SAVE ME FROM YESTERDAY

RASTRO 28

💙🌻

"Glad that's over," Glaiza said, pushing a strand of hair out of her face as the Revival van pulled away from the curb outside.

"Me too." Gabby leaned his elbows against the bar, looking as exhausted as she felt.

And they still had five hours until they closed for the night.

This week had been never-ending. She'd decided to tough it out for a few weeks before she hired someone new, to make back as much as she could of what she'd lost before she added another salary to her budget.

That meant she'd been on her own until tonight, and while she'd tended bar alone at Himawari's, it was different with Dragonfly. She'd been so busy, she barely had time to pee, let alone eat a meal.

In some ways, it had been good for her, because she'd been too busy to think about Rhian, too busy to dwell on the pain of losing her, too busy to wonder if there was a chance she'd change her mind.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Glaiza had imagined that when Rhian walked into the bar tonight, they'd fall back into each other's arms.

But it hadn't happened. Rhian had been nothing but cool and professional the whole time she was here, and now she was officially gone. Glaiza would probably never see her again.

And she really wanted to go upstairs and have a good, long cry about it, but of course, she couldn't.

"You okay?" Gabby asked.

She managed a wry smile. "No, but I'll manage."

"That's the spirit." He tapped his knuckles against hers. She bent to open the dishwasher.

"You know what's weird?"

"What?"

"Rhian didn't mention the robbery during our interview. I'd been worrying about it all afternoon because I knew the producers wanted her to play up any drama. And here's stupid, gullible me who let myself get robbed."

"You're not stupid or gullible, just too trusting sometimes."

"I let Pam close for me, after knowing her for two weeks. That was stupid." She began stacking clean glasses on the drying rack

"It was," Gabby agreed.

"But I love you for being such a trusting fool, and I think Rhian does too,"

"What?" She nearly dropped a glass.

It slipped through her fingers, and she hugged it awkwardly between her arm and her stomach before setting it on the counter.

"I may have cornered her earlier," he admitted, looking sheepish.

"I was angry with her, and I guess I wanted to pick a fight. But she didn't give me one. Instead, I almost made her cry, and now I feel like an ass."

"Oh, shit," Glaiza breathed.

"What did you say?"

"A lot of nasty stuff about the way she treated you. I thought she'd give me shit for it, and then I could really hate her. But she didn't. She looked wrecked. She told me flat out that she had feelings for you, but that she could never be what you needed."

Glaiza's vision blurred.

"And if she hid the robbery from her producers so she wouldn't have to embarrass you with it on TV? Well, that sounds like love to me. I don't know what her emotional baggage is, but if it's any consolation, I think you can assume she's as miserable and heartbroken right now as you are."