“Tell me something.” Shifting on his stool, he folded his arms across his chest and gave me a heated look. “What are ya doing with him?”
“I presume you mean Joey?” I answered, knowing that he wouldn’t let up until I did.
Like I said: not my first time serving this creep.
Nodding stiffly, he never took his cold brown eyes off me.
Fully aware that any admissions from the heart would be wasted on this man, and unwilling to lose my job over him, I slapped on a smile and said, “I told you before. That son of yours is more than able to keep me satisfied.”
“He’s a kid.”
“And what am I?” came my dry response. “A middle-aged woman?”
“If I was your father, you wouldn’t be working behind a bar.”
“You’re certainly old enough to be my father.”
His nostrils flared. “You don’t know what you’re missing.”
“Okay, you need to stop.” My smile faded and I gave him a hard look. “If Joey knew that you were speaking to me like this, he would—”
“What?” he cut me off with a threatening lilt to his voice. “He would do what, girl?”
“He would break your fucking neck,” I bit out, keeping my tone low. “So, back off.”
“Well, I don’t see that young fella of mine anywhere, do you?” Elbows resting on the bar, he leaned closer. “What time do ya get off work?”
“A freckle past a hair.”
“What’s that code for?”
“It’s code for never,” I snapped. “As in, it’s never going to happen. Not in your wildest dreams. So, why don’t you finish your drink and clear off across the road to another pub, because whatever you’re looking for, you won’t get it from me.”
“Prick-tease.”
Beyond repulsed, I wandered to the far end of the bar, putting as much space between us as possible. The man made my skin crawl, and the sooner Julie came back from her break, the better.
A few minutes later, he crooked his finger and pointed to his empty glass.
Biting back the urge to scream, I begrudgingly returned to his end of the bar and gave him a blank stare.
Teddy slammed another fistful of coins down on the bar. “Another.”
Counting his coppers, I moved to the till and tossed them inside before pouring him another glass of his poison of choice.
Whiskey.
“You know he’s a disaster, don’t ya?” Teddy slurred, nursing the glass I set down in front of him. “Can’t help himself. It’s in his blood.”
I knew that he was talking about Joey, but I refused to play ball with him. Regardless of our current relationship status, or how badly Joey had hurt me by walking away, I was prepared to die on my hill of unwavering fealty to him.
“The boy is fucked in the head,” he continued, taking a sip from his glass. “Always has been. Been a problem from day one.”
“I wonder why.”
He glared at me with those cold eyes. “You think you know everything, don’t ya?”
“I know enough,” I held my ground and replied.
“You know fuck all.” A cruel smile spread across his face. “He’s either going to end up killing himself or someone else.”
“Then let’s hope it’s you.”
My response surprised him, and he rose a brow. “You’re not afraid of me, are ya, girl?”
“I don’t fear men,” I tossed back, meeting his stare head-on. “Because the man in my life knows how to treat a woman.”
“Already told ya that young fella of mine is still a boy.”
“He’s more of man than his father.”
Realizing that I had no intention of giving into his oppression, Teddy dismissed me from his presence with a flick of his wrist, muttering something unintelligible under his breath.
More relieved than angry, I once again moved to the other end of the bar, sighing in relief when my eyes landed on Julie returning from her smoke break.
“Oh good, he’s still here.” Setting her pack of cigarettes under the bar, she fluffed out her hair and smiled. “Something to look at for the evening.”
I knew she was referring to Teddy and the thought made me want to hurl my lunch up.
To the untrained eye, it could be assumed that he was a beautiful man.
He was tall and blond, with golden skin, and a strong, muscular physique, but once you knew who he was, once you got a glimpse of the evil lurking beneath the surface, you could never mistake his looks for beauty.
How he fathered five pretty epic humans was beyond me, but he had, and all four of his sons bore an uncanny resemblance to him. Shannon was the exception to the gene pool, clearly taking after Marie in appearance.
My mind drifted back to Joey and the resentment weighing heavily on my shoulders significantly lightened.
Being in the presence of his father, a man Joey had to endure his entire life, caused my skin to crawl and my resolve to weaken.
How could I be angry at him for trying to fight against turning into the piece of shit propping up the bar?
He was terrified of us becoming his parents, of becoming the man at the end of the bar and had taken drastic measures to stop that from happening.
To protect me.
Telling me that he loved me on the phone earlier wasn’t right, he should be keeping that shit to himself, but I’d be a liar if I said it didn’t soothe the ache in my chest.
Just a smidge.
“Are you pregnant?” was the first question my mother asked when I walked through the door on Friday evening after work.
“Am I what?” I asked, dropping my bag on the kitchen table, and turning to gape at my mother.
“Pregnant,” she repeated, setting her iron down. “You can tell me if you are, Aoife.” Wiping her hands off on her trousers, she stepped around the ironing board and closed the space between us. “I won’t shout at you, love, I promise. But I would rather know now than later on.”
“No, I’m not pregnant,” I snapped, shrugging off my coat before hanging it on the back of the kitchen chair.
“But you are sexually active.”
“Oh my god,” I groaned, kicking off my heels. “What are you going on about, woman?”
“You’re having sex.”
I gave her a look that said, ‘how dare you even suggest such a thing’， before adding, “And even if I was having sex, which I’m absolutely not, I’m on the pill, remember? You took me to get it when I was fourteen.”
“To help with your heavy periods,” she reminded me. “Not because I was giving you the green light to have sex with Paul.”
“And I didn’t have sex.” Shrugging sheepishly, I added, “With Paul.”
“But you are now.” She offered me a supportive smile. “With Joey.”
I snorted. “No.”
Mam cocked a brow. “Do you think that I came down in the last shower? It’s not your father that you’re talking to. Don’t try to pull the wool over my eyes, young lady. I know well what happens when that boy sleeps over.”
“Oh my god.”
“If you’re sexually active with young Joey, then there’s no need to hide it from me,” she continued. “You’ve been together for a while. I’m not mad, love. I’m just concerned. “