1.

"Care for a drink?" Kai hopes he's not coming off as intrusive, but he's been eyeing the petite brunette sitting at the end of the bar for a while, and it doesn't look like she's been helped yet. She looks up from her phone and Kai feels like he's been punched in the gut at the greenness of her eyes. Matter of fact, her entire face is doing something to his insides and he squirms uncomfortably.

"Oh, I'll just have a ginger ale, I'm waiting for someone." He nearly groans at that, of course she's waiting for someone. A girl that looks like that obviously isn't going to be single. He pours her drink, trying to come up with something witty to say.

'Think Kai!' He admonishes himself, but nothing is coming to mind. His twin, Jo, would get a huge laugh out of the fact that for the first time, he doesn't have the words for something. He sets her drink down with a flourish and is rewarded with a smile. He notices her jawline in a little crooked, but it doesn't detract from her overall beauty, it actually enhances it and gives her a one of a kind look.

He drifts away to tend to the other patrons, but manages to keep her in the corner of his eye. He gets a little slammed when the after 5 crowed moves on through. He's about to take his break when he remembers the girl with the green eyes. Not trying to be obvious, he scans the room and spots her sitting at a table with an older man.

"Oh, Daddy's girl is back, I see." He glances at his co-worker Damon, who is admittedly an asshole, but he's an asshole that usually has all the useful information.

"She's been in here before?" Kai tries to keep the urgency out of his voice, if Damon even had a hint that Kai was interested, he would never hear the end of it.

"Oh yeah, every six months or so. Meets up with this older guy, they eat and she follows him to his room for dessert." The waggling of Damon's eyebrows convey exactly what kind of 'dessert' he thinks is going on. "I call her Daddy's girl because I overheard her calling him that one day."

Kai raises his eyebrows, "He could actually be her father, you know?" He sets off to go get more ice, and once again he loses track of his green eyed crush.

Near the end of his shift he's wiping down the bar and to his surprise, she's still there, although it looks like they're getting ready to leave. He straightens up, having had enough time to formulate a smooth goodbye.

Which dies on his lips when he sees the older man slip a bulging envelope into her hands before dropping a kiss on her forehead. Kai feels his heart stutter, damn Damon.

2.

Six months later, just like his now former co-worker predicted, she's back at the bar waiting. He looks around for anyone else to pass her off to, but it seems that he's the only one working right now. He tells himself to suck it up and heads over to where she's engrossed in her phone.

"Would you like something to drink?"

The ensuing months haven't done anything to dull his reaction to seeing her face, and he swallows as her expression clears in recognition and she smiles, really smiles, at him.

"Oh, hi again. I'll have a ginger ale."

Kai wants to cry, she actually remembers him? He damns his luck as he makes her drink. "Here you go, miss."

"Bonnie."

"I'm sorry?" It's the first time she's ever addressed him first.

She smiles again, and he wants to fling himself over the counter and kiss her crooked chin. "My name, it's Bonnie. Or, I mean, you could keep calling me Miss, I don't mind either way." He stands there mouth open like a fish, until it dawns on him that she's flirting with him.

'Say something, dumbass.'

"I'm Kai." He blurts out finally. "Well, Malachai, but that's a little evil sounding, right? So I just go by Kai, cause it's shorter and less evil sounding." He's an idiot and he should say it. He fully expects her to be regarding him with disdain, but when he chances a glance her way, she looks…charmed? He didn't think he had intentionally ever charmed anyone in his life.

He decides to shoot his shot while he still has her attention, "So what brings you here?" He really hopes he's wrong about her supposed profession.

She swallows the sip she just took and was opening her mouth to answer when they're interrupted by an older man that Kai has seen there before. "Bonnie! How are you sweetheart? Waiting on Rudy again?"

She shoots Kai an apologetic glance as she greets the man with a hug. "Hi, Mr. Rafferty. Yes, he's on a call."

"Well, I guess I'll just have to keep you company until he gets down here. Come sit by me and tell me how school is going. You're just about done aren't you?" The man switches his attention to Kai, "Young man, can you give me a whiskey? On the rocks, please." Then he turns back to Bonnie who's talking about her classes at Portland State University.

Kai files that away for later, his younger sister goes to school there, he wonders if they somehow know each other. There can't be too many Bonnie's that attend school there, right? He hands the man his drink while staying close and eavesdropping on their conversation. He knows he's being a little obvious because he's caught Bonnie's eye a few times, but she doesn't seem to mind.

He's still half-listening in on their conversation when he hears the man ask in a quiet tone "So how much would it cost to-" when he drops the glass he's currently washing. Both Bonnie and the man look over in alarm, he waves off their concern and gets to cleaning up the mess.

"Oh look, here's Rudy. I'll leave you in his capable hands." Kai watches as the same older man that he saw Bonnie eating with month's earlier strolls over and envelopes Bonnie in a hug. Mr. Whisky on the rocks drains his drink and takes his leave. Bonnie and the man disperse to one of the tables and make quiet conversation as they look over the menu.

The bar area is gradually filling up with people, and he's never been so thankful for people needing drinks before. It keeps his mind (and eyes) off drifting to the dim corner that Bonnie and her….client or customer are occupying.

