Lori very carefully re-folded the twenty and put it safely in her pocket. She didn’t want to run the chance of smearing the numbers any more than they already were.
Confidence fueled her steps as she checked on the last of her customers. It wasn’t her imagination. Julian really was checking her out. But for what? He was a sophisticated looking guy, what could he possibly want with her? Probably looking for an easy lay.
Her heart sank a little at that notion. Nothing ever came easy in her life and it was no use getting her hopes set too high that Julian really liked her. All she could offer was love, and sometimes that just wasn’t enough.
* * * *
The twenty dollar bill propped up against her bedside lamp taunted her. Every time she saw it she was tempted to call, but she hadn’t. The fear of disappointment was just too high. By not calling Julian, the fantasy of the unknown wouldn’t be crushed if he did turn out to be a slimy bastard who only wanted one thing.
It had been three days since she saw Julian. He hadn’t tried to contact her and that was telling in itself . Had he truly wanted to get to know her, then he would have called the pizzeria or stopped by. But he hadn’t.
The crowd was light for a Tuesday evening. She tended to her tables in a mundane fashion. Just going through the motions until she could go back to her apartment and stare at the stupid twenty again. At a set of numbers she would never ever have the courage to call.
It was fifteen minutes to closing when the bell chimed on the front door. She didn’t have the energy to shout a greeting or tell them they’d be closing soon. One of the other waitresses could handle it.
At a light tap on her shoulder, she clasped her chest in fear as she spun around. Her mouth fell open; Julian stood in front of her, a shocked expression on his face, his hands held up in the air.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Just as her heartbeat had started to fall back to a normal rhythm, it spiked again. The object of her desire stood right in front of her, his upper lip curled into a very enticing grin.