Effortless (Thoughtless, #2)(165)
Looking back to my customers, I shook my head. “Sorry, no…he belongs to me.” They all stared at me, shocked, and I felt a flutter in my stomach that I’d confessed such a personal thing to complete strangers. I tended to avoid attracting attention to myself, and now I had the table’s complete attention. I felt the warmth of embarrassment as they stared at me, but the immediate surge of love flattened it.
Smiling, I lifted my promise ring and flicked it with my thumb. “He’s off the market.”
They all stared at my ring then over at Kellan. Finally, the drunken one slurred, “Well, damn…” She looked up at me and smiled. “Nice catch.”
Rolling my eyes, I giggled and shook my head. Yeah, Kellan was a nice catch. Even if it wasn’t always easy with him, it was always worth it. I was very lucky. Excusing myself, I headed over to see him. He pulled his eyes away from Denny as I neared him.
Purposely putting my back to Denny, just so Kellan would know what he should already know—that I was his and his alone—I leaned across the bar. Giving me a crooked grin, Kellan leaned over his side. My eyes lingered on his deep red shirt, his glorious chest impossible to hide underneath the fabric. Lazily, I let my gaze wander up to his eyes, drinking him in just as eagerly as the college girls had slung back their margaritas.
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His gaze was fond and peaceful when our eyes locked. Nodding his head over my shoulder, he told me, “I should go say hi. The last time we saw each other, I wasn’t exactly…nice.”
He grimaced and I did too. Yeah, that hadn’t been the best reunion after so long apart from each other. But it could have been so much worse. If Kellan had been a little angrier, if Denny had done a little more to provoke him, Denny could’ve ended up with the broken arm this time.
Looking back at Denny seated at a table with Abby, I nodded. “Yeah, I should talk to him, too. I haven’t had a chance to meet Abby yet.” Denny glanced up at the bar and frowned. Saying something to Abby, he started to stand, like he wanted to come over and talk to us, too. I supposed there were a few things that we all needed to discuss. Abby glanced up at me, smiled briefly, then put her hand on Denny’s arm. He looked back at her and sat back down.
I twisted back to Kellan, right as his butt was pinched. Kellan had been watching Denny and Abby and hadn’t noticed Rita sidling up behind him. He startled at the unexpected contact, taking a step away from her.
Rita, giddy from her illicit dancing with Justin, wrapped her arms around his waist.
“I knew I’d get you back behind this bar again, sweetheart,” she purred, her voice scratchy from way too many cigarettes.
I flushed at her reference to their one night together, then surprisingly laughed. Kellan was trying to disengage himself from her, but every time he moved one hand away, she moved the other one right back. The annoyed frustration on his face made me giggle and he narrowed his eyes at my enjoyment of his predicament. When Rita laid her head on his chest and contently closed her eyes, Kellan sighed. I shook my head at him and gave him a, hey, buddy, you reap what you sow, expression.
Noticing my look, he smiled. There was a time when another woman snuggling on him would have had me in a jealous tizzy. I guess I finally 468
trusted him, too. Gathering himself, Kellan firmly grabbed Rita’s shoulders and shoved her back.
Her eyes flashed open at the unexpected movement and she stared at him with her mouth gaping. Hunching down to look her in the eye, Kellan quietly said, “I know we had a thing once, but that was years ago and I’ve moved on, we’ve both moved on.” His eyes flashed down to her wedding ring. “But I’m with Kiera now and your constant flirting isn’t appropriate. Neither is your gossiping about things we did together. I would appreciate it, if in the future, both of those things would stop…please.”
Rita blinked at him as he released her shoulders. I blinked at him, too.
Kellan had never, ever told someone to back off like that. Not that I’d ever heard, anyway. She didn’t say another word as he scooted around the bar to meet me on my side. Untying his apron, he handed it to a still-stunned Rita. “Thank you, Rita, it was fun.” I had no idea if Kellan meant filling in for her at the bar, or the time that they’d shared together, but his tone clearly implied that both things were done. Rita took the fabric from him, her face glum. I felt a little bad watching her, but I supposed this had been a long time coming. Rita had always harbored a desire to sleep with him again, but that was never going to happen. Not while he was with me. And I planned on him being with me for a long, long time.
Warmed that he’d stood up for our relationship, I grabbed his hand and started to lead him back to Denny. That was when I nearly ran into Denny. He’d finally decided to come up and talk to us. He was holding Abby’s hand, much like I was holding Kellan’s. I laughed as Denny and I stumbled, trying to avoid colliding. He laughed, too.
Recovering, Denny smiled and put his arm around Abby’s waist.
“Kiera, Kellan, this is my girlfriend, Abby.” As Abby extended her hand to me, I subtly checked her out. She was adorably cute, with full pouty lips and twin dimples when she smiled.
With her long blonde hair and pale gray eyes, she was almost the opposite of me, appearance-wise. But she was roughly my height and build so I felt on equal footing as we shook hands.
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