Turbulence

“Hey, Sam,” I grinned at the man behind the bar as I sat down.

“What are you doing on that side of the bar? Are you finally taking a night off to just relax?”

I chuckled and shook my head. “I might as well. It looks like it’s been a slow night.”

“It has,” he nodded, pouring me a glass of ginger ale. “For some reasons, Tuesday nights don’t get super busy when the Hawks aren’t playing.”

“You would think the busiest nights would be when they don’t play.”

“They are literally always here, aren’t they?”

I nodded. “I usually can’t seem to get rid of them.”

“I always forget how close you are with the team and yet you still haven’t gotten me any autographs.”

“It’s a good thing you don’t use my friendship,” I joked, rolling my eyes. “I can probably get one from Jonathan and David if you really want some.”

“That’s really sweet, Carey, but I’m probably good on autographs at the moment. Now what are you really here for?”

“Just needed to get out of the house,” I confessed.

“What about Cameron?” He whispered. He was the only person from the bar that I had been willing to share my personal life with.

“His dad is looking after him.”

“Alone?”

“Yeah, I figured I could use a night off. Plus, it’s probably about time that I start trusting him to be a father. He really wants to be a part of Cameron’s life, so why not give him a chance?”

“What about Jonathan?”

“What about Jonathan?” I raised a brow suspiciously.

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “I just assumed that he would have some input in the decision, for some reason.”

“Don’t get me wrong, Jonathan has had a lot of say in things over the past year or so, but I’m finally in a place where I can take things into my own hands.”

“That’s good to hear, Carey.” His smile was genuine, and made me feel like I was making the right decisions. “So, what happens now?”

“Now, you pour me a real drink.”

He chuckled and poured me a whiskey sour. “I meant in terms of you and Cameron’s father.”

“We are taking things slow,” I told him. “I want us to be on good terms, but I can’t seem to convince him that we are never going to be a couple again.”

“So, start dating someone else,” Sam suggested. “I haven’t seen you with someone since you left him. It’s been a long time, Carey, and that can’t be healthy.”

“Thanks, Sam, that’s so reassuring. The major problem with that would be that I do not have anyone that I can date. Having Cameron makes it harder to date, too.”

“I have some friends that I could set you up with.”

“A set up? Really?” I ran the idea through my head. The thought of a blind date made me a bit weary, but intrigued at the same time. “You know, I might actually be down for that.”

“I know a guy who loves hockey nearly as much as you do.”

Laughing, I shook my head. “I’ll have to find myself a good babysitter. One that won’t ask too many questions.”

“You don’t want the boys knowing about it?”

“Not right away,” I admitted. “They tend to get a bit over protective, especially Jonathan. At the moment, he’s the last person that I need getting after me about doing something new with my life.”

“He really cares about you, doesn’t he?”

“That’s what I’ve been told. Quite recently it’s been the feature of most conversations with Patrick and David.”

“No wonder you are drinking tonight,” Sam teased. “I’ll see what I can do, and then I’ll let you know when your date is.”

“Thanks,” I smiled. I opened my mouth to change the topic, when a cheer came from the doorway. Letting out a groan, I turned to the door to see a group of rowdy men walking toward the bar. “This can’t be good.”

“They look like they’ve been drinking for hours. I can kick them out if you want.”

“That might be best,” I agreed. “They don’t give off a very good vibe.”

“Hey, Sexy.” A brown haired man slung his arm across my shoulder and threw on his most charming smile. “What are you drinking tonight?”

“Nothing that you can buy me,” I responded with a scowl.

“Oh, feisty.”

“No, intelligent.”

The man raised his brows at me before glancing at the rest of his group. “What are you doing here alone? It’s not healthy to drink by yourself.”

“And it’s not healthy to attempt, and fail, at flirting with someone smarter than you.”

“You bitch,” he spat. Turning away, he looked at Sam. “Beers for all of us.”

“Sorry, man, I can’t serve you.”

“Excuse me?”

“You’ve clearly had too much, and you’ve been extremely disrespectful to this woman.”

“Where’s your supervisor?”

“That would be me,” I smirked, grabbing his attention again.

“Bullshit.”

“Want to bet?” I cocked a brow, challengingly.

“Then I’d like to speak to the manager.”

“That would also be me.”

“I wouldn’t mess with her, man, she could have you banned from all the bars and clubs in the city.”

“There’s no way a pretty little thing like you has that kind of pull.”

“That’s where you are wrong. I have that kind of pull in Chicago and New York. Actually, now that I think about it, I probably have that kind of pull in most major cities in America.”

“Whatever, bitch. We’ll just go somewhere else to drink.”

“That’s all I’m asking for,” I mumbled. Waiting until they left, I glanced over to Sam. “What a dick.”

“Another drink?” He chuckled. “I can’t believe that some people act like that. If I’m refused a drink, I just move on. What’s the point in fighting it? It just weakens any argument they have.”

“I really don’t know,” I shrugged. “But no more for me. I don’t really want to be making poor decisions once I get back home.”

“Poor decisions? You mean with Cameron’s dad?”

“Exactly what I mean. He doesn’t need another reason to think we are getting back together.”

“Not if I’m going to be setting you up with my friend. I have a feeling that won’t go over so well with him.”

“That wouldn’t go over so well with any potential date, I would assume.”