Liar.
“Whatever,” Cassidy replied with a grin. “Since he just walked in, I guess we’ll find out if I’m right or if those single women drooling over Walker will have someone new to hit on.”
Faith’s heart jumped, and she turned in time to see Gus walk into the bar. Her reaction was visceral. Deep and penetrating. God, he looked good.
His hair was wet as if he’d just showered, the ends waving against his neck and from underneath a Mets ballcap. He was dressed casually — khaki shorts and a plain black T-shirt. His legs and arms were tanned from the sun. He looked over just then, and a slow smile spread across his handsome face when he spied her.
“There’s my answer.” Cassidy took the menus from Faith. “I’ll drop these at your table. Go and say hi.”
Faith took a moment to try and calm her heart because it was nearly beating out of her chest. It was silly to feel this way about a man she barely knew even if she was considering . . .
Considering what? Sex? She’d never had casual sex in her life. In fact, when it came to intimacy, she was sadly lacking. Faith had had exactly two lovers. Her first was the guy she’d dated through most of high school. Even then, she’d waited until the night before leaving for college to lose her virginity. By then, it was more about getting it over with than anything else. Considering the sex had been awful, she should have waited longer.
She’d met Declan her second year of college, and they’d dated for nearly three months before she slept with him. The sex had been okay — but it had never gotten better than okay. He was charming and smart and popular, and she liked him. He came from a good family with money, something her mother and stepfather approved of. After six months of dating, he’d told Faith that he loved her. She figured what she felt was love and became the ultimate pretender. Faking orgasms to make a man feel like he’d done the job. But the sad truth was, she was twenty-seven years old and had never had an orgasm.
Well, not without the help of a vibrator. Faith blushed at the thought.
Her life was a mess.Shewas a mess. The last thing she should be contemplating was a relationship, even if it was only for sex. There were too many things she couldn’t share. Gus didn’t even know her last name. No one did, save for Samantha, and that was only because she’d had to fill out paperwork in order to work here and get paid. So far, Samantha hadn’t recognized her, but how long before that happened? What would Gus think of her when he found out the truth? Would he dump her just like every other person from her former life? Would he assume she knew what her parents had done? Would he think she’d been complicit?
Head swirling, she gazed across the room. Walker and Gus were talking, and Daisy Duke girl was effectively dismissed. She was already back with her girlfriends, the whole lot of them overly loud as they set their caps on another table of men.
“Table four needs their bill,” Samantha said as she walked by with a tray full of drinks. She glanced over her shoulder. “And I’m dropping these at table six. Melinda had to leave. One of her kids is sick so I’ll need you to grab their food order and look after them.”
Faith nodded, and a bit relieved to have a reason not to speak to Gus just yet, she printed out the bill for table four, dropped it off, and grabbed her notepad.
Table six sat eight men, none she recognized. Two of them sported Rolexes on their wrists, while the others were dripping in gold chains and brand-name clothes. Definitely tourists with money. One of the men wore a pink T-shirt that saidGroom, so she was betting the boys were renting a cottage and throwing their buddy a bachelor’s weekend. They weren’t exactly loud, but they were boisterous, which, while not necessarily a bad thing,meant she’d have to keep an eye on them. She pasted a practiced smile on her face and approached the table.
“Hey,” she said as the groom glanced up. “I’m Faith. I’ll be looking after you boys while you’re here.”
“Sweet.” The man to her right wore a beige bucket hat with a blue fish logo. He grinned and looked her up and down. “You can look after me any time, honey.” His meaning was obvious, and some of the guys snickered.
Seriously? Men were so predictable. Faith noted his wedding ring. “I think your wife might have a problem with that.”
“What the little wife doesn’t know don’t hurt her,” he replied with a cocky smile to boot.
“Hey,” someone from the end of the table yelled. “That’s my sister you’re talking about.”
“I was just kidding,” Bucket hat man said, making a face, though he looked up at her hopefully.
“The only thing available today is whatever’s on the menu.” She kept her voice light and glanced around the table. “What will it be?”
By the time she rang up their food order, she had new customers sitting at table four, and another table had drinks waiting at the bar. She couldn’t avoid Gus anymore. Faith headed to the end of the bar, and when he glanced over and smiled at her, she stumbled, her knees locking.
He was beautiful. There was no other way to describe him. And that smile was all for her. It wasn’t fake or contrived. He wasn’t looking for a quick fuck.
Let’s ease into whatever this is.That’s what he’d said.
Jesus, Faith. Get your shit together.
“Hey.” Gus straightened and made room for her when she approached. “It’s busy in here.”
She nodded. Didn’t trust her voice just yet.
“Those boys give you trouble, me and Gus are more than willing to back you up,” Walker said, leaning over.
“I can handle them.” Good. She didn’t sound like a complete idiot.
“What time are you off?” Gus asked.
