See Me(26)
“It’s all right,” he answered. “It pays the bills while I’m in school, I can pretty much pick my schedule, and the tips are good. But I hope I’m not forced to make it a career. There’s more I want to do with my life.”
“Serena said you want to be a teacher.”
“I do,” he agreed. “Where did she go, by the way?”
“She met up with some friends. They’ll troll the bars for a while and listen to music, then probably head off to a party or whatever.”
“Why didn’t you join them?”
“I’m a little old for college parties, don’t you think?”
“I don’t know. How old are you?”
“Twenty-eight.”
“I’m twenty-eight and I’m still in college.”
Yeah, she thought, I know. “And you go to college parties?”
“No,” he conceded, “but it’s not because I think I’m too old. I just don’t go to parties. Bars, either.”
“But you work at a bar.”
“That’s different.”
“Why?”
“Because I work there. And even if I didn’t, it’s not the kind of bar where I’d end up getting in trouble, since it’s really more of a restaurant.”
“You get in trouble at bars?”
“I used to,” he said. “Not anymore.”
“But you just said you don’t go.”
“That’s why I don’t get into trouble.”
“How about clubs?”
He shrugged. “Depends on the club and who I’m with. Usually, no. Every now and then, yes.”
“Because you get into trouble there, too?”
“I have in the past.”
She puzzled over his answer before finally turning toward the horizon again. The moon glowed against the backdrop of a sky that was beginning its slow progression from gray to black. Colin followed her gaze, neither of them speaking for a moment.
“What kind of trouble?” she finally asked.
He lifted the tip of his reel, jerking the line, before answering. “Fights,” he said.
For a moment, she wasn’t sure she’d heard him right. “You used to fight in bars?”
“Up until a few years ago, I used to fight in bars all the time.”
“Why would you get into fights?”
“Guys usually go to bars for four reasons: to get drunk, to hang with friends, to pick up girls, or to fight. I would show up for all four.”
“You wanted to fight?”
“Usually.”
“How many times?”
“I’m not sure I understand the question.”
“How many times did you get into fights?”
“I can’t remember exactly. Probably over a hundred.”
She blinked. “You were in over a hundred bar fights?”
“Yes.”
She wasn’t sure what to say. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because you asked.”
“And you answer everything that people ask you?”
“Not everything.”
“But you think telling me about something like this is okay?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I’m guessing you’re a lawyer, right?”
She inhaled, thrown by the sudden change in subject. “Did Serena tell you that?”
“No.”
“Then how did you know I was a lawyer?”
“I didn’t know. I thought it was a possibility because you ask a lot of questions. Most lawyers do.”
“And given all those bar fights, you’ve probably had a lot of experience with lawyers?”
“Yes.”
“I still can’t believe you’re telling me this.”
“Why wouldn’t I tell you?”
“Because admitting that you used to get in bar fights isn’t something that people usually do when first getting to know each other.”
“Okay,” he said. “But like I said, I don’t do that anymore.”
“What about the other night?”
“That was an MMA match. Mixed martial arts. It’s entirely different from what I used to do in the past.”
“It’s still fighting, isn’t it?”
“It’s a sport – like boxing or tae kwon do.”
She squinted at him. “Is MMA the one in the cage? Where anything goes?”
“Yes to the first, and no to the second,” he said. “There are rules. Actually, there are a lot of rules, even if it can be violent.”
“And you enjoy the violence?”
“It’s good for me.”
“Why? Because it helps to keep you out of trouble?”
“Among other things.” He smiled, and for the first time in a long, long while, she found herself utterly at a loss for words.
CHAPTER 5
Colin
C
olin had witnessed reactions like Maria’s before, and he knew she was debating whether she should stick around. People generally had negative reactions to hearing about his past. While he no longer beat himself up for his mistakes, he wasn’t proud of them, either. He was who he was, warts and all, and he accepted that. Now it was her turn to make a decision.