A Fall From Grace

Chapter 8

Gracie meets Darby at her favorite bar around an hour later like she said that she would. She used to frequent this bar back when she was still with Derek. It was a bit of a drive from her previous address, but the bar was the perfect place to unwind after a long day. So it was worth the drive on the occasional weekend. 

"Gracie, hey, Over here!" Darby catches Gracie's attention when she gets to the bar. 

Gracie walks over to the far side of the bar to a dim-lit booth and slips into the unoccupied side of it. Darby already has a beer in front of him, but a waiter doesn't take long to head over to Gracie's side. 

"Hey, Gracie! It's been way too long, girl." A friendly brunette girl greets Gracie. 

"Karla, hey." Gracie greets her. "Yeah, I missed this place. Can I just get a beer please?" She asks Karla. 

"Sure thing, girl." Karla nods and walks off to grab Gracie's drink. 

"I assume that you come here a lot?" Darby raises a brow at Gracie when Karla is gone. 

"I used to, yeah." Gracie nods. "it's been months since I've been back though." She explains briefly just as Karla comes back. 

"Here you are, Gracie. You just let me know if you or your friend need anything." Karla grins at Gracie before she heads off to her other tables. 

Gracie picks up her drink and takes a few generous swigs from it. Darby casually glances around the bar at all the other patrons as Gracie settles in. 

"So, how was your night?" Darby asks Gracie casually. 

"Fine." Gracie shrugs. "I did get to see my first patient. But it wasn't anything interesting. Just a twisted ankle." She picks up her drink again. 

"Yeah, I saw that. Daniel Garcia, right?" Darby nods and does the same. 

"Yeah," Gracie confirms. 

Darby takes notice that Gracie seems more relaxed than she did back in the office. There no longer seems to be a hint of frustration and worry in her hazel eyes. Gracie catches Darby staring at her after a few minutes and raises a brow at him. 

"Is there something on my face?" She asks Darby and glances down at her reflection in her beer bottle. 

"Oh, no." Darby shakes his head. "Sorry, I just spaced out for a second is all." He insists and averts his gaze. 

"Right." Gracie nods. "You know spacing out can be a sign of overexertion and fatigue, right? How have you been sleeping lately?" Her medical instincts kick in. 

"I get plenty of sleep." Darby chuckles at her concern. "I was just lost in thought for a moment." He insists again. 

"Mhm, okay. I was just checking." Gracie nods. "What were you thinking about? Anything interesting?" She asks casually and picks up her drink again. 

"Not really." Darby shrugs. "Just random stuff." He lies. 

The pair enjoy a few more drinks and talk about work for a little over two hours. Gracie finds Darby super easy to talk to since they happen to have so much in common with one another. 

Darby is in the middle of telling Gracie about some of her dad's shenanigans since he started partnering with Sting when he notices her shoulders tense up. 

"Gracie?" Darby asks with furrowed brows. 

Gracie is the one facing the door so Darby turns his head and looks out to the patrons. Not many new faces have entered the bar since the last time Darby looked out at them. But he does spot a tall guy with dirty blonde hair standing by the bar and talking to the bartender. 

"Oh no." Gracie shakes her head and Darby turns back to her. 

"Everything okay, Gracie?" Darby asks her again. 

"Yeah, it's fine. Just give me a minute, Darby." Gracie nods and slides out of the booth. 

Darby nods and watches Gracie get out of her seat and walk over to the bar. She cautiously approaches the dirty blond guy Darby spotted and she doesn't look happy. 

He sits in place and watches Gracie's body language as she talks to this mystery man. It's obvious from said body language that she's undoubtedly uncomfortable with the given situation. A part of Darby wants to walk over and make sure that she's doing okay. But he doesn't want to overstep his boundaries. He knows that He and Gracie are barely just getting to be friends. 

It isn't until Gracie takes a step back from the bar and the mystery man reaches out to grab her does Darby decide that he's seen enough. He calmly gets up from his seat and walks over to the bar and over to Gracie's side. 

"Is everything alright over here, Gracie?" Darby asks when he gets over to Gracie. 

"Darby!" Gracie jumps a bit when Darby is suddenly at her side. "Yeah, we're all good here. Derek was just leaving. Right, Derek?" She turns back to the man in front of her. 

"Was I?" Derek clicks his tongue. "I don't recall saying anything about leaving." He chuckles. "Besides, why would I leave before you introduce me to your new buddy, Grace?" He grins down at her. 

"Trust me, you two wouldn't get along. In fact, I think that Darby and I were about to leave anyway." She switches it up quickly. "Right, Darby?" She glances at her friend and hopes that he gets the hint. 

"Yeah." Darby nods, instantly getting Gracie's hint. "Let me just pay the tab," He turns to the bar and pulls out his wallet. 

"Awe, leaving so soon, Grace?" Derek fakes a pout. "But I just got here."

"Sorry." Gracie grits her teeth. "And it's Gracie, not Grace. You know that." She tries her best to remain civil and keep the scowl from her face. 

Darby turns back from the bar and walks Gracie out to her car without another word. Neither of them speaks until Gracie has reached her car door. 

"Who was that guy, Gracie?" Darby asks her once they are alone. 

"My ex, Derek." Gracie grits her teeth. "Thanks for getting me out of there so fast." She thanks, Darby. 

"Yeah, no problem." Darby nods. "I could tell that you didn't want anything to do with him." 

"Got that right." Gracie nods. "Again, sorry. I didn't think he'd do anything as bold as track me down just so he could be an asshole." She shakes her head. 

"Really, it's no problem, Gracie." Darby shrugs. "Just take care okay? If you want I could follow you come to make sure that he doesn't follow you." He suggests. 

"Would you?" Gracie nods her head. "it's not that I'm afraid of Derek or anything. He's not a violent guy. Well, outside of work of course." She adds. "I just really don't want to have to deal with him right now." 

"I get it." Darby nods. "Give me a minute to get to my car before you leave and I'll make sure that you get home safe." He insists. 

"Thanks, Darby." Gracie steps forward and gives Darby a small hug before she gets into her car. 

Gracie waits a few minutes before she pulls out of the parking lot to head home. She carefully watches the entrance of the bar to make sure that Derek doesn't come out. And thankfully he never shows. 

Gracie heads home with Darby a couple of cars behind her. When she gets to her house she parks her car in the driveway and waits for Darby to park his on the curb. He meets Gracie by her front door to make sure that she's okay before he leaves. 

"Are you sure that you are going to be alright?" Darby asks Gracie one last time. "Because I can stick around for a bit just in case." He offers. 

"I'll be okay, Darby." Gracie shakes her head. "But thank you for helping me out. And hey, please don't say anything to my dad. He worried way to much about me already." She asks Darby. 

"Yeah, alright. I won't mention anything to the old man." Darby nods. "I'll see you at work then. Take care, Gracie." 

"Yeah, you too, Darby. Drive safe." Gracie nods and slips inside her house. 

Gracie stays up for another hour or so just to be sure Derek doesn't get any bright ideas about swinging by her place before she goes to bed.