Page 1 of Puck and Prejudice

ChapterOne

IZZIE

The background music at Triana is so loud, I can barely hear what customers are trying to order. I’ve been working at the trendy bar in the Miami Design District since it opened last year, and I’ve never seen it this busy on a weeknight. But tonight isn’t any other night. The Miami Lions just won the Eastern Conference Cup, and the entire team decided to come here to celebrate. Word got out, and we’re now at full capacity. Unfortunately, we aren’t staffed for it.

I lean over the counter, turning my ear toward the guy in front of me. “Could you repeat that?”

“One cosmopolitan and one whiskey and Coke!” he shouts.

“You got it!” I yell back, and then start to prepare his order.

I usually ask what brand of whiskey the customer prefers, but it’d take another five minutes of back and forth to hear the answer. Judging by the guy’s flushed faced and glazed eyes, I don’t think he cares anyway.

As I prepare the drinks, other thirsty customers yell “Bartender!” to get my attention. All I can do is make quick eye contact with them and nod. Manuel, my partner tonight, is just as busy at the other end of the bar.

Bartending is the ultimate art of multitasking, especially on a busy evening like this. The money is good, but I can’t wait to finish my residency at the vet clinic and start earning a living wage doing what I love—taking care of animals and, more specifically, horses.

I finish the drinks and while I’m ringing up the customer, Mari Carmen, Paco’s daughter and my little sister Lydia’s best friend, joins us behind the bar. She’s not twenty-one yet and technically can’t help. “What are you doing here?”

“Dad said you needed assistance.”

“Do you know how to prepare cocktails?”

“No.”

Great. “Do you know how to use the beer tap?”

She eyeballs the tap. “Uh, put the glass under and pour beer in it?”

I shake my head. This will be a disaster.

“Bartender!” a whiny female voice cuts through the loud music. “We’ve been waiting forever.”

I look at the blonde glaring at me. She’s pretty enough to be a model, and maybe that’s why she has an attitude. “I’ll be with you in a sec!”

I glance toward Mari Carmen again, but my eyes connect with a man standing on the other side of the counter. His expression is closed off. He looks like a marble statue, his face all sharp angles. But his eyes are electrifying, and his gaze burns into mine.

“What can I get you?” I ask, even though I’m certain he just got here, and it’s not his turn yet. That’ll piss off the blonde chick even more.

“The IPA you have on tap.”

“Sure.” I reach for a glass, but then remember that I need to teach Mari Carmen. Turning to her, I say, “You go ahead, hon.”

“You’re going to let a teenager serve alcohol,” he says in a flat tone, but loud enough that I can hear him clearly. It’s not a question, but I hear the criticism just the same.

“How do you know she’s a teenager?” I arch a brow.

He shakes his head. “Can I get my drink?”

I show Mari Carmen which tap to use and let out a breath of relief when I don’t need to tell her she needs to angle the glass a bit. But midway through the pour there’s a loud fizz, and then beer sprays everywhere, soaking us through.

“What the hell!” the guy exclaims.

I guess the spray got him too, but I don’t have time to offer an apology. I need to stop the beer from going everywhere. I try to shut off the tap, but the lever is stuck, which means I need to cut off the supply from underneath. I cover the tap with a towel, stopping the onslaught of beer, then call for Manuel.

“Joder! What happened?” he asks.

“Don’t know. Can you shut off the valve?”

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