Garvey's

Chapter 4

Jackie had slipped out earlier to visit Joe, the guy who ran the diner in town. Joe usually closed the diner around nine, but he stayed open for her. He comforted her and empathized with her situation since he inherited the diner from his parents. She's known Joe since she was little. He was a year ahead of her and Jodi in school. He was able to console her a little bit, but more importantly, Joe was able to restore her hope. She was able to come up with an idea. They could turn the hotel into a retreat and wedding destination. Of course, it would take a lot of money to advertise. The real problem was could they book big events in time to make the next loan payment to the bank and more importantly make the payment for her father's care.

It was 11:30 by the time she made it back to Garvey's. She couldn't believe all the cars were still outside. She figured everyone would have gone home by now. She parked the four-year-old Toyota her and Jodi shared in a free spot and got out.

The closer she got to the bar the louder the music was. "Wow. The place hasn't been this lively since the crash." The closer Jackie got to the bar windows she saw something that she wasn't sure she was seeing. She stopped dead in her tracks and her mouth dropped open as she realized she was seeing what she thought she was seeing. People were having sex in the bar. Jackie struggled to snap herself out of shock as she strode to the door. She whipped it open.

Everybody kept doing what they were doing like she never walked in. The moans and music echoed in her ears. The smell of beer, cigarettes, and sweat filled the air. She yelled, "Hey!"

A couple of folks turned her way, but they kept having sex. Some of them had the nerve to say, hey, back to her, and then returned to their debauchery. One blonde, who was known to be easy around town, waved at her.

Jackie quickly turned to close the door and locked it. She promptly turned the hanging sign to say 'Closed' to the outside world. When she turned back around, Jodi was standing in front of her in nothing but her bra. "Okay, I know how this looks."

Jackie looked at her like she grew a tail. "Really, because it looks like you let an orgy break out in the bar!" she yelled. Jackie made her way to the other side of the room to get to the hotel lobby entrance. She struggled not to look at the patrons' acts as she made her way by. She shuttered with embarrassment as she heard a man exclaim in pleasure.

Jackie burst through the doors with relief as she looked out at the familiar green décor of the lobby. Jodi followed her. She closed the door behind her.

"I can't imagine what kind of excuse you have for this," Jackie said through clenched teeth. "We're fighting for our very survival and you're having an orgy."

Jodi shrugged. "It started off as a little fun and it got out of hand, but I'm glad it happened."

"What?" Jackie asked.

"Yes, if we're going to lose the place, we should go out with a bang."

"You are unbelievable," Jackie said as she threw her hands up in the air.

"Look, are you going to join us or not?" Jodi asked.

"God, I could just knock the hell out of you. We could lose our license over this."

"We're losing the place anyway," Jodi countered.

"You're cleaning the mess up by yourself in the morning," Jackie snapped and headed for the elevator.

Jodi let out an exasperated breath and went back to the party.