Relinquishing Liberty (4 page)

“Thanks, Brett. I really appreciate it.” I gave him a warm smile.

He caught me off guard when he came around the bar and enveloped me in a tight hug. It felt so familiar, almost brotherly.
Ohmigod!
That’s what it was…the calming effect I felt before. It was what I used to feel around AJ, minus the physical attraction, of course. I just felt better being around him. Safe. It was nice being able to feel that again after having missed it for so long.

We disentangled and said our goodbyes. He gave me his signature wink just as I was walking out. God, those eyes made me weak in the knees.
Whoa, snap out of it Liberty! You just compared Brett to your brother!
I shuddered at that thought
.
I didn’t have time to swoon over anyone, anyway.

Finally, it felt like everything had fallen into place all thanks to Brett. I was ecstatic about starting work tomorrow, and hopefully I would soon have a more permanent place to live, thanks to his sister. I think Brett may have just become my knight in shining armor!

It was six in the fucking morning, and for some ungodly reason I was awake. For the most part you could call me a morning person. I tried not to make a habit of sleeping past nine, but waking up before the sun even had a chance to make its appearance immediately put me in a terrible mood. I thought about going for a walk down by the beach to bring me down from my unwelcomed mood, but since I hadn’t been keeping myself in shape lately, I thought a run might be more beneficial. I could really use the release of endorphins.

I threw on a pair of yoga pants and a tank top. The mornings here were still pretty chilly, so I grabbed a hoodie too, along with my iPod. Before leaving the motel, I checked in for yet another night and prayed that it would be for the last time. When I drove down to the beach, the parking lot was completely deserted.
Perfect.

I did some quick stretches and started a steady-paced jog a few feet from the water’s edge. I turned up my iPod and got lost in the music. Between the upbeat tunes and the waves crashing nearby, I felt perfectly relaxed. I could definitely get used to these morning runs. I closed my eyes for a mere second, and then collided into a boulder that seemed to appear out of thin air.

When I opened my eyes, I couldn’t look away from what, or should I say whom, I had crashed into. The emerald green eyes that returned their gaze had me frozen in place. With the way the sun was coming up and surrounding him with a golden glow, I could have sworn I was in the presence of an angel.

I started to feel warmth spread along my sides and noticed I wasn’t actually frozen in place. His large, calloused hands had a firm grip on my hips, holding me steady. My shirt must have ridden up a bit during our collision because his hands were pressed flat against my bare skin. Realizing this, I stumbled and lost my footing, causing his hands to move further up and trace over my ribs until they hit the edge of my sports bra. I looked down at the proximity of his hands to my breasts and felt the warmth soon spread to my belly, igniting a wildfire that burned from deep inside.
Whoa!
I had never felt that before!

When he seemed convinced that I had regained my balance, he removed his hands and looked down at me. He brushed away the waves of brown hair that had fallen in front of his eyes.
Those eyes!
The longer I stared, the more I got lost in them. I felt like I had seen them before, but only in my dreams. I staggered back a bit before regaining my composure.

“Whoa, are you okay there?” I had to tilt my head up a little more than I was used to in order to stare at the lips that had just produced those heavenly words. I was only about 5’3”, but he had to be easily over 6’0”.

“I-I’m good” I said, brushing off some of the sand that now covered my pants. God, this was so embarrassing. “I’m so sorry; I didn’t see you standing there. I swear I only closed my eyes for a second.”

He laughed.
Oh God, he was laughing at me!
Could this get any worse? “It was a little more than a second there, sweetheart. You had your eyes closed for a good minute before you plowed into me. Must’ve really been in the zone, huh?”

I quickly turned away. I didn’t want him to see how mortified I was, but it was so difficult to remove my gaze from those mesmerizing eyes. “Yeah, I guess I was. Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“Nope, not a scratch, babe. Don’t worry. I’m like a brick house: can’t blow me down.” A grin slowly crept up one side of his mouth, and he winked at me. Did all the gorgeous men around here have that sexy wink mastered?

I couldn’t help but let my eyes wander over the rest of him. He was definitely well-built from what I could see. He had jeans hung low on his hips that were rolled up to his knees, exposing his muscular calves, and a long-sleeved shirt that stretched across his broad chest and arms. It was obvious he worked hard for that body. I had to stop staring before he caught me. I looked down and noticed a fishing pole and tackle box lying in the sand; realizing he had been fishing before I rudely crashed him, I decided it was probably best not to keep him any longer.

“Well I-I’ll let you get back to fishing. Sorry again.”

I didn’t wait for him to respond. I turned to head back the way I had come from, and sprinted down the beach. If I risked looking back now, I don’t think I’d be able to turn away. I took a chance and glanced back; his eyes were still on me. His piercing stare caused goose bumps to run across my whole body.
How did he do that?
There was a force drawing me to him, and I felt myself struggling to get away. It wasn’t what I really wanted, though. My body was going against my wishes, carrying me away, when all I wanted was for him to reel me back in.

Back at the motel, I got ready for my first day of work. After a quick shower, I threw my hair up in a ponytail and put on my “AJ’s Oceanside Restaurant” t-shirt and a pair of jeans. I took a deep breath trying to calm my nerves. I knew I had no reason to be nervous, but I really needed this job, and I didn’t want to fuck anything up. So, I gave myself a quick pep talk before heading out.

