No Regrets (No Regrets #1) (11 page)

Chapter 14

A we
ek later, I’m on my way into Juno’s. Immediately I start in on Christina as soon as I round the bar. “How many dates again? One, it only took one and you let him get into your panties. I knew you were easy but come on, Christina.”

She s
miles, refusing to give in to my harassment. After a while I tell her that I’ll kick his ass if he hurts her again. I make sure to add that there isn’t anything better out there so she has nothing to worry about. She laughs at my words most of the time because they’re so out of character for a big muscular guy like me who likes to fight more than anything else. But she’s one more person I feel I need to take care of. This is my way of helping her out and keeping my distance.

“Hey
, Christina, is the cooler stocked?”

“Um, sorry, not sure.”

“You okay? You know I’m just ribbing you about Jonathan. Right?”

She nods absently.

“I know. I’m still so unsure, though. What if…”

I cut
her off. “There are no what ifs. He would be crazy to leave you again. How many times do I have to tell you that?”

She smiles
, deciding to end the conversation. “No more sentimental shit. Go stock the coolers.”

I smirk at her tactical way of avoiding the subject. I met Jonathan
for the first time a few nights ago as the bar was closing. He came to pick her up for their ‘date’ and I laid down the law, I’m sure like her dad would have done if he were still here. I told him that if he so much as thinks about screwing her over again, I’d beat his ass. I’m pretty sure he took my threat seriously.

My attention is diverted
to the walk-in, satisfied that Christina is okay for the moment. I know she’s questioning her decision but I see the way Jonathan looks at her. The guy is in it for the long haul this time. Maybe time will help her believe what I’ve been telling her for the past week.

The night drags on with the same routine. Most of th
e regulars have accepted me as a more permanent fixture in the bar. I took Christina’s advice months ago and listen to the monotonous drone of the patrons and their petty problems. I never share anything personal, just the customary responses to the alcohol loosening their tongues.

An hour before closing I
’m wiping down the bar. It’s still fairly full, a few chairs here and there open, but generally I’m still busy. Christina passes behind me, playfully grabbing my ass. She whispers close to my ear, “Hey, Rookie, the couple on the end requested that you serve them.”

I frown
in the direction she points and my heart stops. The past has found me. Red sits there. I’m not sure whether I should run to her or away. All the things from that night come back like it just happened. As if I’m sitting there on the damp ground again, waiting. When she glances toward me, the breath hitches in my chest, causing my stopped heart to speed up. Her pink lips turn up in a smile as our eyes meet. It’s as if she’s caught me in her stare. I want to return her smile but confusion forms in my mind as Christina’s words play back in my head, the couple at the end wants you to serve them. I search for someone else, a different couple, but she continues to stare at me. A hand squeezes my arm and Christina’s voice brings me out of the trance.

“Hey there, you okay?”

I look away then down at Christina. She’s concerned and the last thing I want to do is explain.

“Um
, yeah, I’m good.”

I look
back at the redhead and my breath leaves in a rush. She’s looking at another figure sliding onto the bar stool beside her. His long dark hair is combed to the side covering his forehead and part of his face but I know who it is. He’s filled out a little. His arms are bulkier than the last time I saw him on the night of the accident. Red is speaking to him, a smile permanently on her lips. Christina’s hand is still on my arm. She squeezes again and leans into me. Her hand darts up and turns my face to meet her now worried gaze. “Grey, you look like you just saw a ghost, do you need a break? Are you okay?”

“No, I’m
- I’m still good.”

I take a deep breath and move
out of her grasp. The walk down the bar seems to take forever. My heart beats double time as I think about what I should say. Anger pulses through me mixed with sadness. As I near the edge of the counter the man looks up. A huge sloppy grin crosses his face as he recognizes me. He holds his hand out in a brotherly shake. “Greylan, it’s been too long, buddy.”

Reflexively I hold my own hand out and reply
, “Meyer, yeah, too long.”

Mixed emotions tu
mble over one another as I look at my old childhood friend. We’ve known each other for most of our lives. We climbed trees together and fished in the pond. In high school we even went after the same girl to take to the prom, but standing here facing my oldest friend, none of our past seems to matter. I haven’t seen him in over five years and it drills into me that I really don’t know this person. Meyer is a stranger, someone I know nothing about anymore. The blood runs through my veins, heating my body up. My fists clench unconsciously at the words that were never spoken between us after the accident. I stand a moment, staring into Meyer’s guiltless expression, and wonder how he could ever show his face around here again.

A smooth crisp voice brings me out of my
thoughts. “Hi, Greylan. It’s nice to see you again. I’m Mollie.”

Inwardly I
’m struggling with Meyer being here but as soon as my face shifts to look at Red, who I think about often, every other thought flees from my mind. My breathing shallows - not from anger but because I forgot how fucking beautiful she is. I hold her flawless hand within my large palm, the warmth surging through my skin. A pink blush surfaces in her cheeks before she looks away shyly. I remember the first time I saw her in the parking lot after my fight. The same blush colored her cheeks that night.

Meyer’s voice diverts my
attention. “Hey bro, aren’t you gonna ask why we’re here?”

A s
nide remark is on the tip of my tongue but a hand encircles my arm from behind before I can say anything. I want to tell Meyer exactly where he can go but I’m afraid the bar would lose half its light if the angel beside him left. Christina’s cool voice draws me out of my thoughts.

“Hey, I’m Christina; I’
m guessing you know our Greylan here.”

