“I can understand that. Damn, Sienna, that’s some messed-up shit.”
I sighed. “I guess I just held onto something that wasn’t there. And it's not his fault he doesn’t remember.”
“Even if he doesn’t remember, those feelings are real for him. Alcohol can be a truth serum, sometimes. Maybe if you told him what he said—”
“No, no way. He’s getting married to Rachel. I would be a terrible friend if I tried to break them up.”
“Are you sure? From what I know of her, I think you’d be doing him a favor.”
“I know. But I have to keep this to myself.”
“Even if it’s at the expense of your happiness?”
“Yes. I’d rather Parker in my life as a friend than risk losing him entirely. I know I’m playing it safe, but it’s worked for years.”
“You really are a good friend. And a bigger person than most.”
Tony and I continued to hash over the whole Parker situation between customers. But it wasn’t until one particular customer came in that all words were removed from my head.
Apparently we were in some alternate universe, because Rachel was standing in my dining room. Without Parker. Instead, she was with some other chick.
She wore a disgusted grimace again, which made my blood boil. If she was so unhappy here, why did she keep coming in? Her friend wore a similar expression. If possible, she was even thinner than Rachel, with long, silky black hair. Her blood-red fingernails were lightly scratching at her neck, as if she had some skin rash. She was going to create one if she kept doing that.
“What’s she doing here?” I asked.
“I’ll go find out,” Tony said, placing a hand on my shoulder. I wasn’t sure if he was trying to comfort me or hold me back. Either way, he was grounding me in place.
I moved away from the pass-through so Rachel couldn’t see me. She gave Tony a terse smile and allowed him to bring her to a table. She said something and pointed to the table, Tony nodded and went to the serving station, pulled out a rag, tossed me a “what the fuck” look, and proceeded to clean her table again.
That bitch had some nerve.
Tony came back to the serving station. “Two glasses of water please,” he said in a high falsetto.
I smirked.
“She asked about you,” Tony said. “She wanted to say hi.”
I groaned. “Why the hell is she here?”
“I don’t know, but I have a feeling if you do as she asks, she will be out of here sooner.”
“Fine,” I said. “Put the water down; I’ll be right out.”
I knew no matter how much primping I did, I’d never impress her. But I did check myself in the mirror to make sure there wasn’t food or anything on my face. I didn’t want to give her more of an excuse to look down on me. I smoothed my hand over my hair to rein in the flyaways.
I plastered the fakest smile I could muster on my face and pushed through the double doors.
“Good luck,” Tony said when he passed me.
I nodded and took the waters from the serving station. As I made my way over to the table, my heart hammered in my chest. I had to give Rachel a chance, at least outwardly, if Parker was still going through with the wedding.
“Hi, Rachel,” I said in an unfamiliar cheery voice. It hurt my ears and ego.
“Hi, Sienna,” she said as if we were besties. My hackles rose.
I glanced at the other girl. She was staring at my chest. I already knew I had an egg stain on my shirt from earlier. Of course she’d find the only flaw on my body right away.
“Can I take your order?” I asked.