Remember When.... Read online

  CHAPTER 1

  “Kiplyn Kavanaugh,” shouted my best friend Shauna, as she entered the dark and loud pub that was my second home. “Must you be so loud?” Kiplyn asked, as she sauntered up to the bar. “I have to announce my arrival,” she said with a wink. “What can I get for you?” Kiplyn asked with a shake of her head. “Jack and Coke, of course,” Shauna said as she scooted onto the barstool.

  Shauna and I had been best friends for as long as I could remember. She is the yin to my yang. Where she is flirty and self-confident, I am sassy and serious. Shauna knows how to work a room and be the life of the party. I would rather get things taken care of and move on. Do not get me wrong, I like to have fun, but there is a time and place for it.

  She handed Shauna her drink and slid to the other end of the bar to take care of another patron. Kiplyn spent most evenings here, at Kelly’s Pub. Not only was it her second home, but it is a family business. Kiplyn’s uncle owns the pub, and she started working here on her 21st birthday. Happy birthday to me, here is a job! Kelly’s Pub is a local hangout and is always busy, hence the reason I am here most nights. I would not change it for the world though. I love my job.

  “It’s not that busy for a Saturday,” Shauna said directing her attention back to her instead of the glass I was drying. “It’s still early. Don’t worry, it will pick up in the next hour or so,” she told her with a shake of her head. “Anything interesting happen lately?” she asked. “Not really,” she said. “Well that’s good,” she said, pushing her empty glass toward me, her cue for a refill.

  By 10 p.m. the pub was in full swing. There were so many people in the bar, that Kiplyn had to call in the other bartender to help. She could normally handle it on her own but did not feel like running herself into the ground tonight. She also knew that Devyn would need the hours. She worked on a part-time basis. She was a good addition, and could handle the fast-paced atmosphere like a pro.

  By 2 a.m. Kiplyn was shooing everyone out of the pub and making sure there were plenty of cabs outside for those that needed them. She was exhausted and ready to head home. Devyn and I are able to get everyone out and cleaned up by 3 a.m. That is a record for us, considering the last customer hadn’t left until twenty minutes prior. We always had at least one that nursed their last drink.

  She made her way slowly to her car. She was exhausted and her feet were killing her. Kiplyn sat quietly in her car as it warmed up. Her car was old, therefore needed several minutes to warm up before deciding to behave. If she tried driving it before it warmed up properly, it would sputter and spit, and act like it was dying. Sometimes, it seemed to have a mind of its own, damn temperamental car! But it was hers, and she loved it.

  5 a.m. came way too soon. Kiplyn wanted to throw the alarm across the room. Only two hours of sleep better not become a regular thing for me,” she thought. She normally would not be up this early on a Sunday, but she had a meeting with her college advisor to discuss the internship at the local hospital. Yes, she actually had an advisor that worked on the weekends if needed.

  Kiplyn stopped in at the corner café and ordered the biggest cup of coffee they had on the menu. Well actually she ordered two, one for herself and one for her advisor. It was the least she could do, considering the early hour, and it being a Sunday. It took everything inside her not to scald my tongue and throat by taking a huge gulp of it. Kiplyn would be patient, as hard as it was!

  She knocked on her advisor’s office door, exactly at 7 a.m. “Come in!” he said just loud enough to be heard over the furious typing he was doing. She opened the door and held out the steaming cup of coffee as a peace offering. “You are a God send,” Mr. Williams said with a wide grin, showing all his perfect white teeth. “Well, it’s the least I could do since you are coming in on your day off to help me work out the issues with my internship.” she sat in the seat across from him placing her backpack on the floor at my feet, waiting for him to tell her what the exact issue was.

  “So, I am sure you are wondering why I had to have you come in so early on a weekend,” he said opening the conversation. “Well, yes actually. I have heard of advisors working on the weekends, but I know it is only in dire situations. I would be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t concerned,” she said as she took a giant sip of my own steaming cup of coffee. “Well if I can be honest, you are missing a signature on your internship agreement form that we had drawn up,” Mr. Williams stated. “Oh! Is that all?” she asked confused. He nodded and slid the paper across his desk towards her. Kiplyn reread the form thoroughly before signing, just to refresh her memory. Plus, she knew better than to sign a paper that has not been read. Too many ways to get screwed over! She signed the paper and slid it back across his desk toward him.

