so Nikki had explained once before.
Not that Kerry would turn down the invite, she loved the Connelly crew's parents almost as much (and sometimes more if Amy was making her famous apple pie) as their children.
“Say you’ll come,” Avery asked from across the table, her bright blue eyes that matched her father’s glistening in delight. Avery was the long-lost daughter of Joseph’s but fit right in with the family, especially when Amy opened her arms to the woman wholeheartedly. Kerry had a special bond with each of the women in the group, but Avery was the one she felt that she had the most in common.
“Alright, I’ll be there. What time?”
“I think it’s at five. Mom will be so happy to see you,” Avery added as she handed a crayon to a small toddler in the booster chair next to her. The twins were seated next to her husband, Logan.
“I guess I should probably go try and catch a nap so I don’t fall asleep mid dinner,” Kerry joked as she stood from the table.
The group said their goodbyes, everyone claiming their excitement to have Kerry join them later, as she waved to a few of the other people in the diner. Deciding to stroll through the town instead of heading home, Kerry walked past the shops she had grown to love. She passed the bakery and grill owned by Sydney and Dylan, the clothing store owned by Cassidy, which she may have spent too long staring in the window gazing at a summer dress she was going to have to come back and grab, a small movie theater and bowling alley. Kerry crossed the street at the hardware store and smiled as she glanced to her left down the block where the bar already had people streaming in and out of the doors, and the new antique shop that hadn’t been there the last time she visited. Kerry had to tell herself to keep walking when she reached the ice cream shop because the smell of freshly made waffle cones was almost too good to pass up, but she had to get back to her house, making a mental note to stop by the next day. A building at the far end caught her eye and she recalled the windows being covered up in plywood the last time she visited. There was no sign out front telling her what the establishment was and layers of brown parchment paper-lined the windows' interior, trimmed in freshly painted white wood.
As she stared up at the old building that looked to have been remodeled, curiosity got the better of her. Someone had taken their time restoring the old art deco building to its grandeur.
A horn sounded from the street and Kerry turned to wave automatically, years of manners taking over her muscles through memory. She noticed that Austin and Nikki in the large SUV were most likely heading toward his office in a beautiful Victorian on the edge of town.
Turning back to the building, Kerry noticed a small orange and black sign in the window that said they were hiring. Stepping toward the window, she noticed that there was no phone number or description of the place, just a notation telling the reader to inquire inside.
She wasn’t trying to be nosy or overly inquisitive, but Kerry truly couldn’t help herself as she stepped toward the front door and yanked it open. The room wasn’t dark, but dim in the covered windows where only small rays of light filtered through. But as Kerry stepped farther into the space, taking in the marble and freshly stained wood, she almost missed the man standing behind the bar staring at her as if he had seen a ghost. She couldn’t make out his features as the light was gleaming off the polished bar top, but something about him awakened her.
“Hi, I was just inquiring about the job?”
Chapter Five
Landon was stunned into silence. His mind had to be playing tricks on him because there was no way the woman that had been on his mind all morning had just walked into his bar without a care in the world. Fate couldn't be that cruel unless he imagined things.
“Hello?” she said, breaking him free from his stupor.
“What?” he growled, gripping the glass tumbler in his hand as he wiped it clean with a rag. He couldn’t explain why he was angry all of a sudden, but the fury inside of him was elevating at a rapid speed.
But what he couldn’t figure out was what this woman was doing in his small little town that was barely a dot on a map. Blink and you’d miss it.
“I saw the sign about the job,” she said as she walked closer to him. He could tell the instant that she realized who he was because her smile faltered, if only for a moment, and her confident walk slowed. “Landon? What are you doing here?”
“Working. I own the bar.”
“Oh! Is that what this will be? I was curious. It looks beautiful,” she said as she peered around her shoulder to look at the barren space behind her.
What Landon wanted to tell her was that she was beautiful. His memory hadn’t done her any justice even though he had just left her bed that morning. Her long blonde hair that he wanted to wrap around his fist as he pounded into her from behind fell in soft waves around her shoulders, cascading down her breasts. Breasts that fit perfectly in his hands with nipples that tasted just as sweet.
Mumbling his thanks, Landon returned to cleaning the last of the glassware before remembering that Kerry had come into the bar with a purpose.
“Did you come in here about the job?”
“Oh, yes! I saw the sign out front about the job.”
“You want to work. . .in a bar?” He knew he was being an asshole, but this woman was dressed in luxury clothes and carried a purse that probably cost more than the truck he drove.
“Yeah, I mean, what kind of work do you need? I’m a fast learner.”
“Well. . .I. . .”
She nibbled at her bottom lip and Landon wanted to curse himself for making her uncomfortable. Maybe he needed to give her the benefit of the doubt and let her at least apply.
“Sit here,” he said, gesturing to one of the new barstools. “Let me grab you an application. I just printed them out.”
Tossing the rag onto the counter, Landon made his way down the back hallway to the small office where he had set up a laptop and printer. Without looking at the papers, Landon blindly grabbed the stack on the printer and made his way back to the main bar area.