“I’m in a cinnamon mood!” Shambles had yelled when I questioned him on his cinnamon theme.
The sandwiches were good, the cookies orgasmic and even Tate said so (though he didn’t use the word “orgasmic” he used the words “the shit” as in, “These cookies are…”).
After we ate, I took the spritz cleaner and wiped down all the tables and the chairs. That done, I braved going behind the bar with Tate and cleaning all the glass shelves the liquor sat on and the mirror behind it, moving bottles down and putting them back when I was done. Part of it was too high for me so I moved the bottles down, then I climbed up on the back bar and, on my knees, kept going.
As I was reaching in and wiping, I heard Tate ask, “You want me to get closed down?”
“No,” I answered the shelves.
“Then you wanna not commit a health and safety violation while the bar’s open for business?”
“I’m perfectly fine,” I told the shelves then I let out a little scream. I did this because two hands curled around my hips and I suddenly found my body in motion for two seconds before I found myself on my feet in front of Tate.
“You wanna pretend I don’t exist, Ace, do it without breaking your neck. Yeah?” he asked but didn’t wait for me to answer. He turned and started moving the bottles back to the high shelves (something, considering his height that was no problem for him).
Jim-Billy chuckled. I glared at him.
Jim-Billy audibly and visibly swallowed his chuckle but didn’t stop smiling.
The door opened and Nadine walked in.
“Hey Nadine,” I shouted so enthusiastically, her body jolted with surprise at my exuberant greeting.
Jim-Billy burst out laughing.
Nadine approached the bar. “Uh, hey there, Lauren.”
Jim-Billy turned to her and announced, “Sam and Diane here are having a tiff.”
Nadine’s face registered understanding and she grinned.
“I’m not Diane,” I snapped at Jim-Billy and then poked a thumb at Tate. “And he’s not Sam.”
“Got more hair,” Tate muttered and that was funny but I didn’t laugh even though both Nadine and Jim-Billy did.
I was also out of things to do to avoid Tate because Nadine sat on a barstool and Tate was already done with the liquor and pulling out her usual bottle of Bud Light. Once he popped off the cap, threw a mat in front of her and put it there, he moved to lean beside me where I was leaning against the back bar.
I couldn’t move because I’d been made with my avoidance tactics so I had to pretend Tate’s existence didn’t annoy me.
Everyone was silent.
Finally, Tate spoke. To me.
“You get a cell phone yet?” he asked.
“No,” I answered.
“You gonna get one on your day off tomorrow?” he asked.
“No,” I answered.
“Mm,” he murmured.
This was a mysterious response and I didn’t like the idea of a mysterious Tate so I asked, “What?”
“Nothin’, babe.”
I turned to him. “Please, can you stop calling me babe?”
“No,” he answered.
I rolled my eyes and lifted a hand, palm up, to him. “Can I have your keys?”
“Why?”
“I’m going to go do a stock take in the back.”
His eyebrows went up even as he blinked. “You’re gonna do what?”
“A stock take. Count what you have and see if it’s the same as what’s on the stock sheet.”
“Bubba and Krystal do that,” Tate told me.
“Well, I’m saving them the trouble,” I told him back.
“Why?” he asked.
I swung my arm out to the bar. “No one’s here. There’s nothing to do.”
“So get a soda, take a break,” Tate suggested.
“I can’t not be busy,” I replied.
“Why not?” he asked.
“I’m working, you’re paying me. I can’t drink a soda and chitchat. That’s not right. I need to be doing something.”
“Maybe you should get her to do a trainin’ course for Tonia and Jonelle,” Nadine put in and Tate’s head swung in her direction in order to grin at her.
We were close but even when we weren’t close I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen him smile.
He looked good smiling.
I straightened my spine and lifted my hand up again.
“Captain, can you just give me your keys?” I asked, sounding as exasperated as I was.
He looked down at me, still grinning, I did my best to ignore how good that looked pointed in my direction and he dug in his front jeans pocket, came out with the keys and dropped them in my hand.
“Knock yourself out,” he said.
“Thanks,” I returned and hightailed it to the hall.
*
My stock take took awhile because it was a big job and I kept going out to check if there were more customers. Around five thirty, I made note of where I stopped and headed out as the after work crowd was rolling in.
At six thirty, the after work crowd suddenly included Wood.
As I was waiting for Dalton, who’d showed a half an hour earlier, to fill my order, Wood slid onto the stool beside me. I looked at him and smiled.
“Hey there,” I said.
“Hey Lauren,” he smiled back. “Car’s done.”