  “Is that all that you needed, Mr. Williams?” she asked, slightly confused as to why he had made this form sound like a life and death matter. It honestly could have waited until Monday morning, but it is done and over with. “Yes, now I can submit it for you, and you will be able to start your internship when its time,” he explained. “Well thank you for taking care of that,” she said as she stood from the chair. “Thank you for taking care of it immediately,” he said with another wolfish smile. Kiplyn excused herself and began walking toward the campus library that she knew was just opening. She could spend some time working on an assignment that she had due soon.

  Before she knew it, her phone was buzzing itself across the table. Looking at the screen, she saw Shauna’s name lit up on the screen. “What’s up?” she asked, laughing as she answered the phone. “Where the hell are you? You said we were going to meet for lunch!” she screeched into the phone. Holding the phone away from my ear, Kiplyn looked at the time and could not believe the time. It was 12:35p.m. She had been in the library for over five hours, and it did not seem like that long. “I am so sorry, I was working on an assignment in the library and lost track of time,” she explained, feeling absolutely awful. “I figured that is what happened. You would never stand me up on purpose. You know better,” she said with a laugh. “I am packing up and headed your way right now,” she told her, throwing my books back into my backpack. She hung up and flew toward the parking lot that was almost dead, except for a few scattered cars. Not counting hers, she only saw two others.

  Kiplyn ran into the café that she had been in this morning, and saw Shauna sitting in the corner booth sipping on an iced tea. “Took you long enough,” Shauna joked as she tossed her purse into the booth before scooting in myself. “I had to go see my advisor and sign a paper,” Kiplyn said in way of explanation. “On a Sunday?!” she all but screeched. She laughed and explained the entirely odd situation of my morning. “He could have waited for Monday to have you sign that paper, don’t you think, Kip?” she asked, slightly concerned. “Probably, but he is just thorough,” she explained.

  We spent the next hour talking about absolutely everything we could. “I am exhausted,” she said finally. Shauna nodded her head in agreement, knowing that she had only slept a couple hours. “I think you work too hard,” she said scolding me. “You are way too young to be this grown up and serious!” she laughed at her scolding, knowing that she will hear the same thing next week for something that she ends up doing. Her whole family, what’s left of them anyway, agrees that she is not a typical college student. I guess for a 22-year old girl, she is overly serious about her future. I cannot help it; I want to succeed! She thought to herself.

  “As fun as this has been, I need to head home and get a nap in before work tonight,” she said to Shauna as they were walking toward the parking lot of the café. Once they reached her car, she realized she had a flat tire. It was not just any flat tire; it was purposely done. There was a screwdriver sticking out of the tire! Who would do somethi
ng like that?

  Kiplyn pulled out her phone and called the local mechanic that her entire family uses. “Hi, this is Kiplyn. I need someone to come pick up my car from the café, it has a flat tire,” she explained to the person on the other end of the phone. She spent the next few minutes explaining the situation and was informed that they would be there shortly. By the time she was placing her phone back in her purse, the patrol car was pulling into the parking lot next to them.

  “Wow, that was fast! You didn’t even have the chance to call them?” Shauna said in surprise. “The mechanic’s called it in for me,” she explained. Shauna nodded her head. “I am Officer O’Neal and I am here to take your statement,” said the officer as he walked over, notepad in hand. Shauna and Kiplyn spent the next fifteen minutes explaining our day as it happened, not leaving out any details.

  After speaking with the officer for a few more minutes and him collecting the screwdriver from my tire, the tow-truck driver was walking toward us. “So, what happened here exactly?” he asked coming to a stop right in front of me. “I got a flat tire,” she explained, not understanding his tone. The officer explained the situation to him, and then excused himself to go back to the station, leaving his card with her.

