CHAPTER 21
Several weeks had passed since Tylar had gone to spend time with her father in Baton Rouge. We had only spoken a couple of times, but then I hadn’t expected in her state of mind that she would be calling me routinely. I hoped her time spent with her dad proved to be therapeutic for her.
I had contacted her initially to let her know that Trey was being a royal pain in the ass; Tristan had finally had enough of his whining and had laid into him. I had encouraged Tylar to keep the line of communication open with him. I truly felt that they would reconcile. He was her lobster; she was his.
She had contacted me after that in a panic. She had halfway slept with another guy and somehow Trey knew it. She had been a freaking mess. They both needed to fucking grow up in my opinion.
In the meantime, Preston had been spending some time with us. Even at her young age she was confused; her world had become uncertain. It was breaking my heart. Trey was still working long hours with Amber on that fucking huge case that had thrown them together in the first place. He said it would be over soon; I had a feeling even after the case was over, Amber would still find a way to work closely with Trey.
I had started weaning Reese off the breast at ten weeks. I needed to spend more time at the club helping Tristan, even though he repeatedly told me that he could handle it. We had lost several key employees to better positions at rival clubs. I needed to replace, train and then develop a retention plan to make sure our wages and benefits were competitive to the area. Tristan was long over-due to make a trip to Bristol to check on his winery.
Trey had picked Preston up this morning to take her to Baton Rouge. She would be staying with Tylar. I had wished him luck before he left. I bathed Reese and then we headed out to run some errands. Around lunch time I decided to stop by the club I had promised Jo Anna I would bring him in for a visit.
Jo Jo was setting up the downstairs bar when I got there. She immediately stopped what she was doing to come over and take Reese from me.
“He is so beautiful, Gina,” she gushed. “Look at those pretty eyes. They look like they’re changing to green,” she said. She was baby talking to him and smelling his head.
“I just love the way that babies smell, don’t you?”
“You wouldn’t say that if you got a whiff of his loaded diaper once or twice.”
“Oh Gina,” she laughed. “Hey, I’ll play with him if you want to pop in and say hello to Tristan.”
“Thanks Jo Anna, I’ll take you up on that. Be back in a couple.”
Tristan was in the office filling out the schedule when I popped my head in.
“Busy?” I asked.
He looked up giving me his gorgeous, sexy smile.
“Not too busy for you, sweet baby,” he said.
I went over to where he was sitting and plopped in his lap, giving him wet, sloppy kiss on his cheek.
“I just stopped by to see my man. We’ve been missing each other a lot lately, haven’t we?”
“Yes, and I’m afraid it’s not going to get better any time soon until we add some more staff. I’m trying to figure out tomorrow’s schedule right now. I have one out sick, and one was promised the night off to get married so I don’t think I can do much about that.”
“Hey, what about me?”
“Gina, I have to work tomorrow night; who would watch the baby?”
“I could ask Jean. She’s offered. Preston left today to be with Tylar in Baton Rouge. How about it?”
“Hey, if you can line Jean up to babysit it will solve the immediate problem here.”
“Practically a done deal, babe. Want to give your son a kiss before we take off? Jo Anna is spoiling him rotten as we speak.”
Tristan walked me back out to the bar where Jo Anna and several other servers were showering Reese with attention.
He kissed the baby and then me goodbye, telling me once again he would be home late.
The following evening I got dressed in my work garb. I had lost all of my pregnancy weight. I was excited to get back into the swing of things at the club. I knew that Tristan had booked a kick-ass band for tonight. Jo Anna and me were working the main bar downstairs. Tristan was working the one near the stage.
Jean had arrived to babysit and would be spending the night. She said she was missing Preston already; I think she counted on Reese to fill that void.
The club was slammed which was great. Jo Anna and I were busting our asses trying to keep up with the drink orders.
“What’s this, Gina?” Jo Anna teased, “Aren’t you back on your game yet?”
“I’ll show you game, Jo Anna,” I said, grabbing a tin with my right hand and the ice scoop in the other. I tossed a double across my body with the tin, catching it in my left hand, as I flipped the ice scoop into my right band behind my back; I then brought the tin back to the other side with a flat flick, catching the tin perfectly with the ice scoop in my left hand.
“Ta da,” I said, winking at her.
“You got me there, Gina. I can’t keep up with that flair bartending stuff you do.”
A couple of the patrons asked me to do it again. I gladly complied, then demonstrated for them how to ice a glass mid-air. Tristan happened to walk by as I was showing off my flair skills.
“Gina, those glasses cost money,” he warned as he breezed by, a smile on his face.
“You’re just jealous, Tristan,” I teased.
We continued to be slammed which actually made the time fly. Pretty soon the band started playing and a lot of the patrons from the main bar made their way over to the bar nearest to the dance floor. Good, it was Tristan’s turn to be slammed for a while. I told Jo Anna to go on over and help Tristan; I could manage the main bar by myself.
I was restocking the cooler with the help of one of the bus boys. He had brought a skid of clean glasses and stemware out from the kitchen. I was hanging the wine glasses when I heard a familiar voice from the bar.
