Sliding off him, I lay my head on his chest, wrapping my arm around him. He kisses the top of my head and pushes away the hair stuck to my forehead.
“Are you happy?” he asks softly, hand running down my spine.
“I am happy. Are you happy?”
“More than I’ve been in a long time.”
I wait for it, for him to talk about us. Anything. But that’s all he says. And for now—that’s going to be enough.
“I don’t want you to fuckin’ move out, Clara. Why can’t you just stay here? It’s the exact same thing, renting out a room.”
“Are you asking me to permanently move in with you?”
He doesn’t say anything.
“That’s what I’m saying, Tag. Lines are going to get crossed. Am I just your roommate? I can’t keep depending on you,” I say, trying to explain how I was feeling. I couldn’t rely on him to bail me out every time. My world revolved around him so much. He got me a job with him, he took me to and from work. We did the damn grocery shopping together! He was all I could see, all I wanted. But what if suddenly he wanted to break up or end our arrangement? I would be screwed. I would have nowhere to live, nowhere to work. I’d be back where I started before I met him, and I couldn’t think of anything worse. “I’m so thankful to you for helping me, but now I need to be independent and help myself.”
He sighs, and runs a hand over his head. “If it means so much to you fine. I’ll help you move.”
“Really?” I ask, raising my eyebrows.
“Really,” he says, not looking too happy. “I’m also going to introduce myself to this little fucker you’re going to call a roommate.”
I roll my eyes. “There’s a girl there too, it’s not just me and the guy.”
“Sweetheart, wherever you are, there’s only you in the room. The dude is going to see you, and he’s going to want you.”
That was sweet.
“Tag,” I say quietly. “You really think that?”
“I know it,” he replies, eyes gentling. “I know you don’t want to rely on me. I don’t like it, but know that I’m still always here for you. Whatever you need. Even if there’s a bug in your new place you want me to handle. You call me.”
I giggle at that. “I’ll hold you to that one.”
“You’re still mine on weekends though.”
“Okay, I’d love that,” I tell him, beaming.
“And I’m still taking you to work.”
“Tag!”
“What?” he says, trying to look innocent. “These are the rules.”
“If you’re still picking me up and I’m staying here weekends, I may as well not leave at all,” I say, hands on my hips.
“Exactly,” he says, looking smug. “Just stay here. What are you scared of?”
That when this was over I am going to be left high and dry? How do I explain that to him without offending him?
“Nothing,” I reply. “We better get to work or we’re going to be late.”
He nods slowly. “I want you to be happy, Clara.”
I smile.
I want that too, with him.
*****
I was having a shit night.
The worst.
From my side of the bar, I could see Tag talking to a woman, a woman who was sticking her chest out, her watermelon-sized breasts in his face. Okay, so I was exaggerating slightly, but still. He wasn’t flirting with her or anything, but he was talking to her.
I was jealous.
I didn’t like it.
Sighing, I slide the man his drink and wait for my next customer. After everyone is served, I decide to get some fresh air and head outside to take the trash out. I throw it in the bin, taking my time walking back, something which turns out to be a huge mistake.
“Clara?”
I turn around in shock hearing my father’s voice.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, taking him in. He still looked the same—handsome, with brown hair and pale blue eyes. My dad was a man who would always be good looking.
“I wanted to see you. I had to,” he says, searching my features.
“How did you find me?”
“You mentioned to your mum you were working at a bar,” he says, shrugging. “This is the tenth bar I checked. I’ve been asking around.”
“Okay, well, you’ve seen me. I’m here, and as you can see, I’m fine. So you can go now.”
“How long are you going to keep punishing yourself for what I did?” he asks.
I turn to face him. “What?”
“You got the top scores in your class. You could have been in the best university right now, studying to be anything you wanted. Instead, you’re here, working in a bar because you hate me more than you care about your future.”
I grit my teeth.
He continues. “You know I saved money for your education. You don’t even have to be working right now.”
“I don’t want anything to do with you,” I say, my voice hitching. I turn my back on him and walk back inside, back to the bar. When I see him walk into the bar a few seconds later, I curse under my breath. So much for me hoping he would leave. I glance at Tag who is still talking to that woman, then back to my dad. He walks up to the bar, standing right in front of me. His eyes to go where mine just were, to Tag.
“That your boyfriend?” he asks, looking interested. “Looks like it’s true—daughters do find a man just like their fathers.”