Chaser (Dive Bar 3)

I got all the way to Thursday night, and third base was nowhere in sight. To be honest, I'd actually have settled happily for another romp around second. But I hadn't even seen either of them since yesterday morning. Still, maybe Ada's new teething gel would see an improvement. That would be a relief for all our sakes. I tried not to get my hopes up about it and just focus on the work in front of me.

"There you go," I said, sliding a French martini across the bar to Taka.

"Thanks." He nodded and went off to serve it to whatever customer.

It'd been a good night so far. Vaughan and I kept busy behind the bar due to a decent amount of people coming in for dinner and drinks. Nell had picked out an interesting mix of female artists for the music, making for a great atmosphere. Aretha Franklin, Bjork, Sia, and more.

To my knowledge, she hadn't yet found out about Jean and me getting more intimate. Not that it was any of her business. But if she did know, the woman would be on the warpath. There'd probably have been knives thrown my way, the odd roasting pan--who knows how many weapons she could find in a commercial kitchen. I really didn't want to find out. Let sleeping dragon-ladies lie.

It was close to eight when Jean came in with the baby and an older couple. A man and a woman in their fifties at a guess. Ada was in one of those infant car seats that you can pop out and carry around. Weird, Jean hadn't made any mention of dropping by. Also, I had a bad feeling about who the people with her might be. Taka seated them at a corner table away from the main lights and some of the louder parties. A good call. Overstimulation could freak Ada out sometimes. And apparently worrying about Ada and Jean both could freak me out sometimes. A sudden sweat pricked at my shirt.

Shit. Were those really her parents come to visit from Florida?

When I caught Jean's eye, she gave me a tight-looking smile and a wave. Her (probable) mother spotted the movement, head snapping around as she sought me out with her eyes. Not a happy face, though it was a familiar one. Mother and daughter looked a lot alike.

The woman said something and Jean answered, still with that strained smile in place. Whatever she'd said had Jean's dad frowning at me too. Great. I tried standing taller, shoulders back, and head up. Jesus, I'd even worn a neat white button-down shirt with black suspenders today. You'd have thought rockin' style would make up for the long hair and tattoos with the older set. Apparently not.

"Trouble incoming?" asked Vaughan. Trust the musician to be the fastest at reading the crowd.

"Don't know. But it doesn't look good."

The ginger sighed. "Parents-in-law are the worst. It's just the way it is. Lydia's are next to fucking useless. Some people shouldn't be allowed to have kids."

"Jean and I are just friends."

He gave me a long look. "Dude, swear to God, you're going to get sick of spinning that shit someday soon and I for one cannot wait to see what happens."

"Fuck off," I muttered.

Instead of waiting for table service, Jean slipped out of the booth. She lifted Ada out of the baby carrier and brought her over. Poor baby. Two angry pink spots still lit her cheeks as she gummed at the teething ring.

"She still doesn't look happy," I said, reaching out to pat her soft little head.

"No." Jean gave me a glum look. "I thought she might like to see her best buddy, Eric."

"Man, I wanted to be best buddy," complained Vaughan. "Poor cutie. No smiles today, huh?"

Jean kissed Ada's cheek. "Not today, unfortunately."

"Being a baby is rough sometimes."

"That it is."

Taka came up to the bar and Vaughan got busy filling his order.

"Can I have a cuddle?" I asked, slipping out of the bar.

"You sure can." Jean carefully handed the baby over. For a second, Ada startled, then seemed to recognize me and chilled. Well, as much as she was of a mind to chill.

"Hey, sweetheart." I cradled her in one arm, helping her to keep the teething ring up to her mouth with the other. "That tooth still giving you grief?"

"That one's cut. I think she's got another coming through." Jean wiped Ada's chin with a rag. With teething, the dribble had gone into overdrive.

"What's the rush, baby girl?"

Jean just looked at her baby and smiled. She'd gone to some effort for her folks. Hair in a bun, makeup, and the sweater dress and tights combo she'd worn to the Christmas party. God, she looked good enough to eat. But then, she always did.

"You look gorgeous," I said. "Got some friends with you tonight, I see."

"Yes. I, ah..."

"Your folks?"

She nodded. "Honestly, I wasn't sure they'd come. But they said they wanted to meet her and here they are."

"Mm."

"They're staying at the resort on the lake."

"That gives you all some space."

Ada chose that moment to remove the teething ring long enough to babble something. I helped her put it back in her mouth.

"Wise words, little girl," I said. "In fact, I was just about to say the same thing."

A hint of a grin appeared around the sides of the ring.

"For him, you smile. I've had nothing but tears and tantrums for days." Jean quietly laughed. "If her first word is 'Eric' I'm going to kill you. Just a warning."

"Fair enough," I said.

While I tried not to notice, Jean's mom most definitely had a look on her face like she expected me to drop the baby at any moment. Sheesh. Her body language was all rigid and her eyes were popping out of her head. Like I hadn't racked up hours of baby holding by now. Where the hell had she been when Jean needed help?

All right, so it might take me a while to drop my resentment toward the woman and her husband. Just staying out of their way while they visited sounded like a wise plan.

"How's the visit going?" I asked in a nice, calm, and pleasant tone. "When did they arrive?"

Jean smoothed back her hair, one hand on her hip. "Yesterday. I think it's going okay. There's still a lot of tension. They love Miss Ada, however."

"How could they not?"

"I swear, if Mom takes any more photos her cell's memory will explode."

"Hey," said Nell, barging in. "So your folks came. Hand her over, Eric."

I frowned, but did as told. Happily, Ada immediately burst into tears at being parted from me. If that didn't deserve a victory lap of the bar then I didn't know what did. Nell clicked her tongue and started cooing supposedly comforting nonsense at the outraged infant. None of it worked.

"Yes, they actually came," said Jean, rubbing Ada's back as she lay slumped over Nell's shoulder.

The baby's cries petered out and Nell said, "There we go."

Note: Ada only stopped crying because I stood behind Nell making funny faces. The baby and I were tight. Not bothering to point this out showed great restraint and maturity on my part.

"How are you doing?" asked Nell. "You were so nervous about their arrival."

Jean had told Nell about the impending visit, but not me. Weird. Though I guess we had been busy lately covering our bases and dealing with teething.

"They're being really great about her." Jean's tense smile returned, her pretty face lined. "Even apologized again about the inheritance and everything."

"How do you feel about that?" I asked.

Nell turned, shooting me a strange look.

I just ignored it.

"Honestly, I don't know," said Jean. "So much happened, I think it's going to take some time to get over it all. But they are her grandparents. Speaking of which, I better get back..."

Nell handed over the precious cargo, fingers lingering against Ada's chubby little cheek. "Bye-bye, Ada."

"I'll introduce you to my parents later," promised Jean.

"Great." Nell waved, wandering back into the kitchen.

"We're not too busy, you want me to look after her while you eat?" I asked.

"We should be okay, thanks."

No mention of introducing me to her folks, but whateve

r. Like in the last thirty years of my life I'd ever wanted to meet a girl's parents. God, what a joke. I'd faked death at least once just to avoid it. Long story.

"Want me to stop by after work?" I asked.

"Mom and Dad are heading back to their room after dinner, so ... I'll see how we're doing?" Her smile relaxed into something far more beautiful and it was all for me. "But that would be nice, Eric."