“I promise I’m not kicking you out. If you don’t find a place before Richard moves in, we’ll manage, but it will be pretty crowded with three of us in this tiny apartment.” Abby’s face twisted into a grimace.
“Thank you. I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me.” I reached for my coffee cup and lifted it to my lips. “You’re a good friend.”
“I do want to say one thing, though.” She looked down at the table for a moment and seemed to be gathering the courage to say something difficult. “I had no idea how bad your drinking really was until you moved in. I get it. I know you’ve been through a lot with your parents splitting up and finding out Chad was cheating on you, but you really need to slow down.”
“Oh.” I stared at her blankly. “I see.”
“I’m not saying it to be hurtful, I promise. I just care about you and I’m worried this is going to end really badly.” She reached over and patted my hand. “Please consider it, and if you can’t slow down on your own, you really need to get some help.”
I didn’t know how to respond to Abby. I just gave her a blank stare for a while and nodded. We didn’t say much to each other after that. I got ready for work and took a change of clothes so I could go straight to the bar when my shift was over. Even with Abby’s heartfelt warning, the only thing it really did was make me want to have a drink. It wasn’t like I was getting drunk and going home with random guys or anything. I didn’t even have much to drink the night before. It wasn’t a problem, it was a solution that quelled the ache inside of me. Once I got off work, I changed clothes, and headed to the bar with enough cash in my purse to make sure I didn’t have to stop until I had my fill.
Is that… Harlan? Twice in two days?
“I think I owe you a couple of drinks.” I sat down beside him at the bar. “I have cash tonight, so I can actually pay for them.”
“You really are a regular.” He chuckled and looked over at me.
“Yeah, but you’re not, so why are you here again tonight?” I tilted my head inquisitively.
“The guy I normally hang out with is away on business and I didn’t really want to drink alone.” He lifted his glass and finished the whiskey.
“Well, you don’t have to drink alone tonight.” I smiled and reached for his glass. “I’ll get your next one. Should we get a table away from the crowd like last night?”
“I don’t know, are you going to start crying again?” His face twisted into a look of remorse the instant the words left his lips. “Sorry, that wasn’t very nice.”
“No tears tonight.” I blinked and swallowed hard. “Let’s just be two people who aren’t drinking alone.”
“All right.” He nodded and looked around the bar. “The one we had last night is open.”
It was hard to sit down across from Harlan without thinking about what I did the night before when I got back to Abby’s apartment. I probably wouldn’t have satisfied those urges if I realized I was going to run into him again the very next night. Once we started talking and the conversation wasn’t about the ones that cheated on us, I found him quite charming. Adding a heavy dose of charisma to the hot-as-sin fantasy in front of me wasn’t helping at all. All he had to do was make a move—hell, I would have settled for a suggestion. We talked for a couple of hours, and I barely touched my second drink. The need just wasn’t there. It was a strange feeling after having so much turmoil that I needed to numb for nearly two years.
“So, yeah—if you know of any good places that I can afford on a waitress salary, let me know.” I tilted my head and smiled after I told him about my latest catastrophe.
“I can’t believe your mom threw you out.” He exhaled sharply. “I guess I can understand it, though. I wouldn’t have even considered to buy you a drink last night if I realized you were a full-blown underage alcoholic.”
“I’m not an alcoholic.” I scoffed and shook my head. “Come on, you’ve never used alcohol to push through a tough day?”
“All the time, but I haven’t drank enough to literally pass out in a drunken stupor since college. There were some rough nights after I found out my wife was cheating on me, but nothing like what you just described.” Harlan lifted his drink, stared at it, and then put it back down without even taking a sip.
“I guess we handle things in our own way.” I sighed and looked down at the table.
“So, what did you do after you left here last night?” He tilted his head to the side.
Oh god—I can’t tell him the truth about that.
“I just went home.” I blinked and swallowed a lump that tried to form in my throat.
“So, you didn’t go to another bar or have a few drinks when you got back to your friend’s apartment?” His eyebrow raised inquisitively.
“No.” I shook my head back and forth.
“That seems unusual for someone who just described her last two years as a drunken blur.” He looked down at my glass. “You’re also letting the ice melt in that one.”
I guess I’ve painted myself into a corner now.
“Yeah, I don’t know.” I tried to think of something to say. “I guess it’s just nice to talk to someone. It feels… different.”
“How soon do you need to be out of your friend’s place?” Harlan leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest.