Accidental Proposal (A Year Agreement Book 1)
Read Accidental Proposal (A Year Agreement Book 1) Online
Authors: Kenadee Bryant
Accidental Proposal
By Kenadee Bryant
Accidental Proposal
Copyright © 2016 by Kenadee Bryant.
All rights reserved.
First Print Edition: September 2016
Limitless Publishing, LLC
Kailua, HI 96734
Formatting: Limitless Publishing
ISBN-13: 978-1-68058-799-9
ISBN-10: 1-68058-799-4
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.
Dedication
To the one person who knew me the best, Ruben. Even though you aren’t here anymore, I know you would be happy for me. I love you.
Jenna
For most people, life doesn’t turn out the way they planned. They don’t end up with their high school sweethearts, or they don’t go to their dream college. For me, nothing in my life has turned out the way I wanted it to. I didn’t think I would be dropped off at an orphanage when I was just five years old, or that I would just barely graduate high school, or that I would be working two awful jobs just so I could pay rent. You could say my whole life so far has been one big disappointment.
“Jenna, you’re needed at table three!” someone shouted, interrupting my thoughts. Sighing, I stood up from my stool and headed to my table. I hated my job. Well, actually, I “disliked” my job. The small diner where I worked, Ruby’s, was a dive. The paint was chipped and peeling away. The booth seats had holes in them and crayon marks from little kids. There was always something wrong with the place, but people seemed to keep coming. I guess the only really good thing about the diner was the food. It was pretty good, compared to the decor. I’ve been working here for almost a year, and nothing has changed.
After serving the older man at table three some coffee, I went and sat back down. It was a Monday morning, so it was super slow. I already wanted it to be the weekend, but the week had only just started. Hell, it wasn’t even ten o’clock yet. I was looking forward to finally having a weekend off, since I’d worked the last three. I haven’t been this thankful for Friday in a long time. All I wanted to do was sleep in until noon and lie around in my PJs.
I ran my hand through my dirty blonde ponytail as I looked around the diner. There were only three customers scattered around, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. Most of them were older people who came here every other day. With a sigh, I lay my head on my hands. I hadn’t gotten any sleep last night. I was ready to take a nap right here on the counter.
“Why so tired?” I heard Sophia, my only friend here at the diner, ask. “Long night?” She looked at me from behind the counter and started to wipe the surfaces with a wet towel.
“You could say that. I ended up having to stay until four at the club last night to close and clean up. Then I had to be here at six to open,” I said, stifling a yawn. Sophia was the only person who really knew anything about me and my past. I was usually closed off from everyone, but Sophia had wormed her way into my life and stuck. She’s a good three to four years older than I am, with short blonde hair and the prettiest blue eyes I have ever seen.
“Girlie, you work too hard. You need time to rest,” she said, giving me a condescending look. At times, Sophia likes to act like my mother, even though she isn’t that much older than I am.
“I’m fine, Soph. Plus, I need the money to pay bills.”
“If you need money, ask Pete for a raise. He might give it to you.” Pete is the owner of the diner. He’s a huge guy, standing at six-foot three and about two hundred thirty pounds, if not more. His once-brown hair has started to turn grey, and he’s got a few more wrinkles these days. Even at sixty-one, he looked younger. He still had muscle. I wouldn’t want to find myself alone with him in an alley. But once I got to know him, I found out he is a big teddy bear. He’d do anything to help anyone.
“I can’t do that. This place doesn’t do well enough for me to get a raise. I’ll just keep working more hours here and at the club. It’s fine,” I said, shaking my head. I couldn’t borrow money. I wasn’t that kind of person. I would rather be exhausted from earning money than borrow it from someone. I’ve been doing everything myself since I was fourteen, and that isn’t about to change.
“Just think about it, okay?” she asked, looking at me pleadingly.
“I will, Soph. Thank you,” I said, shooting her a small smile. Just then, the bell chimed above the door, announcing a new customer. Groaning in the back of my mind, I jumped off the stool and headed toward the front door.
Thankfully, the rest of the day went by pretty fast. Before I knew it, my shift was over. Saying goodbye to Sophia over my shoulder, I left the diner and started walking to my apartment. I didn’t live in the best neighborhood, but it’s all I can afford. Thankfully, I didn’t live too far from the diner. I only had to walk maybe a mile or so. It was mid-September, and it was starting to become chilly. I always dreaded the freezing cold of fall and winter in New York. The wind picked up a bit. I wrapped my thin jacket more tightly around me, as my uniform didn’t cover much, leaving goose bumps up my legs and arms.
A few minutes later, my apartment came into view. I picked up my pace and soon entered my building. I climbed the stairs, reached my door, and slid my key in. Dropping my bag and jacket on my counter, I plopped down on my worn-out couch. I leaned my head back and let out a sigh as I sank into the cushion. Turning my head toward my clock hanging on the wall, I saw it was 2:30 p.m. I had about three hours before I had to change and head to the club. Along with my waitress job, I worked as a bartender at an exotic club down the road. Exotic was just a fancy word for a strip club. I honestly hated working there. I had to dress in short shorts and a tight tank top and had to wear makeup. Most of the customers I served would grab my ass or something. It wasn’t a good job, but it paid well and I got tips added on top of that. Dressing in short, tight outfits and giving men flirty smiles might get me an extra hundred per night, if I was lucky.
I knew I wasn’t old enough to sell alcohol, but the owner of the club lets me work. Teddy, the owner, is almost just like Pete from the diner. He’s a big man with light brown hair with little grey specks in it. On the outside, he looks mean and scary, but he’s nice to me and the other girls. He isn’t one of those owners who doesn’t care about his employees. He always asks us how we are and what we’re up to. Teddy always seemed to have a soft spot for me. Instead of sending me away when I asked for a job, he made me promise I would only bartend, no drinking. If someone was messing with me, I could call one of the guards over immediately. I never have taken shit from anyone. Teddy’s protective of all the girls, but slightly more so of me since I’m only nineteen.
I stared at the wall straight ahead of me, my thoughts drifting away. There was supposed to be a TV mounted where I was staring, but I didn’t have enough money for one. I didn’t even have a cell phone. Even during high school I didn’t have a phone. The home didn’t provide us with them. I didn’t see the point in getting one when I only went from one job to another then back to my apartment. With no friends or family, I kept to myself and did what I had to.
The next couple of hours passed quickly. Before I knew it, I had to get in the shower and get ready. As I stood under the warm water, I closed my eyes and let the water cascade over me. I didn’t get the chance to shower when I got home that morning, so the water felt great. I quickly washed my long blonde hair and my body, not wanting to be late. Reluctantly, I turned off the shower and stepped out, wrapping myself in a towel. I dried myself off and wrapped the towel around my head as I got dressed. When I first started at the club, I didn’t have the “right” clothes, so Teddy had one of the girls take me shopping to get “sexy” clothes, as she called them.
I got dressed in my black shorts, which were almost like spandex, and a tight white tank top that showed an inch of my skin below my navel. Like a normal person, I slipped on my cheap black Converse instead of heels. I didn’t wear heels. Heading back to the bathroom, I brushed my hair and pulled it into a high ponytail, even though it was still wet. When I looked in the mirror at myself, I sighed. My green eyes were the same dull color, but the bags under them made me look older than I was. Every time I looked at myself in the mirror, I couldn’t help but feel disgusted with what I saw. I looked just like my mother. I had her eyes and face shape. Maybe if I didn’t look so much like her, maybe she wouldn’t have left me. Before I could depress myself, I grabbed my bag and jacket and left my apartment, making my way to the club.
I walked quickly to the club, the chilly wind biting at my bare legs. Five minutes later, I rounded the corner and caught sight of the big
‘Tammy’
sign above the entrance of the club. I went to the side door meant for employees and tapped on it. It slid open to reveal Tom’s face, staring down at me. All the guards at the doors and around the club were huge. Teddy hired the best “bodyguards” to protect us, in case some customers got too handsy.
“Hey, Tom,” I said, smiling at him as he let me inside the warm room.
“Hi, Jenna. Nice to see you. How are you this evening?” he asked, shutting the door and looking over his shoulder at me.
“I’m good. How are you? How is Kendra?” I asked, slipping my jacket off and hooking it on the coat rack by the door. Kendra was Tom’s long-time girlfriend. They’d been together for years, but he’d never married her and I didn’t know why. I’d met her a few times, and she was super nice and cool to talk to.
