“I never said I hadn’t bartended before.” She shrugged. Then she leaned over the bar and plucked up two lemon wedges to squeeze into the drinks. “I’ll wait your tables, but you better make decent drinks because I’m not getting a bad tip all because you can’t mix.”
Interesting how she didn’t take any shit from me like most girls in a new job would have. Interesting that I found myself staring off after her too.
She grabbed both drinks and beelined out to Red. The sun was setting and shined off her brownish gold hair. Her fuzzy green sweater appeared almost cute as she smiled at the table and Red, holding the drinks up as she celebrated with them.
She glanced back at me and winked.
That woman was a natural even if she tried to hide it. I’d keep her at my bar as long as I could.
She just didn’t know it yet.
3
Zoey
The sun warmed my skin, the smell of Long Islands filled the air, and the laughter out on the patio was constant. Heathen’s had a hidden backyard that couldn’t be seen easily when walking by because of the stone fencing around it. As darkness descended, though, yellow lights threaded through greenery that was wrapped around piping. The effect was mesmerizing—soothing and calming yet joyous at the same time.
Glasses clinked on my tray as I followed Red to the back.
“All the dishes go here for Jude to handle when he has the time. He’s either cooking or wiping things down in back.” She set her dishes on a metal counter in an order I copied. “You’re a fast learner for never having waitressed.”
I sighed. So far, the hum of the crowd through my first two hours of work had been steady. I enjoyed the college students filtering in along with the mixture of some professionals looking to unwind after work. I tried to keep my head down and not indulge in socializing most of the time. It wasn’t that I hated it, it was the opposite.
“I worked in a bar back home. I was sixteen when Rich let me have a job where my mother frequented.”
“If you didn’t waitress, what did you do?” She popped out one of her curvy hips and waited for an answer.
“I bartended. I was underage, but Rich didn’t care much. Small town with their own rules and all that.”
“Ah, got it. I’m from the city and my parents would have killed me if I tried to bartend at sixteen. I have new respect for you already.” She smiled at me and then waved to someone behind me.
I turned to find a curly haired blond guy licking his lips as he eyed her up. “Red, you need to dress in more clothes if you expect us Heathens to get work done.”
Her honey-colored eyes sparkled at his flirting, and she shimmied her cleavage a little extra for show. “No can do, big boy. I’m here to bring the fun, cause the distractions, and most importantly”—she nudged me—“bring in the tips.”
“Ah, her true colors show.” He waltzed up to her and pulled her in for a side hug as he turned to me. “You our new girl?”
“I’m just temporary. Cole needed an extra waitress for a few nights.”
“Oh, sure he did. You won’t stay?” He pouted and looked down at Red. “What’s wrong with us Heathens?”
“Nothing. She’s just smarter than most of us.” She squinted at me. “I think. What’s your story, girl?”
I pulled at my sweater as they both waited for my answer.
I’d been Red before, comfortable at the bar back home in our little town, Sun Village. My mom would come in for drinks while I worked, we’d throw a few back between customers, and we’d get lost in the crowd and the alcohol.
It took me more than a year to figure out that my mom wasn’t only drinking at the bar in Sun Village. One night, some of the girls I worked with laughed and told me to go check the basement when I asked where my mother was. I’d thought those girls were my friends, but they’d known the whole time what had been happening.
I found my mother, surrounded by men, hanging off a couch with barely any clothes on. She didn’t smile as I came down those steps, was barely even able to open her eyes. They still held dread, though, with the way her eyebrows folded in. She’d shaken her head unsteadily and waved me back.
I’d found the men I thought I could call friends weren’t that at all. They had other plans for my mother, and she’d agreed to them just for the drugs that night.
I’d loved that job—loved the crowds, loved to connect with people as the unwound.
Yet, those were the times I was most vulnerable and people were most dangerous.
I got us out. I pulled my mom back. I didn’t sacrifice much else now, didn’t let myself indulge.
“Just didn’t enjoy bartending as much as I thought I did.”
“Money wasn’t good enough, then.” She winked at me. “We’ll show you a good time.”
That’s what I was afraid of.
“I’m only here for tonight. I’m not sure I can do much else. Got classes and whatnot.” It was a lame excuse.
“Well, let’s go make some bank while you’re here then.” She squeezed Jude before she took off through the swinging door.
Before I disappeared after her, Jude called out, “You let me know if you need anything. We’re a crazy crew, but we got every Heathen’s back.” He paused for a moment. “Even if they’re temporary.”
I swallowed quickly as a ball of emotion got caught in my throat. No one had offered to stand by me for a long time. It was my own fault because I didn’t let anyone close. Still, I felt the jolt of friendship immediately. Waving over my head, I beelined out to my tables to get back to work.
I scribbled notes as I took each order and found that after the first two hours, most everyone only ordered drinks.
Every time I ran up to the bar, Cole smirked at me and asked, “You hot in that sweater yet?”
I dripped sweat. Literally. I wondered if I’d worn enough deodorant. “Please stop talking to me about the sweater,” I ground out and motioned at him to make the drinks.
He didn’t move. Instead, he smirked at me. “We got Heathen’s shirts in the back.”
“Yeah, if you think I’m putting on a shirt like Red, you’re insane,” I threw back and proceeded to lean over the bar to grab a glass. I hit the beer tap myself and filled the cup, tipping it just enough to let the foam pour over the side.
“You want to just bartend instead of wait tables?” The dimples were overkill on his face. If there was a God, he must have wanted to show off by making the perfect specimen out of Cole.
“I’m only here for tonight,” I grumbled, turning around to deliver the beer.
A girl about my age with such blonde hair it neared white muttered a thank you.
“No problem. You were eyeing the menu, are you interested in anything?”
“I probably shouldn’t eat.” She picked at the corner of the table, and I saw the way her mouth turned down, how she curled into herself.
“Every single person tonight has ordered cheese curds. You can’t break the streak.” I nudged her along.
Her blue gaze met mine, and her chin trembled. “Are you going to ask me if anyone’s meeting me here?”