Meyer looks fro
m Christina and back to me before a snide smile spreads. He laughs. “Yeah, you could say that. It’s nice to meet you, Christina. I never thought I’d see the day.”

I frown
at his remark, realizing that Meyer thinks I’m with Christina. My brow furrows as I glance at Mollie. She looks intently at Christina the whole time, a slight glare forming in the corners of her eyes. I like seeing it there.

Christina pours them both a short glass
of whiskey. She looks at me but I don’t move my gaze from Meyer. I’m pissed because his attitude hasn’t changed. He still acts as if everything is a game. Nothing bad can ever happen. I know more than anyone that life is anything but a game. I glare at my old friend, having no patience for him.

Christina
never misses a beat. “You were about to tell us why you’re here, bro.” Her sarcastic tone spits out the words as if they taste bad. She raises her glass and places another in my hand. I lift it in a long draw before a toast can be made.

Meyer
dismisses her meaning, taking a sip of his own drink. “I like this one, Grey.”

I wince at my
nickname coming from Meyer.

Meyer
looks at Red and places his arm around the back of her chair. The expression on her face is a myriad of emotions. She seems sad but strong, as if she would put up a fierce fight if needed. I notice that she leans slightly away as Meyer moves closer. He looks back at me as he explains, “We came to see you fight, dude. I heard you are on your way back up. Just here to support an old friend.”

My eyes narrow to a glare
in response, not really trusting him. I look back at Red as she lifts the glass of golden liquid to her lips. She swallows slowly and I feel my own reaction to that small movement in places I shouldn’t. Thoughts about this woman in that way shouldn’t even cross my mind at this point. I look past her, hoping the tightness in my pants goes away, but I know as long as I’m in her presence, that’s the last thing that will happen.

Meyer’s pitch
y voice is starting to annoy me. “Anyway, we’re staying down the road at the Breaker. I guess we’ll see you tomorrow. Fight’s at seven, right?”

My hand tightens on the glass as I swallow the remaining contents. Meyer’s
hand gently grabs Mollie’s arm and encourages her out of the chair. She stands, looking up to meet my gaze. A tilt in my lip forms at how petite and perfect she is. She slowly moves her arm from Meyer’s grasp and states, “It was a pleasure seeing you again, Greylan. I’m looking forward to seeing your fight tomorrow.”

She nods to Christina. I
can see the scowl across Christina’s face out of the corner of my eye. As soon as the door closes behind them, Christina loses it. “What the hell, Grey? I think there might be some things you never shared with me. The air in this place was so thick, I could have cut it with a knife.”

A patron on the other end of the bar calls out to Christina
, trying to get her attention. She turns to me before walking the length. “We aren’t finished with this. Don’t go anywhere tonight, we need to talk.”

More than anything, I have the urge to
leave, to lose myself at Jackson’s. To find the repetitive push of my muscles and forget, but Jax doesn’t keep the gym open at night and a drink might be more effective in helping me forget the memories before they surface. Seeing Meyer hammers home how the past is never out of reach, it’s always just a few steps behind. As much as I try to outrun everything, it always catches up.

I pour another drink and slam
it back, hoping the warmth that spreads down my throat has the desired affect and takes all this shit away.

After the last customer leaves
, Christina locks the door and starts in on me. “Please be truthful with me, Grey. I can see how affected you were by that couple. Tell me why they’re here and why you’re upset.”

I shake my
head, sinking into a chair at the bar as Christina rounds the counter, setting two glasses on the smooth wood. She fills each with ice and pours a generous amount of whiskey into them. Urgently I lift mine and down the entire contents. She fills the glass a second time. I throw that one back before admitting, “That was Meyer Hansen, my old childhood friend.”

“Call me c
razy but I didn’t really feel any friend vibes from that encounter.”

I
smile and gesture to the empty glass. She pours again before downing her own drink.

“Christina, the night I kille
d that man, it was Mollie, that woman here with Meyer, the guy was forcing himself on her.”

Christi
na frowns as she listens to my explanation.

“I’m not exactly following you. Where was Meyer? Why didn’t he keep tra
ck of her if she was his girl?”

Resting my
head in my hands, I shrug. “I don’t know what was going through his head that night. He never showed up at the police station. He apologized over and over for not being around when it happened in a letter six months later but I didn’t bother replying to ask him where he’d been. It didn’t matter. That night was the last time I saw him or talked to him until tonight.”

I take a deep
, needed breath.

“In that letter he
claimed it was too much for him. He’s always handled things differently, I guess. Maybe he felt guilty that I went away.” I take a long drink from my glass and add, “I knew if I ever saw him again, it’d be like this, on his terms. When he felt like showing his face again.”

Christina’s voice is unbelieving
. “What an ass!”

I chuckle
at her reaction.

“I mean
, Grey, what the hell kind of friend leaves you to rot in jail and never supports you? Especially one where you stepped up and did what he should have done all along? Actually, if he was taking care of his girl, it probably never would have happened.”

“It doesn’t matter anymore. What happened is done. As much as I’d like to
, I can’t turn back time.”

Christina comes aroun
d the bar and scoots in beside me. She places her hand over mine. “What about the chick that was with him tonight? She was the girl that night?”

Mollie’s bri
ght face flashes through my thoughts. Those eyes that seem to tell a thousand stories yet are so secretive. My body tenses just thinking about her.

“
Grey, you there?”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you might have feelings for this girl. But that would be crazy because you don’t
believe in that love shit.”