I slid off my barstool and made my way to the men’s bathroom. Fortunately, Letty didn’t say anything. Unfortunately, I knew she’d be waiting for me to return.
5
Kelly
“Kelly, wake up.” Someone with a feminine voice nudged my shoulder. “Kelly,” she drew out my name.
“Yeah? Oh. Yeah. I’m up.” I mumbled and blinked my eyes open. My butt was numb and my back was stiff, so I arched it and exhaled an exhausted breath.
“You can get up. We have a comfy recliner in another room you can sit in.” The woman smiled. Her warm brown eyes were kind and non-threatening.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep.” I got to my feet quickly and went over to Cass. “Everything checked out perfectly with her. What time is it?”
“Almost ten.” Slay crossed his arms over his chest. He was sitting on the bed next to Cass with his long legs stretched out and his feet were crossed at his ankles. “Jefe made me leave you alone until now. We had Silvia wake you up, so I didn’t freak you out.” He sounded a little annoyed with me.
“Wow. It’s so late. I’ll get out of here.” I grabbed my things.
“Not yet,” Slay said in a non-negotiable tone.
“Why?” I stiffened. “She’s fine.”
“Can you please stay a little longer? Go have a bite to eat or a drink in the bar. Just another hour.” Slay turned his attention to Cass. He seemed genuinely worried about her.
I sighed. “Fine. One more hour.”
“Thank you. Take this for your time.” He reached his fist toward me.
I opened my hand and he placed a wad of cash on it. “Um, this is…”
“Not enough, but it’s all I had on me. If you need more, Jefe will cover me. I appreciate you coming out on short notice and taking care of my girl.”
“What I meant is, this is too much.”
“You haven’t even counted it.” Slay smiled for the first time since I got here. “I’ll be offended if you give any of it back.”
“Well, I wouldn’t want to offend you.” I looked at the bills, noticing several one-hundred-dollar bills.
“Good,” Jefe said from the door. “I’ll take you to the bar.”
I nodded and peered at Cass. “You know where to find me if you need anything.”
“I do,” Slay replied.
Admittedly, I was happy to leave the bedroom. It meant I was closer to going home, and I couldn’t wait to take a shower and climb into my bed.
“We’ve got burritos, chips, salsa, guacamole, and pozole to eat. Behind the bar, you can have whatever you want.” Jefe led the way down the long hallway.
“Sounds amazing. I am a little hungry.” My stomach growled just thin.
Jefe smirked, showing he’d heard.
How embarrassing.
“The guy sitting at the bar…” His words faded as we neared the entrance. “Just leave him alone and he’ll leave you alone.”
“Should I be worried?” Maybe I didn’t want to go into the bar after all.
“Not if you leave him alone.” Jefe gave me stern look. “I’ll be in and out. So will others and they have all been told to not mess with you.”
