As soon as Kat spoke, a slight tremble started through her. That sounded like her, like her old self, the one who teased and bratted to everyone around her. Still, after Jerry…
Dean didn’t look bothered at all by the exchange, however. He grinned. “Maybe other men feel the need to prove their masculinity, but I figure I have plenty of other things that prove I’m a man without having to drink things I don’t like.”
His response helped her regain her own footing, helped her remember this was Dean she was talking about. She let out a soft laugh, then went about making him the drink. Lemon-line soda, grenadine and extra cherries to rib him over what he’d picked.
Not that it seemed to matter. Dean took the drink as if it were everything he could have wanted and sipped from the red straw. “Perfect. You should bartend more often here.”
“I tried. Apparently, bartenders are supposed to beprofessionaland give people what they ask for. My way is a bit more free-spirited. Toya gave me one night, then fired me.”
“Was that the fastest you’ve ever been fired?”
“Oh, god no. One time, I showed up to work at a vet’s office as a temp receptionist in a shirt that read,Need Bacon?I didn’t make it past the front door.”
Dean let out a laugh, as if he could perfectly imagine that happening. Which, to be fair, seemed pretty on-brand for Kat. “Anything for you?” he asked.
Which reminded Kat that she hadn’t made herself a drink. She pressed her lips together, then shrugged. “I guess I’ll have the same.” After making one of her own, she considered moving around to the other side, and taking a seat beside Dean.
However, the thought of doing so was much too far. No matter how much she tried to pretend nothing had happened over the past few weeks, it just wasn’t true. So, instead, she grabbed a chair behind the bar and pulled it over so she sat across from Dean, giving her the distance she needed.
His expression screamed he knew what she’d done and why, but he didn’t comment on it. Instead, he took another sip of his drink, then asked, “How’s work?”
Terrible.Kat recalled how she’d been unable to create a new image for her shirts, something cute and funny and irreverent. Instead of admitting that, however, she forced a smile. “Like it always it.”
“You’re an artist, right?” At her nod, he went on. “What kind of art? Painting, sculpture, graphic art for marketing?”
“None of that. I do cartoon work and sell it in my own shop.”
“Oh yeah?”
Kat nodded, then pulled her phone out. A few swipes brought up her shop, and she handed it to Dane. He took the phone and scrolled through the images.
However, Kat didn’t really feel any nerves. She never did, not with this work. It was easy, almost mindless. Draw an animal or person with large eyes to make them adorable, then create some joke to go with it. Rinse and repeat.
Still, Dean nodded as he looked. “These are good. I’veseenthis image, in fact. Never realized it was your work.” He handed the phone back.
Despite Kat not caring what people thought normally, she couldn’t deny a small rush at the way he spoke, the pleasure at his praise. She slid the phone into her back pocket. “Yeah, well, it pays the bills. Not a lot of people get to do what they love for a living, you know?” She not-so-subtly looked at Dean, who as a lawyer couldn’t possibly be all that happy with his own work.
He let out another warm laugh. “Hey now, maybe I grew up dreaming about wasting my years nose deep in law books. Maybe I was a very boring child.”
“I doubt that.”
“Really?”
She nodded, taking another drink as she peered at him, trying to fit together what she knew. “You weren’t a book sort of kid. You’re the type who gets bored easily. I bet you were a handful, causing problems and being wild. You got into more than your fair share of trouble.” She said it with a laugh, imagining a young Dean—probably just as charming and perfectly dressed—running around some mansion he probably grew up in and causing trouble for the help.
Except, Dean’s expression hardened in a way she wasn’t sure she’d ever seen before. Even his smile faded. As quickly as it happened, he blinked it away. “Excuse me, won’t you? I need to check in with the office.” Without another word, he rose and headed toward the staircase that led up to the offices, leaving Kat alone.
That was weird…
The ringing of her own phone interrupted her thoughts, though. Without thinking, she lifted the phone to her ear, answering it while her gaze watched where Dean had gone. “Hello?”
“Hello.”
The voice sucked the floor from beneath Kat’s feet. It was smooth and clear and burned into her memory. It was the one she heard at night when she closed her eyes and couldn’t fall asleep, the one that haunted her.
Jerry.
Kat didn’t respond—what was there to say? The still healing marks he’d left on her burned as if they reacted to his very voice.