the coldness came back as the lines on his face tightened, and the veins in his neck popped out. If love was based on smiles, and hate was based on frowns, I was the girl most hated by the boy most loved.
He blinked and moved his stare away from me, stepping back into the role he seemed to be putting on for the townspeople. A big smile hit his face, and he shouted, “Drinks on the house from me!”
No, Aiden. Don’t put me through this hell.
The crowd cheered, I all about cried, and then I got to work as the orders started rolling in. He’d made it clear that he didn’t want to have anything to do with me earlier. What he didn’t make clear was that he also wanted to make my life a living hell.
As people crowded the bar, I poured beer after beer, shot after shot, and my stomach repeatedly turned from the smell of the alcohol. After last night, I’d be okay going a long time without having a drink.
At the end of the bar, Aiden sat with Tommy Stevens, the journalist for our town’s paper. I’d overheard Tommy going on and on about a manuscript he’d written and how he wanted Aiden to read it. Aiden engaged as if he was interested, and Tommy kept going on and on about how Aiden would be the perfect hero for his movie idea.
The more Tommy drank, the more touchy-feely he was growing with Aiden. He kept patting Aiden on the shoulder, lightly shoving him in the chest to express his point as he grew louder and louder.
When most of the crowd headed home, Aiden and Tommy were the last two remaining.
“You have to read it,” Tommy drunkenly slurred. “It’s an Oscar-winning kind of script!” He then turned back to me. Lying across the bar, he snapped his fingers. “Jones girl! Get me another.”
I saw a slight twitch in Aiden’s lip and then looked at Tommy. With a knot in my stomach, I gave him a smile. “Sorry, Tommy. I think we need to cut you off for the night.”
“What? We’re just getting started! Seeing how Mr. Hollywood is covering the tab. Right, Aiden?” he said, patting Aiden’s chest. I swore he’d touched him more in the past hour or so than I had during our whole relationship.
“I think I’m actually gonna call it a night,” Aiden said, standing. “It seems as if the bar is ready to close anyway. Most people have wandered home. You can close out my tab and charge it to my room,” he ordered me. He turned to walk away, but Tommy didn’t follow.
“Well, shit. I’ll pay for my own drink,” Tommy stated.
“Sorry, Tommy. I can’t serve you any more. It’s just a rule. But I can call you a ride to get you home if you need it.” I turned to walk to the cashier to ring Aiden out, but before I could, Tommy reached across the bar, grabbed my arm, and yanked me back toward him.
“I said I want another drink, woman,” he drunkenly expressed, spitting profusely as he spoke. “It looks like you never cut yourself off from the pleasures of life judging by your size, so how about you take your fat ass over there and get me one?”
A slight chill raced down my back. There was a time in my life when his comment would’ve made me spiral into a fit of insecurities, but I’d worked hard enough to know my worth over the years. Tommy’s words were just that…words. They didn’t get to stick to my soul unless I brought out the superglue myself.
Before I could even blink, Tommy was on the floor. Aiden had slammed his fist into Tommy’s face, knocking him out with one swing. Thankfully, no one else was in the bar. Otherwise, I was certain cameras would’ve been going off like crazy, filming Hollywood’s sweetheart being violent.
“What the hell?” I blurted out, stunned. It happened so fast.
“What’s going on in here?” Parker, the cook, asked, emerging from the kitchen. He looked at me and noticed that I was shaken up, then looked over at Tommy, who was still on the checkered floor. Then he looked at Aiden, whose chest was rising and falling.
“Go home, Hailee,” Parker said as he walked toward me. “I’ll handle this mess and lock up.”
I parted my lips to speak, but no words came out.
Parker gave me a lazy half grin. “Go home. I’ll handle Tommy.”
I nodded, grabbed my purse, and headed straight out the door.
The moment the autumn breeze hit my face, I choked out a sob as tears began falling down my cheeks.
“Hailee, wait,” Aiden called out. “Wait up.”