Free Next to Me by Emily Walker Page A

certainly didn’t act like he was. Hopefully Zane would forgive her eventually. When she couldn’t wake the dude up, she finally just left him in the bed and headed into work. It wasn’t like she had anything he could steal.
    The car fought with her for a little while as she sweet-talked it into starting. The guy in her bed of course woke up and came out, making his way to the car. Man, what had she been thinking? Was that a mullet? Finally, the car started up and she backed out of the driveway. The gentleman she’d shared her body with the night before threw his hands into the air and started to chase her.
    “Sorry, I can’t take you anywhere. I’m late for work. You should have gotten up, buddy, call someone.”
    She was pretty sure she heard him say he didn’t have a phone, but she couldn’t really make it her problem at that point.
    Whitney thought she would get to go back to work on the floor. She was able to try and cover up the black around her eye with concealer, and she felt like she looked a lot better. When she got to work and started to count down her bank, Hannah came out and put a hand on her shoulder.
    “Listen, you don’t get along with the waitresses. I’m going to keep you in the kitchen for another week and we’re going to have a meeting next Friday to nip this in the bud.”
    “Hannah, the only way I make money is from tips. If you don’t let me wait tables, I won’t make any money.”
    “I understand that, Whitney. Your paycheck will come out on Friday. Don’t you have any savings?” she asked.
    Whitney had maybe twenty dollars in change in her bedroom and living room if she searched. She was worried about having to owe more money to Thor when she got what she needed. There was no reason for her to argue, because Hannah could have fired her just as easily. It was really hurting her pride that she wasn’t able to wait tables, and she knew the other girls were loving it. This had to be the worst couple of weeks of her life.

 
     
     
     
     

    The next three weeks were great for Zane, and he was starting to feel like he had it all together. He and Lila saw each other almost every night, and he was really starting to like her. Everyone was thrilled he was seeing someone. The guys at work loved torturing him about it, and his dad wanted to know every detail.
    On Saturday, when he was talking to her on the phone, he brought up something he had been thinking about. “I want you to meet my dad tonight, if you will. He talks about you nonstop, even though he doesn’t know you from Adam, and it would thrill him.”
    Zane had shared everything about his father with Lila. She loved that they had such a good relationship since the one with her parents was strained. Both her parents were workaholics and alcoholics, which was why she had moved out of their house when she turned eighteen and started to make it on her own. She had a trust fund from a loving grandmother and used it to take online classes and rent the house she lived in. She worked at the library for spending money, because as she told Zane, she didn’t want to be bored and jobless.
    “I would love to meet your father. What time should I be there?”
    “Show up around six-thirty. I’m about to get him up from a nap and tell him the good news.” She laughed and agreed to show up around that time.
    Dustin woke up to the news that Lila was coming over. “What should I wear? Does she like plaid?” He was immediately concerned, and Zane suspected it was because he had told him she had a little money.
    “Dad, just dress normally,” Zane said.
    “We should have gotten a cheese tray or some nuts to put out.” Zane knew he was serious, but it took a lot for him not to laugh.
    “No, we are just going to have a normal dinner, no appetizers.”
    Finally, he convinced his dad to wear a normal shirt and not try to put out grapes and Triscuits, and it was time for her to arrive. Someone knocked on the door, and his dad practically