“I’m doing good. Kendra is good as well. Just driving me nuts, as always,” he said, smiling.
“You better put a ring on her before she gets some common sense and leaves you,” I joked as I walked backwards toward the door leading to the bar. Tom has always been my favorite guard, and we both loved to give each other a hard time. The best part is, we can both take it.
“Yeah, yeah. Whatever. You better shut your trap before I leave you out in the cold next time.” He gave me a look, but I just laughed.
“You wouldn’t. You love me, Tommy,” I said, sending him a wink and a wave as I left and headed to the bar to start my shift. I slipped behind the bar and saw Candy was working with me today. Most of the girls here were nicer than they appeared. Actually, most of the girls who worked here were just here to pay for school, or for their children, or even just for some cash. Candy was one of those who worked her to support her four-year-old daughter, Sky. She got pregnant when she was seventeen, and her high school boyfriend left her the moment he found out. Now, at twenty-one, she had to raise her daughter on her own, and her kid is one of the cutest kids I’ve ever met by far. She’s got the best manners for a four year old, and she always makes me laugh when I see her.
“Hey, Candy!” I practically shouted over the loud music.
“Hey, Jenna. You’re working again?” she asked, pouring vodka into a glass, then some water. She worked with me yesterday but got off four hours before I did.
“Yeah, I am. But I’m off at eleven,” I said, then got to work on someone’s drink. Pouring whiskey into a glass, I slid it across the bar and grabbed the money the man laid down. One after another I poured drinks and collected the money. Before I worked here, I didn’t know there were so many kinds of drinks. There were Sip and Go Naked, Buttery Nipples, Rum and Coke, Margaritas, all different kinds of beers, etc. I would be lying if I said I’d never drank before, but that was only once, when I graduated and got dragged to a party by one of the other kids in the home. I drank way too much and ended up with a terrible hangover. After that, I vowed to never drink again. Plus alcohol never tasted good to me.
For the next hour I made one drink after another, never having a break. Thankfully the girls would put on a show on the top of the hour, leaving us bartenders free for about thirty minutes or so. Since this was a strip club, every hour a handful of girls would go up on stage and “perform” for the gentlemen. I usually took that time to run to the bathroom and wash up. When it got super busy, the drinks usually splashed up on your arms, making your arms and hands sticky and smelling like whatever you were serving. As I wiped the counter down, I felt like someone was watching me. I looked out of the corner of my eye and saw Candy was doing the same thing. Frowning, I kept wiping the counter until all the alcohol spills were cleaned up. I took a step back and pulled down my tank top, which had ridden up. I ignored the feeling of being watched when a man walked up to the bar.
“What can I get you?” I asked, setting my rag down.
“You can give me a lap dance.” He shot me a white-toothed smile. I watched as he looked down my body but stopped at my stomach. The counter blocked the rest of his view. The way he was looking at me made my skin crawl.
“Sorry, not my job. You can go ask one of the girls over there,” I said, gesturing to the right of the bar where the girls who usually did lap dances stood. I turned away from him to another customer. The new guy wanted a beer, so I turned around and grabbed a glass to pour it in. As I poured his drink, the creepy guy stood there staring at me. Trying to act like I wasn’t getting freaked out, I handed the new guy his beer with a smile.
“Jenna, there’s a guy over there that wants you to bring him his drink,” Candy said, sliding up next to me.
“What? Why?” I asked, confused. Usually the men just came to us.
“I don’t know, but he specifically asked for you. So here,” she said, handing me a whiskey and nodding toward the section the “guy” was sitting in. I was silently glad to get away from the creepy guy. I passed Candy and exited behind the bar on her side, heading to the customer with his drink. The lights were down, so it was kind of hard to tell who I was supposed to go to, but when I edged around a table, I saw a pair of bright blue eyes staring straight at me. My legs immediately felt glued to the floor. Even from here I could see his face, and to say he was gorgeous was an understatement. He had high, prominent cheekbones and a jaw-line sharp enough to cut someone. His blue eyes were bright and intense as he stared at me. I finally forced my legs to move, somehow knowing he was the person who ordered the drink.