LATE NIGHTS at Fergs were a serious pain in the ass with all the hustle and bustle, but it was a good way for Grace to earn twice her salary. She knew that. As much as she hated the drunken men watching old Friday night football games all while flirting with lonesome women looking for a good lay, she knew it would be worth it in the end.
"Gracie can you clean off table seven for me?" The familiar voice of Rachel spoke up from the across the bar, Grace ceasing the table clothe in her hand as she scrubbed the bar countertop. Grace smiles while nodding her head, tossing the wet table clothe to the side as she strutted out from behind the counter.
She fixed her apron and smoothed down the bunched up material as she walked towards table seven, which was located towards the corner of the restaurant near the front door with a clear view of the lake. Picking up the half empty cups, Grace distastefully took them to the kitchen. She was a germaphobe as some would say and the food smudges on the cups didn't help to lessen it in the slightest.
Grace continued to pick up the empty plates and clean off the table until she was down to scrubbing the surface with a washcloth. As she was scrubbing the clothe in different patterns along the table, the sound of the bell going of signaled the door opening. Her eyes flitted to the new comer about to say the scripted 'welcome to Fergs' in the most enthusiastic voice she could muster but it never came out from the pit of her throat.
Instead her blue stricken eyes stayed glued to the familiar messy haired man who didn't notice the surprised female. Frank Adler slowly walked into the bar, particularly alone, with a outlandish flannel adoring his sculpted chest. In any case she would have made fun of the floral printed shirt, but she was too busy trying to stay unnoticed by the man.
"Great." Grace spoke under her breathe as she watched the man take a seat in a bar stool, which was her work station for the night. Going into the kitchen, Grace quickly approached Rachel who was cleaning off dirty dishes in one of the many sinks. Making herself present by clearing her throat, Rachel looked up at Grace with a smile but it quickly dispersed when she saw the annoyed expression on Graces face.
"What's wrong hot stuff? Are the effects of ill-advised men actually taking a toll on you?" Rachel asked and in any other circumstance she would have laughed, but her mood was still sour as she kept the grimace on her face. Rachel realized that there was something else bothering her, and she furrowed her eyes at Grace questioningly. "What is it?"
Instead of answering she motioned towards Frank through the small opening of the kitchen window, him still sitting by the bar waiting for someone to serve him. Rachel looked at him curiously and then back at Grace raising her eyebrow.
"Long story short he's my hot neighbor that I just seem to keep running into, kinda of ass in my opinion, but I'm not really about to be frustrated more than I already am." Grace let out quickly and watched as Rachel seemed to smirk in the slightest making Grace blush uncomfortably and roll her eyes at the same time. "Okay cut out hot part and just focus on everything else."
"Why don't you just say hi, no harm in that." Rachel said dismissing the last part much to her dismay. Grace shook her head slightly, not wanting to disturb the man but also because she wasn't about to have another bitter argument with him. Rachel suddenly took her eyes off Grace and towards him again, and in turn she pursed her lips while narrowing her eyes slightly. "I think you missed your chance."
Rachel nodded her head back in his direction making Grace look back at him. A women occupied herself in the stool next to him, and Grace watched as Frank gave her a charming smile as the two seemed to already be conversing. Grace felt an odd wash of heat run over her as she watched the pair in distaste, and she was confused as to why she was feeling that uncomfortable heat course throughout her body. Her nostrils flared slightly as the unknown feeling made itself present, Rachel noticing the sudden wave of emotion immediately.
"Your jealous." Rachel sing-songed to Grace making her blush uncomfortably under Rachel's hard gaze.
"I'm not." Grace said, rather unconvincingly as her cheeks were dusted pink against her pale skin. Her eyes left the pair who were too caught up in each other at the bar. "Now how about we change stations until closing time, yeah?"
Rachel rolled her eyes at Grace before sighing, but shrugging nonetheless. "If you want I guess."
"Thank you!" Grace said cheerily as she gave Rachel a pat on the back before strutting away from her friend, completely missing how Frank was watching her with a sly grin on his face. His eyes watched as her hips swayed with each step, gaze lingering on how her long legs moved in the most mesmerizing way. Rachel witnessed the whole thing, a huge smile taking over her face.
A few hours have gone by and Fergs was coming to a close. Grace made it her mission to steer clear of the bar where Frank and the woman where seated, who in her opinion looked like a librarian by the way she dressed. Looking back up at the bar as she continued to wash a table, people dispersing until it was partially empty in the bar, Grace realized that Frank was no longer at the bar with the woman. Sighing to herself, a uncomfortable ache hit her at the thought of him going home with that woman.
"Looking for someone?" A voice said from behind her making Grace jump in shock, body whipping around to the owner of the voice. Frank Adler stood in front of her, hand resting on his hip outlining his biceps as the sleeves of his flannel shirt was pulled up to his elbows. Grace let out a shaky breathe, glaring at Frank as she attempted to calm her racing heart down.
"Give a girl some warning next time you decide to scare the living hell out of them." Grace said ignoring his question. She let herself lean against the table behind her as she eyed him in question of why he was disturbing her. He was in close proximity to her, not going unnoticed by Grace, and she had to look up at him from her position. "It's rude to stare."