Soon enough they finish their dinner and are preparing to leave. Luke had shown up by then, so Kai sent him over to close out their check. He watched through narrowed eyes as she smiled up at Luke, and they talked for a bit while the older man pulled out his card and placed it down. Kai wanted to yell out that Luke was gay so her charms wouldn't work on him, but figured it would be bad for business.

He left work that night cursing his luck.

3.

Kai watched the calendar a little more closely after that, half hoping that he wouldn't have to witness any more 'meetings' between Bonnie and her apparent sugar daddy. Admittedly, the other half of him was hoping she would chuck the old guy and offer her services to him instead.

But the universe hated him, and so of course on a night when there was no one else around, he watched from where he was currently half hidden by a post as she walked in and situated herself at the bar. Her hair was longer, no longer in the bob he had seen before, but in loose curls hanging just below her shoulders.

He wondered if it was too late to call in. His father would bitch, but Kai was sure that if he explained the situation, his dad would give him a pass. Too late, he realized as he cleared he corner and Bonnie spotted him. Her lips curved in a smile and he found himself reciprocating it automatically.

"Hello, Kai. Long time no see." She teased.

"Your hair is longer." He observed as he started pouring her ginger ale unprompted.

She touched one of the curls, looking pleased that he noticed. "Yeah, I like to switch up looks every now and then. But Daddy prefers me to look a certain way. He says I need to 'project a certain image at all times'" She held up her fingers in air-quotes.

Kai spilled a little of her drink in his shock. Was she actually referencing one of her clients to him? Did she expect him to say anything in response?

"Well, depending on what your profession is, your image does matter." He said slowly.

Bonnie nodded, "Yeah, I know. I just like riling him up sometimes. How have you been?"

The abrupt switch in topics caught Kai off guard, it took a moment before he caught up. He leaned on the bar, bringing him eye level with Bonnie. "You are awfully chatty this evening, miss."

She propped her chin in her hands, "Maybe I'm just trying to make a little conversation, Malachai." She draws out his whole name and he has to fight down his arousal. Normally only his twin and his parents are allowed to use his full government name, but he likes how it sounds coming from her.

"Well in that case" he turns away to pour himself a shot before clinking it with her ginger ale then downing it. "What should we talk about?"

Bonnie frowned in thought, "How about the current un-predictableness of the stock market and whether or not we're headed for another crash?" She smirked at his obvious surprise.

Kai decided to play along, "I mean, I haven't spoken to my broker in weeks, but-"

"Son, can you head to the back and get out the Elijah Craig?" Kai jerked around, he hadn't even heard his dad come up behind him. Kai shot Bonnie a deprecating smile before turning to go and retrieve the boxes his father requested.

"Good Afternoon, Mr. Parker." He froze in his tracks as he heard Bonnie greet his father.

"Hello Bonnie. How have you been?" His father greeted Bonnie like they were old friends.

Kai wanted to throw up. Bonnie knows his father? His father knew Bonnie? His gaze bounced between the two as they chatted. What in the actual fuck was going on here? He retreated to the back room and took a moment to catch his breath. Was his father cheating on his mother? With an escort of all things?

He felt nauseous as he brought the box back as requested. Bonnie was nowhere to be found, but his father was now talking with Bonnie's sugar daddy.

"I see you and Bonnie have managed to come to an arrangement that works for you both." His father was saying. The other man nodded, "We have, it's taken a lot of time, but I really like the balance we've managed to strike. I get to spend time with her, and it doesn't infringe on my relationship with Lisa. I really owe you for helping me set this up."

Kai dropped the box. His father set them up? How did his father even know about where to look for an escort? Was his father a pimp? Kai's eyes widened in horror. Was his father Bonnie's pimp?

His father and the man jumped at the noise. "Malachai, are you trying to ruin good alcohol? Come over here and meet one of my oldest friends. Rudy, this is my oldest son Malachai." Kai didn't really want to shake hands with Bonnie's sugar daddy, but couldn't really see any way out of it. He came around the bar, "Nice to meet you, sir." He wiped his hands and turned back to go back to stocking alcohol.

Only to run right into Bonnie.

He reached out to steady her as she stumbled back on what looked like a nice pair of heels. "Sorry bout that." She barely came up to his chin, and he wanted to tuck her under his arm and carry her far away. He gripped her shoulders before leaning in to ask, "Are you okay?"

She looked at him in confusion, "Yeah, I'm good, just a little clumsy."

He glanced back to where his father was engrossed in conversation with Rudy. "No, I mean, are you okay?" He gestures with his head in their direction.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Bonnie gives a little laugh.

Kai takes a deep breath, "Look, I know I'm pretty much a stranger, and my father may or may not be your pimp, but if you want to get out, I can help you."

Bonnie's eyes grew bigger and nearly popped out her head when he mentioned his father being her pimp. "What the actual fuck are you talking about?" She pulled away from Kai's hands on her shoulders. "Did you really just accuse me of being a ho? And your own father of being my pimp?"

"No!" He shrugs, "Maybe." Her face morphs into one of disgust, and he knows in that moment, that he has made a colossal mistake.