“Well, well. I hear you’re a mother now, Gina. Tell me, does Tristan do all the diaper duty like he promised me he would?”
I twisted around and saw that Libby had taken a seat at the bar. She was giving me a haughty, hateful look.
“Libby,” I greeted her with faux cheerfulness, “Did you stop by to congratulate Tristan and me on the birth of our baby boy?”
“Hardly,” she blurted. “I’m waiting for my date. I’m surprised you’re working here. Seems to me like you’d want to be tit-tied to your little bundle of joy; you know, like your friend used to be with her little brat.”
(Who the hell was she talking about?)
“I’m not following you Libby; do you want something to drink?”
“Sure. I’ll have a ‘Sex on the Beach,’ make it a double.”
I mixed her drink and set it down in front of her.
“So I hear your friend deserted her husband and child in favor of living the single life.”
I filled a tray of draft beers for one of the waitresses, then went back over to stand in front of Libby.
“Are you referring to Tylar?”
“Who else?”
“I guess I’m curious as to where you got your information; and not only that, but why you seem to care so much about it.”
“I really don’t give a shit about it at all. But my sister seems to be rather entertained by it.”
“Who the hell is your sister?”
“Amber Stratton. We’re twins.”
(What the hell!)
“What? You don’t look like twins.”
“It’s called fraternal twins, Gina.”
“I thought your last name was ‘Michaels’?”
“It is. I was married briefly. One of the few poor choices I’ve made in my life.”
“I see. And your twin sister, Amber, is somehow concerned about Tylar?”
“I wouldn’t say ‘concerned’ is the right word, more like ‘relieved’. I think Amber has pretty much decided that she wants Trey. She usually gets what she goes after.”
“Hmm,” I replied, nonplussed, “I’m fairly certain she won’t this time. Trey is in Baton Rouge right now with Tylar.”
“I know,” she replied, taking a big sip of her drink. “He only went to take their brat to her. Amber is biding her time.”
“No, Amber is wasting her time,” I snapped back at her. I was getting tired of her smug little attitude.
“We’ll see,” she replied, coyly. “So how has Tristan been these days? Does he rock your world like he rocked mine?”
(Okay, now I just freaking wanted to slap her face!)
“Tristan is great, Libby. He’s working at the other bar over by the dance floor. Why don’t you go over and say ‘hello’ to him?”
“No, I don’t think that would be wise. My new boyfriend is not fond of me being around an ex-fiancé.”
(Ex-fiance my ass! Tristan would never have married you, bitch!)
She scooted closer as I was wiping off the bar.
“But I do have to say, Gina, of all of the men I’ve had, Tristan rated right up there in the top 2% for tongue talent. I bet I won’t get any argument from you on that one, huh?”
“Of course the size of his cock was pretty impressive, too,” she said, almost wistfully.
“Yes,” I replied, smiling, “And both of them are all mine.”
She shot me a dirty look, taking a larger sip of her drink.
“Relax, Gina. I’m simply taking a walk down ‘Memory Lane,’ no need for you to feel threatened or insecure.”
“Neither of which I do, Libby. Do you suppose your date has stood you up?”
I was frankly getting tired of exchanging barbs with the bitch.
“Oh he’ll be here. I’ve been rocking his world now for a while. But hey, I’ll pay my tab and go mingle if that was your not so subtle way of telling me to ‘fuck off.”
“Libby I have no problem whatsoever of telling you to fuck off.”
She laid a $20 bill on the bar.
“Keep the change. Oh Gina, do me a favor, will you? Give Tristan a kiss on that cute little devil’s fork birthmark of his. I’m sure you’re quite the pro at kissing his ass anyway.”
She laughed and flitted off on her way. It took a couple of seconds for what she had said to sink in.
(That was how Amber had known about Trey’s birthmark! Libby had told her! Mystery solved.)
I shared the conversation that I had earlier with Libby with Tristan as we drove home. He found it as entertaining as I had.
“I think those twins are a bit disturbing,” he said.
“I wonder if Libby’s date ever showed up.”
“Yeah, he did,” Tristan replied, with a hint of amusement in his voice. “I saw them on the dance floor together.”
“Poor sucker,” I replied.
“Oh I don’t know; I think they’re probably a match made in heaven.”
“Why? Do you know who she is dating?”
“Yeah. It’s Ian,” he replied, chuckling.
“Are you shitting me?”
“That’s who she was dancing with and hanging all over tonight,” he replied.
“Hey - I thought Ian was banned from the club?”
“I lifted his ban.”
“Why would you do that, Tristan?”
“Because he stopped by after Reese was born; he congratulated me; apologized for all of the shit he had given you and me and asked if he could come into the club again. I gave him a probationary period. He was fine with it. Is that okay?”
“I’m okay with it if you are,” I said, putting my hand on his crotch and groping.
“What do you have in mind, Ms. Valenti?”
“I think I would like to see what your ‘talented tongue’ can do for me tonight, Mr. Sinclair.”
“And what’s in it for me?”
“You will see what my talented tongue can do for you.”
“It’s a date, babe.”