Sammie: Sorry man, I’m gonna be working late tonight, can we reschedule?
Ivy: of course :)
Guilt gnawed at her. Not only was she keeping a massive fucking secret from her friend, but she’d just confided said secret to a coworker. It wasn’t that Sammie didn’t consider Luz a friend, she did, but they’d only worked with one another for a year, and rarely spent time together outside of the brewery. It wasn’t like how things were with Ivy. The fact that she was keeping things from Ivy was probably why she’d spilled it all to Luz.
Sammie couldn’t let herself keep going like this, hiding things from her friend. And shemissedIvy. She missed shit talking with her, she missed having someone who wasn’t family to vent to. Ivy had always been good to Sammie, and Sammie wasn’t being respectful of that fact.
However, knowing that and actuallydoingsomething about it were two entirely different matters. And after the way this work week had been shaping up so far, Sammie just wasn’t ready for the potential disappointment she would see in Ivy’s eyes when she admitted to her new…relationshipwith Kieran.
Sammie tucked her phone away, promising herself she wouldn’t postpone again. She would tell Ivy, they would face whatever uncomfortable feelings arose, and they would moveon. Because Ivy wouldn’t just stop being Sammie’s friend over something like a guy, right?
With Luz’s help, Carson got his mess cleaned up quickly while Sammie took a moment to order a significantly bigger vibrator for the whale tale. She wasn’t taking any more chances, the new one wassureto work.
The rest of the canning run went relatively well, only a few minor hiccups with one of the sensors failing to read. Daylight was just beginning to fade when they all finally closed up for the night. Sammie said goodnight to Carson and Luz, noting how the former paused to chat with the latter for a few minutes, both of them smiling and leaning in close.
Huh, interesting. Sammie didn’t think a lot of Carson, the nepo-baby she was cursed with. But she only knew him as he was related to her work, nothing beyond that. He was a nice enough kid—man—even if he was the most incompetent worker she’d ever had. And if Luz liked him, even a little bit, he couldn’t be all bad, right?
Made Luz would rub off on him. Not in the euphemistic sense. Or maybe, judging by the way he’d just made her laugh, absolutely in the euphemistic sense.
Sammie let out a sigh as she climbed into her car, leaning back against the head rest and closing her eyes. She wasn’t in a bad mood, not exactly, but she wasn’t in agoodone. She was tired, annoyed with a job she wanted to be happier doing, and she wasdefinitelyPMSing. Plus, the oil change light was still on in her car, a beaming reminder that she needed to get taken care of. The last time she’d gone in she’d put off getting her tires rotated and balanced, so that would need to be done as well. Another chunk out of what she was saving for house repairs. Although, the videos Kieran had posted of them so farhadearned her more than she’d been expecting.
After a day that felt like it might never end, Sammie was justtired. Past the point of strong emotions. She hated when she got this way, when everything around her felt so dull.
Her phone chimed with a notification. Sammie opened her eyes to see who it was from.
Kieran: You free tonight?
Kieran: There’s this place close to my apartment that has live music.
Kieran: Wanna go?
Sammie bit her lip. Those messages didn’t feel so dull.
They hadn’t set a date for their next video together. Sammie assumed that was the conversation Kieran had been attempting to start earlier that day. But this wasn’t about that. Kieran was asking to see her, no mention of sex or recording or anything related to it.
It sounded an awful lot like a date. And Sammie didn’t really know what to do with that. She sure as shit wasn’t going to sayno.
As she began to type a response, that familiar guilt slammed her. She’d cancelled on Ivy tonight. For valid reasons. The work day had been terrible; she was exhausted.
That didn’t change the fact that the idea of seeing Kieran was like a ray of sunshine breaking through the clouds. Being around him recharged her. She thought back to their drive back to Chicago, to the easy conversation they’d shared. For the first time in longer than Sammie could remember, she hadn’t felt off-kilter around Kieran. He wasn’t someone who stood just out of reach anymore.
Sammie pulled up a map of the area in her mind. A place close to Kieran’s apartment, and it was a Tuesday night…
Sammie: Is it constant reader?
Kieran: How did you know?
Sammie: The owner is a friend, they always have music on tuesdays. Meet you there in 20?
Kieran: See you soon.
Small tables, circled by mismatched barstools and chairs, had been dragged out onto the concrete patio, strings of Edison bulbs lighting up the space. A trio of musicians were set up off to one side, their soft melodies wrapping around Kieran as he waited for Sammie to arrive.
Fifteen minutes had passed since she’d told him she would meet him. Awkwardness settled over him like a familiar, itchy blanket, rough against his skin but a necessary evil. He hated to be late, hated to keep anyone waiting, but he also wasn’t a fan of being the first to arrive. Standing at one of the tables stiffly, alone, without a drink yet. He could sit, try to at leastlookmore comfortable, but Sammie would be there any minute and he’d just have to get back up. He could also go ahead and get himself a beer, but Sammie had mentioned being friends with the owner of this place, which meant she would probably have good suggestions, and he sort of wanted to wait for her to…
“Hey.”
Kieran turned, and there she was. Hair hastily braided back, a few dark strands falling loose to frame her face. A white tank top underneath loose overalls. There were dark circles under her eyes, and even as she smiled at him in greeting, Kieran could see the exhaustion wafting off of her.