"What is wrong with you? That is your father, that's my father!" Her loud voice attracted the attention of the two men, both of their fathers, it turns out.

"Malachai, what's going on?" His father's voice booms out. Kai wants to answer, but he also wants the ground to open up and swallow him whole. Bonnie sweeps by him and grabs her purse and storms out. Rudy is not too far behind, asking his daughter what's wrong.

"Fuck me."

That night (and for the next few months honestly) he's the laughing stock of his family. It turns out that not only does his father know Bonnie and Rudy, the rest of his family does as well. His mother is friends with Bonnie's grandmother, Sheila. Kai has even met the woman once or twice, and now he's insulted her granddaughter.

Both Luke and Liv nearly burst something laughing at him. Liv has had a few classes with her over the years, and she and Luke were close enough at one point to contemplate moving in together before he changed his mind and moved in with his long-term boyfriend. The envelope that Kai had seen Rudy giving Bonnie was apparently a listing of suitable apartments that Rudy had already scoured and deemed suitable for Bonnie.

Luke also explained that Bonnie's father helped her with her rent because he felt guilty about leaving her alone so much when she was younger after her mother died. He had remarried a while back and his new wife didn't like the fact that Rudy came with baggage, so their relationship was hit or miss until Joshua offered his hotel for their semi regular meetings when Rudy came to town on business. Both agreed simply because they both knew and trusted Joshua and the Parker family.

With every new piece of information, he felt more and more like an asshole. He knew none of this, having been off managing one of the other Parker hotels. He begged Luke or Liv to pass on his apologies to Bonnie, but they refused, having too much fun watching him squirm. He even accompanied his mother to the Farmer's Market on one of his rare Saturday's off, hoping to meet up with Sheila, but that came up as a dead end as well.

He was well and truly stumped. He had no way to get in contact with her to apologize profusely. It wasn't until he was half listening to his newest employee Marcel talk about scrubbing his Facebook list of old girlfriends so his new girlfriend couldn't snoop, that he got the idea to look at his siblings' page to find her.

He found her with relative ease, and sent her a message instead of a friend request, figuring she wouldn't be open to being friends with him so soon after he outright accused her of being a prostitute. His message is a mix of 'I'm sorry, I'm an idiot' and 'please forgive me' and takes up pretty much the whole page.

He waits anxiously for a reply, but receives none. He knows his siblings have been in touch with Bonnie, but there are no messages to him from her. He figures this is something that you can't really recover from, and vows to let it go.

Luke and Liv's graduation day comes and they're both running around excited to finally be done with school. All through the celebration, Kai keeps an eye out for a certain green-eyed graduate, but the only glimpse he gets is when her name is called and she walks across the stage to receive her diploma. He schools his expression into nothing-ness, knowing that his family is looking at him.

She looks happy and beautiful, and although he knows he shouldn't approach her (her silence from his Facebook message spoke volumes) he feels he owes it to at least try to explain in person.

"Bonnie?" He catches her when she's not surrounded by well-wishers. She turns and her smile dims a little. Kai knows he's on thin ice already, so he just jumps in.

"I am so sorry for my idiocy, and for assuming you were a…" He falters.

"A ho?" She supplies.

"Yeah, that." He shoves his hand in his pockets, "I know there's nothing I can say to take it back, but I just wanted to apologize, to you, in person. I wanted to see if we could start over, because I-" He's cut off by the yell of a few students who come running over to Bonnie. She's swept up in their wake, leaving him standing by himself once again.

"Okay. Good talk."

+1

Life goes on, and he's back to working behind the bar before too long. Dealing with a lot of the same people day in and day out, occasionally hosting a private event for businesses in the area. He's working such an event when he ducks outside for a bit of fresh air.

"Do you need a drink?" He whips around to see Bonnie standing a few feet from him, partially hidden in the shadows.

"What?" He's sure he's imagining things.

"You look like you could use a drink. I mean, I'm only an escort, so I may not be the best person to ask." She shrugs comically, and he huffs out a laugh and leans on the railing. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. One of the other bartenders said something, and it just stuck and I ran with it without stopping to actually think." She holds out a hand to halt his rambling.

"So yeah, I was pretty crushed. I mean, here I thought I was flirting with you and here you are thinking I was sleeping with my father of all people." She shudders, and Kai's brain short circuits hearing she had been trying to flirt with him.

"But after many, many, hours of dissection, I guess I can see how you'd come to that conclusion. Younger girl, older man, meeting in a hotel for a few hours and he always pays." She continues.

"Not to mention I heard that one guy ask how much something was." Kai is eager to bolster his argument. Bonnie frowns in thought before laughing, "Mr. Rafferty? His dumb-ass son was failing one of his classes, and he wanted me to tutor him because all the other ones quit." Bonnie snickered, "He paid enough to fund my spring break vacation, and his son barely passed."

"Am I forgiven?" Kai asks.

"Why should I forgive you?" Bonnie reached out to adjust his tie, "You made a very embarrassing assumption about me. Maybe I'm scarred for life."

"I can't ask you out if you're scarred for life." He brings a hand up to wrap around hers.

"Okay, maybe I'm not that scarred."