"Seems pretty hypocritical coming from you don't you think?" Frank said making Grace open her mouth in shock, a crimson coating her cheeks instantly making Frank smirk fondly. Grace looked away from his piercing blue eyes that seemed to be studying her. "You could have at least said hello instead of staring at me like a creep."
"I was not!" Grace gasped as she found his eyes once again, a mischievous glint shining in his pools of sapphire. "There is a fine line between staring and simply observing."
"That sounds even worse." Frank chuckled making Grace groan and run a hand through her blonde locks in frustration and embarrassment.
"Well maybe I would have said hello if librarian lady and you weren't going at it for the past two hours." Grace shrugged before turning around to continue scrubbing the table clean. "Plus, you know you'd be more approachable if you didn't have a serious RBF going on."
"I don't have a RBF." Frank interjected and Grace scoffed out a laugh, turning back towards him with a smirk of her own adoring her features.
"Tell that to your face." Grace said and Frank rolled his eyes at the woman.
"Librarian lady, huh?" Frank said changing the subject making Grace smirk at him. "That's a little harsh. Although your not completely wrong in a sense."
"Yeah? And how's that?" Grace asked him as she once more leaning against the table, arms crossing over her chest as she kept her eyes set upon Franks own eyes.
"She's a teacher...more specifically Mary's teacher." Frank sighed and he ran a hand through his messy hair, Grace watching how his hair became messier than it already was, igniting a flame deep within her belly making her shift slightly. Biting her lip she quickly averted her eyes from his hair and back to his eyes. "Wouldn't stop bothering me about Mary being potentially gifted."
"Is that a bad thing?" Grace asked him as she titled her head to the side, eyebrow furrowed in confusion.
"Well considering I already know she is just made it all the more annoying, if I'm being honest."
"So she is gifted?"
"Yeah, you could say that." Frank shrugged and Grace laughed under her breathe, shaking her head as she looked at her feet.
"Care to expand on that?" Grace said as she started walking away from Frank, him right on her heels. His eyes seemed to trail down a little further than intended, and he was in a trance once again by the way she moved her hips. She walked behind the bar, and Frank took a seat in the stool right across from her as she began cleaning up the countertops.
"You sure you want to divulge yourself into it?" Frank asks her as he leans onto the countertop, head looking up at Grace with a sly smile on his features. She rolls her eyes and folds her hands on top of the countertop as she leans closer to him, light blue eyes urging him on. "Lets just say that Mary has a certain affinity for mathematics— far beyond my own understanding for it, and the school wants to take advantage of that by placing her in a school for gifted students. Even as far as letting her skip to college."
"What's so wrong with that?" Grace asked once more and Frank leaned back against the chair, crossing his arms across his well built chest— from what she could tell. Her eyes watched the way the muscles in his biceps bulged at the action and she quickly averted her eyes from it, cheeks dusting a shade of pink.
"You sure do have a lot of questions." Frank spoke as he watched Grace eye him, a certain glint in his eyes. She then pushed herself away from the countertop and turned away from him to continue cleaning up the bar.
"I'm just curious is all." Grace shrugged, not looking at him. A smile graced her lips as the next words came out of her mouth. "I'm not surprised though— how many seven year olds know who chivalry is."
Frank laughed at that making Grace smile, turning back around to see him smiling widely at her. She bit her lip gently as he gave her a charming smile, and Franks smile faltered as his eyes drifted down to look at her lip caught between her teeth. His Adam's apple bobbed up and down as he nervously swallowed, eyes stuck on her lip and he found his thoughts taking a turn. Silence ensued between the two as they continued to stare at each other, but it was quickly short lived.
"Hey Grace, I was— oh...."
Both of their heads snapped towards the person who interrupted their moment, and Rachel stood in the doorway of the back kitchen looking between the two with a fighting smile beginning to show.
"We need to finish closing up." Rachel said to Grace and the flustered woman nodded as she gave Frank a quick once over, him already standing up in the process.
"Well I guess that's my cue to go." Frank said while pointing behind him towards the exit. Grace nodded slightly, and for some reason she felt her stomach drop. "It was nice talking to you, especially without the whole argument that we usually got going on."
"Who says I wasn't arguing..." Grace teased making a charming smile appear on his lips, and just then did she notice how pink they were and how perfectly white his teeth are. "I'll see you later, yeah?"
"I think you will." Frank nodded as a glint of a promise was glistening in his eyes making Grace grinned as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Goodnight, Grace."
"Night." Grace said and she watched as Frank made his way out of the front door, his tall figure disappearing from sight. Grace then turned back to Rachel and watched as a huge smirk was placed on her lips, eyebrows going up and down as a hint at some innuendos. Grace walked past Rachel and into the kitchen before warningly saying, "Don't utter a word."
"Wasn't going to." Rachel spoke with pep in her words, refraining herself from confronting what she just witnessed between Grace and Frank. Grace ignored her friend, and decided to keep herself busy by mopping the floor. But even as she was occupying herself in mobbing, her thoughts kept coming back to a certain man who's smile was permanently fixed in her mind.
Yep, she was definitely screwed.