When I walked in, I wasn’t really sure where I was supposed to go, but within seconds there was a tiny blonde girl bounding towards me.

“You must be Liberty! Oh I’m so excited you’re here!” She stood there bouncing up and down, clapping her hands together.

Oh, this
had
to be Maddie. Based on Brett’s lovely description of her personality, I wouldn’t have expected anything less. I just hoped I could make it through the night without wanting to strangle her.

“Yes, that would be me. It’s nice to meet you. And you’re Maddie?” I extended my hand to shake hers, but she grabbed me by the shoulders before I had time to process what was happening and pulled me into a constricting hug. Clearly this family had a thing for hugging. After finally releasing me, Maddie grabbed my hand and tugged me along to the tiny employee break room and showed me where to punch in for the day.

“You won’t have to do too much today. I’ll just show you where everything is, and you can shadow me. You have no idea how happy I am to have another girl my age around here. Some of the older waitresses can be so boring. I swear, all Betsy ever talks about is how bad her lumbago is acting up, whatever the hell that is. I need someone to gossip with, not complain about ailments!”

I laughed while trying to keep up with her mile-a-minute convo. “Wait, how do you know how old I am?”

“Bob told me. You had to put it on your employment papers. He also mentioned you have a birthday coming up next week,” she turned and gave me a scheming grin. “Which means we are totally going to have to go out and celebrate!”

Wonderful. I can only imagine what she has planned.

“Speaking of employment papers, I’m staying at a motel temporarily, and I needed an address to put on the papers, so Bob told me to use yours. He mentioned you were looking for a roommate too, and—”

Before I could finish, Maddie jumped in and squealed so high, I think every customer in the restaurant turned to see what all the excitement was about. “Oh, you HAVE to live with me! I’ve been looking for a roommate for so long that I was worried I’d have to move back in with my parents, and trust me, I do NOT want to move back in with them! Ahhh, you’re going to love it! Please, please,
pleeease
say yes! I won’t take no for an answer!”

Well it wasn’t like I had any other options, and there was no way I could afford to pay for an apartment on my own. It looked like I was going to have to shack up with over-caffeinated Barbie.
Dear Lord, give me strength!

“All right. Um…Maddie, I won’t be able to chip in for rent until I get my first paycheck though. Is that okay?”

“Oh, that’s no problem; Brett’s been helping me out for a while. I won’t make you start paying until next month, but you can move in whenever you like. Oh, this is so exciting! I can’t wait for you to move in!” I guess Brett was used to being a knight in shining armor. That was really sweet of him to do that for his little sister.

I couldn’t say that I was as excited about this as Maddie, but at least I wouldn’t have to worry about finding somewhere to live. Even better, I’d have a month to save up some money. That was one less thing for me to worry about.

I felt silly following Maddie around the rest of the night, but there wasn’t much for me to do, so I just observed. Maddie definitely had the friendly, upbeat disposition for the job and the customers clearly loved her. As crazy as her personality may be, she really was a sweet girl. After seeing some of the tips she made, I was sure I’d have no problem saving up enough money for rent.

Brett was off for the night, and I was actually a little disappointed. He was the only other person I knew here, and even though I had only been in Savannah for a few days, I was definitely growing attached to him. I had to make sure it remained strictly a friendly attachment, though. I didn’t want to risk ruining something that was just barely beginning to develop between us. He had already proven to be an important part of my life in such a short amount of time.

As the night started winding down, I helped Maddie clean up and started stacking chairs on the tables. Working here seemed like it was going to be a pretty good gig. The other employees were friendly, and Bob appeared to be a pretty lenient boss.

“Hey if you want, you can stay at my apartment tonight. I just bought some new movies to watch, and we can pig out on ice cream and popcorn!”

It was thoughtful of her, but I had already paid for the night at the motel, and I still had to pack up all of my clothes that were strewn about the room. To be completely honest, I think I just needed a good night’s sleep and to prepare myself mentally for living with Maddie. I could already tell this was going to be a serious test of my patience.

“Thanks, but I think I’m just going to head back to the motel since it’s paid for tonight. I’m really tired so I’ll probably head straight to bed.”

“Oh, all right.” She sighed in disappointment. “Well, let me write down directions to my apartment in case you want to bring your things over tomorrow. I’ll be home since it’s spring break, so you can stop by whenever. Remind me to make you a copy of the key tomorrow, too.”

“Thanks, Maddie, that’d be great.”

She pulled me into another suffocating hug before we both left. She was definitely a little overwhelming, but I knew she meant well. The girl clearly had a big heart, especially since she was taking in a complete stranger as her roommate. I’d just have to get used to her overzealous personality. I had to laugh. She was exactly like every girl I always avoided in school. Well, the new Liberty was just going to have to make some changes, and this was one of many.

Back at the motel I packed up all of my things, only leaving out a few toiletries and an outfit to wear the next day. I felt like I was running off again, but Maddie’s apartment was only a few minutes away. I was so happy I’d finally be out of that stuffy old motel room.

I quickly got ready for bed and popped my iPod ear buds in, hoping some music would allow sleep come to me more easily. As I lay there listening to “In My Veins” by Andrew Belle, I gradually drifted off into a dream. It felt so real, I had to question whether or not I was actually asleep. His emerald green eyes peered back at me, drawing me in, before I completely succumbed to the darkness, and he slipped away.