Another shake of his head. “I was standing there, fists curling already from the way he was speaking to Rose. And then the guy proceeds to take the lid off his cup and dump his entire drink all over the counter, splattering the front of Rose’s shirt and jeans in the process.”
“Oh, my gosh!” Scarlett brought a hand to her gaping mouth. “He really did that? What did…what didyoudo?”
A sly, knowing grin accompanied a mischievous sparkle in his entrancing gaze. “I gave him a taste of his own medicine, that’s all.”
That’s all?
She was almost afraid to ask. “What did you do to him, Olly?”
“There was a mobile order within reach on the counter. Some frozen foo-foo drink that hadn’t been picked up yet. I went over, picked it up, took off the lid, and?—”
Scarlett gasped. “You didn’t.”
“I went right up to the mouthy piece of shit and without saying a word, I dumped the entire thing on his head.”
A burst of laughter filled the car. “I would have paid good money to see that.” She chuckled, picturing the outrageous scene he’d described. “But if you were the one who poured the drink on the guy, why did Rose get fired?”
“That’s the part I didn’t anticipate.” Olly’s lips rolled inward, almost as if he were trying not to smile. “Turns out, the customer was the owner’s brother-in-law…and a member of the city’s planning and zoning commission.”
“Shut up!” She laughed harder. “You’re making this up.”
“I swear.” He lifted a palm as if to emphasize the truth in his words. “The guy starts shouting at everyone. Me, Rose…and when the shop’s owner comes out, he starts falling all over himself apologizing to the asshole.”
“Unbelievable.”
“I can’t make this shit up.” Olly shook his head again. “The guy’s standing there with frozen coffee and whipped cream dripping from his face and soaking his fancy button-down, and he starts threatening to pull strings and have the place shut down unless Rose is fired on the spot.”
“Let me guess. He was more worried about losing his business than doing right by his employee.”
“Exactly,” he confirmed. “The little bitch fired her and kicked my ass out.”
“I bet Rose was livid.”
“Actually, no.” His response was surprising. So was the almost-smile that accompanied it. “Without a word, Rose calmly removed her apron, folded it neatly, and then proceeded to lay it down onto the counter…smack dab in the middle of the puddle of spilled coffee.”
“Did she really?”
I knew I was going to like her.
“Yep. Then she grabbed her purse and jacket from a shelf under the counter, gave both men a parting finger, and the two of us walked out together.” Real emotion filled his stare for the briefest of moments as he drew in a deep breath and released it on a slow exhale. “I treated her for lunch, after that.” One of his broad shoulders lifted and fell. “Figured it was the least I could do.”
“And a friendship was born.” Scarlett smiled. “So it’s true, then? You and Rose really never were a couple?”
“Nope.” His focus slid back to the strip club’s entrance. “It was never like that with us.”
“That’s what Brooke said, too. She said Rose was like a little sister to you.”
“She was.” Another hard swallow. “She is.”
The next question burning through her thoughts was one she wasn’t sure should be asked. But curiosity had always come naturally to her, so…
“I know why you really went to prison.” Her tone softened. “Brooke shared a little about what happened to your sister. She said Rose told her you were seventeen when you broke into yourfoster parents’ house and beat the hell out of the dad when you caught him trying to hurt your sister.”
She grew quiet then. This was his story to either share or not. So she kept silent and waited to see which path he’d choose. Several heartbeats later, his deep, masculine voice filled the car again.
“He was a pedophile,” Olly stated bluntly. “But the son of a bitch was smart. Waited I’d aged out of the system before he and his bitch wife kicked my ass out.”
“He knew you’d get in his way.”