  “Come on, Kip, I will take you home,” Shauna said as Kiplyn was handing over her keys to the mechanic/tow truck driver. “Here is my number if anything comes up. All my information is in my file at the shop. Emerald’s is the only place I take my car,” she explained as she started toward Shauna’s car. She looked over her shoulder at the man hooking up my car and couldn’t help but smile. He was a sight to behold. He was tall, broad shouldered, and eyes that seemed to see right through you. “My name’s Patrick, and I will be personally taking care of your car,” he said as she was climbing into Shauna’s car.

  “He is yummy,” Shauna said with a sly smile. She nodded her head in agreement but didn’t say anything. She was afraid of what would come out if she actually opened her mouth to respond. The thoughts that were running through her brain about this man were not at all pure, and honestly scared her because she didn’t want anything to ruin her focus on school. She knew damn well though, that if anyone or anything could break her focus on school it would be those eyes and who they belonged too. They were the prettiest, clearest, most unique shade of blue she had ever seen.

  When she reached her house, she slowly climbed out of the car, still silent. “Give me a call when you are getting ready for work tonight. We can chat and catch up some more,” Shauna said with a wave. Kiplyn smiled and nodded her agreement and closed the car door. Walking slowly up to the door. She entered her quiet home and went straight to bed, without a second thought.

  CHAPTER 2

  Kiplyn woke up to the shrill sound of the alarm at 7p.m. She had enough time to take a shower and eat quickly before she had to run out the door to work. The extra hour of sleep was worth it to me though. She knew the coming week was going to be brutal between classes and work. She realized as she was getting ready to leave that she didn’t have my car. Well there went my time for food. I need to find a way to work. She thought, irritated.

  Pulling her phone out of my pocket, she called Shauna. She could always depend on her. “Hello,” she answered. “Hey, I just woke up, and I forgot I don’t have my car. I have to be to work by 8:30p.m. Could you drop me off at work tonight?” Kiplyn asked, hoping that she wasn’t being rude for asking at the last possible minute. “I would love to give you a ride to work, Kip, but I got called into work after someone called out last minute. I am sorry sweets,” she said. “Oh, I understand. Thanks though. Oh, I gotta go, there is a call coming in,” she explained, and quickly switched over.

  “Hello,” she said curiously. “Kiplyn, this is Patrick. I was wondering if you needed a ride to work, since we weren’t able to finish your car?” he asked. “Actually, I do. Shauna wasn’t able to give me a ride tonight, but I have to be to work in less than an hour,” she explained, slightly embarrassed. “It’s no problem, I am outside your house. Just come on out when you are ready to go,” he said, hanging up before she could respond.

  Kiplyn threw her shoes on, grabbed her purse, and headed out the door. Sitting in her driveway on a Harley was Patrick. She slowly made her way toward him, unsure if she was willing to get on the back of his bike. She didn’t know how she felt about this form of transportation. She knew they were dangerous, but she also didn’t know Patrick’s driving habits. “Put this on,” Patrick said handing me a helmet. Kiplyn took the helmet from him and stood silently staring at him for what seemed like an eternity. She wasn’t sure what was making her so nervous, him or the bike. “Get on so I can take you to get something to eat before you have to be to work,” he said, not leaving any room for questions.

  Kiplyn slowly put the helmet on, letting him fasten it in place and climbed on the back of the bike. “Hold on tight, sweetheart,” he said with a low chuckle. She wrapped her arms around his waist and was instantly enveloped in the scent of leather, soap, and something she couldn’t quite figure out. Either way the scent was delicious! Patrick sped out of the driveway like the hounds of hell were on his heels, but it was so exciting. Kiplyn forgot her fear instantly. A calm overcame her in the presence of Patrick. It was hard to explain, but she didn’t mind it at all.

  They stopped at a burger joint to pick up food. She knew that it would be cold by the time she was able to get around to eating it so she made sure not to get anything that would be soggy. “Just a burger and a diet cola,” she told Patrick, so he could give the order to the girl in the drive thru. A few minutes later, they were speeding down the road, food in hand, so she could go to work.

