Abbi Glines - Never Too Far

“Private moment?” Jace smirked and I shoved the box in his hands a little too hard.It caused him to stumble back which only made him cackle with laughter.

I ignored him and walked over to the passenger side. Waking her up and letting her leave me wasn’t exactly what I wanted to do. It scared the shit out of me. What if this was it? What if Blaire never let me near her like this again? No. I couldn’t let that happen. I’d work slow but I would make sure this wasn’t it for us. Although having had her to myself all day was going to make it real hard to go back to the way it was.

I unbuckled her. She barely stirred. A lock of hair had fallen in her face so I gave in to the urge to touch it. Reaching up I tucked the hair behind her ear. She was so damn beautiful. I’d never move on from her. It wasn’t possible. I had to find a way to get her back. To help her heal.

Her eyelids fluttered open and her gaze locked with mine.

“We’re here,” I whispered, not wanting to startle her.

She sat up and gave me a sheepish smile. “Sorry, I fell asleep on you again.”

“You must have needed the rest. I didn’t mind.” I wanted to stay there and keep her in my car but I couldn’t do that. I moved back so she could get out. Asking her if I could see her tomorrow was right there on the tip of my tongue. But I didn’t. She wasn’t ready for that. I had to give her space. “I’ll see you around then,” I said and her smile wavered.

“Okay, uh, yeah, see you around. And thanks again for helping me today. I’ll pay you back for the gas.”

Like hell. “No, you won’t. I don’t want your money. I was glad to help.”

She started to say more but snapped her mouth shut. With a tight nod she turned and walked to the apartment.

Blaire

The first day back at work and Woods assigned me to the dining room. Breakfast and lunch shifts. Not good. I stood outside the kitchen mentally preparing myself not to think about the smell. I’d woken up queasy and forced two saltine crackers and some gingerale down but that was all I could manage.

The moment I walked into the kitchen the smell would hit me. The bacon… oh god, the bacon…

“You know sweet thing you have to actually go in there in order to work,” Jimmy drawled from behind me. I spun around, startled from my internal battle to see him smiling at me with an amused grin. “The cooks aren’t that bad. You’ll get over the yelling in no time. Besides, last time you had them wrapped around your pretty little finger.”

I forced a smile. “You’re right. I can do this. I’m just not ready for people asking questions, I guess.” That wasn’t exactly the truth but then it wasn’t a lie either.

Jimmy opened the door and the smell slammed into me. Eggs, bacon, sausage, grease. Oh, no. My body broke out into a cold sweat and my stomach rolled. “I, uh, need to use the restroom first,” I explained and made my way to the employee restroom as fast as I could without breaking into a run. That would look even more suspicious.

I closed the door behind me and clicked the lock into place as I fell to my knees on the cold tile.I grabbed the toilet as everything I’d eaten last night and this morning came back out.

Several dry heaves later I stood up still feeling puny.I wet a papertowel to clean my face up. My white polo shirt was clinging to me from the sweat that had broken out all over me. I needed to change.

I rinsed my mouth with the mouthwash on the counter and straightened my shirt the best I could. Maybe no one would notice. I could do this. I would just hold my breath while I was in the kitchen. That would do it. I’d breathe deeply before going in each time. I had to figure this out.

When I opened the door my eyes locked on Woods. He was standing against the wall facing the restroom with his arms crossed over his chest studying me. I was late.

“I’m sorry. I know I’m late. I just needed to take a quick break before I got started. I promise this won’t happen again. I’ll stay late to make up for it—”

“My office. Now,” he snapped and turned to stalk down the hallway.

My heart sped up and I followed quickly behind him. I didn’t want Woods to be mad at me. This job had been my answer for the next few months. Now that I’d talked myself into staying here and figuring out what to do I really didn’t want to leave. Not yet.

Woods opened the door for me and I stepped inside.

“I really am sorry. Please don’t fire me yet. I just—”

“I’m not firing you.” Woods interrupted me.

Oh…

“Have you seen a doctor? I’m assuming it’s Rush’s. Does he know? Because if he does and you’re here working for me in this condition I’m personally going to go break his fucking neck.”

He knew. Oh no, oh no, oh no. I shook my head frantically. I had to stop this. Woods could not know. No one was supposed to know but Bethy. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Woods cocked an eyebrow. “Really?” The disbelief in his voice was unnerving. He wasn’t going to fall for a lie. But I had a baby to protect.

“He doesn’t know.” The truth fell out of my mouth before I could stop it. “I don’t want him to, yet. I need to find a way to do this on my own. We both know Rush doesn’t want this. His family would hate it. I can’t have my baby hated by anyone. Please understand,” I begged.

Woods muttered a curse and ran his hands through his hair. “He deserves to know this, Blaire.”

Yes, he did. But when this baby had been conceived I’d not known just how tainted our worlds were. How impossible it would be for us to have a relationship. “They hate me. They hate my mom. I can’t. Just, please give me time to prove I can do this without help. I’ll tell him eventually but I need to be stable and ready to leave after I do. This time my wants and his wants don’t come first. I am doing what is best for this baby.”

Woods’ frown deepened. We stood in silence for several minutes.

“I don’t like it but it isn’t my story to tell. Go change and head out to see Darla. You can do cart rounds today. Let me know when the kitchen smell isn’t so much of an issue.”

I wanted to throw my arms around him and hug him. He wasn’t forcing me to tell anyone and he was giving me an out on serving breakfast. I used to love bacon but now… I just couldn’t deal with it. “Thank you. Dinner isn’t bad. It’s just the morning and sometimes the afternoons.”

“Noted. I’ll only put you on evening shifts in the dining room. This week you just work the course. But don’t get overheated. Keep some ice or something to cool you down. Can I tell Darla?”

“No,” I replied before he could finish. “She can’t know. No one can know. Please.”

Woods sighed then nodded his head. “Okay. I’ll keep your secret. But if you need anything you’d better let me know… if you’re not going to let Rush know.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

Woods gave me a tight smile. “I’ll see you later then.”

I was dismissed.

The schedule for the rest of the week had me working the beer cart. There was a tournament a week from Saturday and I was down to work the entire day. I couldn’t be happier about it. The money would be great. And although the heat was intense out on the course all day it was better than being in the air conditioning smelling bacon or any greasy meat and running off to vomit.

It had progressively gotten busier since I’d left. According to Darla, the members who only came during their summer vacations were all now in residence. Bethy and I ran two different carts in order to keep the place hydrated. Woods was rarely on the course so I didn’t have to worry about his prying eyes. He was busy working. Jace had told Bethy that Woods was trying to prove to his dad that he was ready for a promotion.