“I don’t remember that,” I laugh.
“Well, I do. Eventually, I had to tell you that it was against the law and the police were gonna come get you and throw you in jail if you did it again.”
“Great parenting, Mom!” I say as I shake my head in pure humor. I love hearing these funny stories of my past since most of my memories are ones I wish I could forget.
“Well…” she squeaks out. “I didn’t know what else to say, so I went with scare tactics.”
“Did it work?”
“No,” she says with a soft giggle. “Well, it’ll be great to see the both of you.”
“You too. I’m gonna go hit the gym, but I’ll call you when I’m on my way tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay, dear. Drive safe, and I love you.”
“Love you too, Mom”
I go upstairs to change before I head out to the gym to meet up with Max. We’ve always worked out at the same gym; that’s how we first met. Making sure everything is locked up, I hop into my jeep and make the short drive to the Athletic Club. Max’s car is already in the parking lot when I pull up.
“Hey, boss,” Max shouts through the empty gym. Nobody is ever here on Sunday mornings, so we make it a point to get together at this time.
“What’s up?” I say as I walk over to him. “You been here long?”
“Nah.”
We head towards the indoor track to do a quick run before lifting.
“Oh, I forgot to tell you, but I’m going out of town for a few days, so Michael will be at the bar all week.”
“Going to see your mom?”
“Yeah. Mostly plan on surfing with my cousin,” I say as we make our laps.
“Well, when you get back, I need your help.”
“With what?”
“Traci is moving in, so I need you to help me with her furniture.”
Looking over at him, I question, “She’s moving in?”
Laughing at me, he says, “Ryan, don’t act so surprised. We’re almost thirty. Don’t you think you should slow it down a bit yourself? Find a girl?”
“Nope. You know I don’t do the whole girlfriend thing. Never have. I like being alone.”
“No one likes being alone.”
“I like being alone,” I repeat, but it’s a lie. Truth is, I’ve always been too scared to have a girlfriend. Too scared to allow myself to even have feelings towards someone else. Too scared of putting myself in a situation only to discover the person I believe lives inside of me. A person just like my father.
“Whatever you say,” he teases as we continue our run. “My buddy, Chase, was wondering if we needed his help when classes start up in a few weeks.”
“Working the door?”
“Yeah. He’s a good kid. He’s in school full-time but said he’s free to work evenings.”
Rounding another lap, I tell him, “Yeah. That’ll work. Have him call Michael.” Michael has been managing the bar for the most part lately. Knowing that the bar is in good hands and is running smoothly has allowed me more freedom with my schedule, and the income has been nothing but generous.
After a long workout with Max, I decide to stop by the office and take care of a few things before heading out of town.
“Hey, Mel,” I say as I make my way past the bar to the stairs, and she gives me a flirty wink laced with mockery. Shaking my head at her, I go up to Michael’s office.
“Hey, I thought you were out of town,” he says from behind his desk. Michael started working here at the beginning of the summer. He’s in his mid-thirties with a wife and kids. Dependent on the paycheck I write him, he’s proven to be dependable.
“Tomorrow.” Taking a seat in one of the chairs, I tell him, “Max has a friend that’s gonna be calling you about a job. Check him out, and if he doesn’t work, I need you to find someone who does. We need another guy to work the door. Summer has been a little slow, but shit always kicks up when classes at the university start.”
“Got it,” he says as he files through a stack of orders. “Anything else?”
“Yeah, I need you to start booking out the bands for at least six weeks. I’d really like to find a few we can book steady, so see what you can come up with. You can always call Gavin to see if he has any leads as well.”
“Sure thing. When are you gonna be back?”
“Few days or so,” I respond as I stand up to leave. “You got everything under control?”
“Yeah, man. Don’t worry about things here. I’ll catch you when you get back.”
Chapter Two
“It’s about time you got here.”
“Sorry. Got tied up this morning,” I say when I walk through the front door.
“Spare me the details,” Tori teases as she shakes her head before giving me a hug.
Walking into the kitchen, I ask, “Where’s Mom?”
“You just missed her. She ran to the store to get stuff for dinner.”
“Wanna head out so when we get back you women have enough time to cook for me?” I joke while she gives me a jab to my ribs.
Tori is only three years older than me. Our moms are sisters, so we spent a lot of time together growing up. I have three cousins, all girls, but Tori is the closest in age to me and the only one that surfs, so we were pretty inseparable when our families would get together. We’ve always been good friends. She married Trevor in her early twenties and now has two kids. Seeing her as a wife and mother never deters me from giving her shit the same way I did when we were younger.