Three loud knocks woke me up. I gasped and sat up, looking to Jax. He lifted his head a sniffed but didn’t bark. Good, I wasn’t about to be murdered. I slid out of bed and stretched then headed out my door.

“Coming.” I called, following it with a yawn. I opened the door to Malakai’s tall form. “Oh, hello.” I said, my voice still heavy with sleep.

“Good morning. I’m sorry, did I wake ya?” He asked.

“Yea, but that’s okay. I needed to get up anyway.” I said as Jax ran out the door to take care of his morning business. “What time is it anyway?”

“11. Did you forget about asking me to take you to town today?” He asked, looking intensely at me.

Suddenly he reached out and brushed his thumb again my cheek. Once he realized what he’d done a red blush rose on his tan face underneath his white blond hair. “I-I’m sorry. You had tears there.” He muttered, looking away.

“Oh, thanks. I’m sorry I completely forgot about town.” I said, opening the door wider for him. Why did I have tears on my face? “I’ll be right back, just let me get dressed.” I left the door open a crack and dug through my closet as he went to sit on my couch.

“So, what do you have to do in town today?” I asked as I changed my pjs with some shorts and a tank top.

“I’m taking some of momma’s produce to the market. Taylor sells it for us.” He said.

I smiled at his voice as I threw my hair into a bun to get it off my neck. It’d been about a week since I’d moved in and he was a little more talkative than that first day. Tabby was over almost every day looking through my books or just talking and hanging out as I tried to write something.

“Okay. Well, I’ll probably just hang around with you for a few hours or so. I want to talk to the owner of the bar about a job but I think they open closer to 2 or 3.” I said, slipping on my shoes and walking from my room.

Jax was sitting on the couch next to Malakai, pestering him for a belly rub.

“I’m ready.” I said, walking over and giving Jax a quick rub. He wiggled down into the cushions and licked my hand

Malakai nodded and stood up. He pushed open the front door and held it open for me as I followed behind him. We walked silently to the car and he opened the passenger door open for me.

“Thanks.” I muttered, climbing in.

He nodded and shut the door, walking over to the driver’s side. As we backed out from the driveway Jax stretched out lazily on the porch.

The ride was a quiet one. He seemed fine with the silence and I didn’t want to drag him from his thoughts. Thankfully, it was a cool drive. He had the AC blasting to battle back the sweltering heat outside. I hadn’t felt anything like this in Bridgeport. It was definitely something I was sure I’d never get used to. How Malakai could wear jeans in this was completely beyond me. We pulled to a stop in front of the bar and Malakai parked the truck.

“Just go on in.” Malakai said. “Eustace will already be in there. Just tell ‘im you’re a friend of the Rainers and he’ll give ya the job. I’m goin to go drop this produce off at the market then come back. Won’t be too long.”

“Okay.” I turned and looked at the bar. Here goes nothing, I thought, stepping towards the door and pushing it open.

The bar was empty. I stood there quietly for a moment after the door shut to look around. It was cleaner than I expected and smelt better too.

“Hello?” I called, stepping further into the bar. “Hello, I’m looking for Eustace.”

Silence. I bit my lip and looked around again. When no one emerged I made my way to the bar and looked behind it.

“Excuse me,” I called a little louder, “Is anyone here? Eustace?”

There was a rummaging sound from behind me and an older man came down the stairs.

“’Eh, I’m Eustace.” The man grumbled. “Whadaya want?”

“Hi, my name is Amelia. I’m a friend of the Rainer’s. I was wondering if you had any work. I know my alcohol and how to tend a bar.” I said.

“Well,” Eustace muttered, “I guess I could use the extra help. Come back tomorrow at 6 and I’ll put ya ta work.”

“Alright, thank you, sir.” I said, turning around just as Malakai came through the doors.

“Good afternoon Eustace.” He said with a nod. “Got any work for ‘er?”

“Yup, just got ‘er the job.” He smiled and looked at us. “Ya got yerself a fine one there, young man. Don’t ya let no drunkard from the bar take ‘er away.”

Malakai’s cheeks burnt red under his blonde stubble and he shuffled his feet. “She ain’t my girlfriend, sir. But I’ll make sure she ain’t bothered.”

“Good. We ain’t got many purty girls round here. It’d be a shame if this one were to be scared away like so many others.” Eustace smiled.

“Thanks. I don’t think you have to worry about me going anywhere though. I like it here.” I replied, looking over to Malakai.

“Have a great day, sir.” Malakai said, turning back for the door.

“Ya’ll too.” Eustace called after us. “An ya say she ain’t yer girlfriend. Boy’s blind as a bat.” I heard him mutter, making me blush as I followed behind Malakai.

It seemed that Eustace caught my look even if Malakai didn’t. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t infatuated with him or anything since I barely even knew him. He was incredibly handsome and really sweet, however. I definitely wouldn’t mind dating a guy like that.