  They pulled up to Kelly’s Pub a few minutes later. She hopped off the back of the bike as gracefully as she could without falling on her ass. Patrick took the helmet the she handed him, and then removed his. He gracefully climbed off the bike and placed both helmets on the seat. Turning toward Kiplyn, he asked, “what time do you get off of work?” Staring at him, her mind couldn’t seem to process the question. She couldn’t figure out why he was asking, and it was making her feel self-conscious. “I am asking because I know you will need a ride home and I need to know what time to come get you,” he said staring intently at me. Finally, my brain seemed to catch up with the conversation at hand. “Oh, I will get out of here by 3a.m. at the latest,” she explained with a giggle. “Sorry, my brain was trying to process everything at once. I haven’t gotten much sleep the last couple days,” she said, hoping he would not think she was a complete idiot.

  Kiplyn grabbed her food and turned to go into Kelly’s, realizing that Patrick was walking along with her. They walked along in silence through the pub. She walked into the back to place her jacket and purse in her locker, and clock in. She returned to the bar area to find her uncle talking to Patrick. “Is everything alright?” she asked curiously, looking between the two men. “Everything is fine, Kiplyn,” her uncle said with a warm smile. “I was just thanking, Trick, here for bringing you into work. It was very nice of him.” She smiled, “Yes, it was. Thank you, Patrick. Please excuse me, I need to get to work. I will leave you two to your conversation.” Without another word, Kiplyn turned and threw herself into work for the next several hours.

  Before she knew it, it was almost midnight. Her uncle had left for the night and she was the only bartender for the evening. She also noticed though that Patrick was still at the corner table where he had seated himself, but he now had another guy sitting with him. She walked over to the table. “Can I get the two of you anything?” she asked curiously. “I am good with water,” Patrick explained. “How about another beer,” said his companion, giving her a wink. “Coming right up,” she said, turning and heading for the bar.

  Before having the chance to return to their table with his beer, she noticed a familiar face seated at the bar. “Hello there, Ms. Kavanaugh,” her advisor said with a devilish grin on his face. “Wow, um, hi,” she said, slightly caught off guard to se
eing him in this type of setting. “Can I get anything for you?” she asked quickly, trying to cover up for her shock. “Just a beer,” he said calmly, sliding his money across the bar in her direction. Taking the cash, Kiplyn headed to the register and rang up his order. Returning a few minutes later with his change and beer.

  Remembering she still owed Patrick’s companion a beer, she rushed over to pour it and head their direction. “Sorry about the wait,” she explained as she reached the table. “Not a problem at all,” he said as she handed him his beer. “My name’s Donovan. I am Trick’s brother. I also work at the garage with him,” he explained with a wink. “Well it’s nice to meet you. Again, sorry about the wait. It is only me here tonight,” she said. Excusing herself, she returned to the bar to get some cleaning accomplished.

  “Can I get you a refill?” she asked Mr. Williams on her return. His mood seemed to have soured in her short absence. “No, I am gonna head out. I will see you tomorrow at school,” he snapped, jumping from the barstool. Before she had the chance to say anything in return he had stormed out, leaving her standing there confused at the interaction.

  “Is everything alright, sweetheart?” Patrick asked, walking up to the bar. “Yes, everything is fine. Just a little confused is all,” she explained. Patrick turned to look at the door and then back at Kiplyn. “Who was that guy?” he asked. “That is my school advisor. I am working on my nursing degree,” she explained. Patrick nodded his head in understanding. He returned to his seat a few minutes later, another beer in hand for his brother, another water for himself.

  By 3a.m., she was absolutely exhausted. She was dead on her feet. “I am ready to get out of here,” she said to Patrick. “Let’s get you to bed, sweetheart,” he said, leading her out of the bar and toward the parking lot where he was parked. They were speeding down the street within minutes, and she found herself enveloped in that delicious scent, that was distinctly Patrick.