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so.”
    “Fourteen? That long ago?”
    “Yeah. I was gone most of that summer
     to North Carolina and, when we got back, Ryder was absent the first
     couple of days of school. He was at a juvenile center. After that,
     they weren’t friends anymore. I just figured that Brandon and
     Dustin’s parents said they couldn’t be around Ryder anymore.
     Especially since, after that, Ryder started hanging out with older
     kids. Drinking all the time. Becoming Sir Douchebag and fucking
     anything that walked by him.”
    “Did you and he ever…?” I
     ask.
    She shakes her head.
     “Hell, no. I went out with a few of the older guys he was friends
     with. You know my rule about guys my own age.”
    My alarm goes off on my
     phone
. “Shit, I’ve gotta
     go home and get ready for work.”
    “All right, be careful and have fun.
     Oh.., and when he calls, say yes.”
    ~*~*~
    A couple of hours into my shift, I
     realize that I really have to find another job. This place is so
     much more disgusting than I’d ever thought possible. I knew it was
     a dive bar and not the greatest, but the deals I’ve seen going on
     in the back room freaked me the fuck out. Earlier, Danny and the
     guy who grabbed my ass the other night were out there, snorting a
     few lines of cocaine. I just acted as if I didn’t see anything; I
     got what I went in there for and walked back out, although my heart
     was pounding like it was going to explode. Gable would have an
     absolute shit fit if he knew.
    Once Danny and that guy
     return from the back room the guy keeps watching me. It just feels
     creepy. After another hour, I tell Lana
I’m stepping out for my break.
     Stepping outside, the air still feels like summer and the humidity
     hits me in the face.
Taking my phone out of my pocket, I discover missed calls and
     texts. I scroll through them; they’re all from Ryder.
    Are you at work
     tonight?
    Since you haven’t answered
     me back, I’m hoping you are and that you aren’t just trying to
     avoid me. ;)
    I text him back. No, not avoiding you. I’m at work. There you go
     again, thinking everything is about you. ;)
    I get a chime back
     immediately.
    Whoa, I’m wounded. Do you
     mean it’s not? Well, since you’re at work, I’ll leave you be for
     tonight. But I still want to go out on a date. Be careful, pretty
     girl. I really hope you find something different soon.
    I reply again. Since you asked so nicely, I’m off tomorrow
     night. I’m always careful and trust me, I want out of this place
     faster than anyone else.
    :D Until tomorrow then. Text me and let me know you’ve made it
     home safely.
    I take a few more minutes
     to catch my breath before heading back into what I’m starting to
     call the seventh circle of Hell
. I’ve
     still got a couple of more circles before I can go home. I’ve
     already been groped and grabbed so many times tonight it’s
     absolutely insane. Then I had a couple of drunks try to fight each
     other. Try being the appropriate word. I ended up having to mop up
     from where one of them hurled on the floor after being hit in the
     stomach.
All with the creepy guy eyeballing me.
    The last couple hours pass quickly.
     The band starts back up and the drunks who think they have dancing
     skills and a lady old enough to be my mother get up on stage. She
     flashes us.
    Words to know and live by.
     At a certain age, no matter how skinny you think you are, Lycra is
     only appropriate inside your clothes, not as clothes.
    I get in my car, dreaming
     of my date tomorrow night. At least I have that to look forward to.
     I smile and begin my drive home.

Chapter 8
    Ryder
    After a long day of sitting with a few
     cows waiting without luck for calves to be born, I’m finally
     driving home and it’s damn near 1am. I smile thinking about my
     conversation with Scarlet earlier. I can’t believe I’m this excited
     over a date. I haven’t been on a real date since…I don’t think I’ve
     ever been on a