The inside of the bar was dimly lit, and the subtle waves of cigarette smoke gave the room a cloudy atmosphere. He spots the dark-haired girl behind the bar and watches quietly as she serves a couple beers to the bikers who are seated at the bar. Her hair is pulled back into a messy bun, with a few stray strands framing her face. She's smiling and making the occasional small talk with the customers, but he has known her long enough and he can see past the smile to the sadness in her eyes. Afterall, he has been seeing the same look in his own eyes every morning.
Lexi catches movement from the door out of the corner of her eye and looks over to see the tall man approach the bar. He's wearing a dark plaid shirt under a camouflaged jacket and she's still trying to get used to seeing him with facial hair. He gives her a sad smile as he sits down in front of her at the bar. Seeing his sadness aches her to the core, but she tries to smile anyway.
"Look at you," she smirks as she passes him a beer, "looking like the bearded mountain man of every woman's Harlequin fantasy."
Sam tries not to let his slight embarrassment show, but counters her, "And you're a better-looking bartender than Joe. Having you around must be good for business."
Lexi places a hand on her hip, "Sales have doubled, but he did start dollar draft night on Thursdays, so I think that has a lot to do with it too."
"How are you…" he trails off watching her as she wipes down the bar in front of him.
"This job keeps me busy," she replies quietly as she sets up a shot glass and grabs a bottle of whiskey from the shelf, "It's not as fun as hunting monsters, but, you know, if I'm going to spend most of my time with a bottle, might as well be serving it to others."
"You know Jody's working a case," Sam begins as she pours him a shot.
"I know," she responds, "Donna's helping her out."
"You need to go visit her Lex. They're worried about you."
"Didn't you tell her you assigned me a babysitter," Lexi nods her head across the bar to the table in the back. Sam turns and immediately recognizes Ketch sitting in the shadows with a half-empty high ball glass in front of him.
Sam turns back to Lexi with a quizzical look, "I didn't call him."
"Who did?" she questions him.
"Charlie maybe," the man replies with a shrug, "I'll ask Mom, but I'm sure they're still not on speaking terms."
"He's been here every night this week," she responds, "I assumed you had sent him, since I haven't been doing my check calls."
"No, but want me to talk to him?" he asks and Lexi smiles at the brotherly concern he's showing.
"I'll handle it," she replies with a smirk.
"Speaking of, why haven't you been doing check calls?" Sam questions after he takes a sip from the shot glass she had slid in front of him.
"Because I'm not hunting right now, I'm here every night. Perfectly safe."
"You can still call, if you want."
Lexi gives him a half-smile and clutches his hand tightly for a moment, "You know where I live Sam, and you have a key if you ever need to talk."
Sam gives her a smile before he finishes his drink and tries to pay her, but she shoves the money back across the bar to him, "Your money's no good here. Call me if any new leads come up."
"You're the first call, you know that," he gives her a genuine smile, "Be safe."
"Always."
