Page 11 of Betting Blind
His voice is silken when he speaks. “And what’s that, pup?”
Scooting my bottom all the way to the edge of my seat, I lean my elbows on the table nice and lady-like. If he wants demure, then he’s screwing with the wrong woman.
“I need this job because I could use the extra cash. There’s no sense in denying that you and the rest of your crew think I don’t belong here.” I shift my eyes toward a busser and another man, who have each other wrapped in an aggressive headlock, before casually sliding my gaze back to Jack. “But I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that you need a bit of a femininity around this joint.”
I’m doing my best to hold on to my fiercest, most badass persona, but it falters slightly when Micah bursts out laughing a few feet away from us. He’s holding a tray of empty shot glasses and brings a finger up toward his face to rub his left eye.
“Whew,” he breathes between each chuckle. “She told you, boss.”
Jack shoots him a glare so cold, I’m shocked that frost hasn’t formed on the glasses Micah is holding. “Shut up, barback,” he grumbles.
Yeesh, this guy is a barrel of monkeys. My smirk slowly falls when he turns back to address me.
“You start tonight.”
Chapter 6
Jack
Her jaw drops open, and dammit if my mind doesn’t throw itself straight into the gutter. I’m staring at her pretty pink lips open and close as she fumbles for words. Light brown freckles are sprinkled across her cheeks, and I appreciate that she doesn’t cover them with makeup.
I can admit that my life has been lonely since starting this business. Owning a bar means I never lack for my choice of women, but what started as a thrill and a way to let go of the past has slowly dwindled over the years. It wasn’t uncommon for Derrick, Ben, and I to close this place down and leave with a different woman every night. Hell, it was almost impossible not to. But as the years went by, I started to realize that someone warming my bed for a night is just as lonely as coming home to it empty, so I dropped the habit.
Now I keep my focus on the things that truly matter, which is making money and taking care of this family—though the latter is a bit more complicated.
“T-tonight?” She’s finally able to force out the question. She’d like to think she’s a hard-ass, but I see through her bluff as she anxiously gathers her hair and drapes the locks over her right shoulder.
“Is that a problem?”
Cassidy fidgets in her seat. “Nope. No problem. Who has a problem?”
I fight a smile, but I feel the corner of my mouth begin to twitch. She raises a finger, signaling that she needs a minute, and I sit silently as she pulls her phone out to text someone under the table. A boyfriend perhaps? I force the thought away. It’s none of my business who this woman is involved with. As she pointed out, we’re using each other for a favor. It’s as simple as that.
“Good. First, let’s start with getting rid of… this.” I motion to her ridiculous uniform. I recognize the getup from that gaudy diner across town, Margie’s. Her white shirt accentuates her chest, but the polo collar appears to be choking her. I’m not going to complain about the shorts, but white sneakers? I can’t imagine what kind of deranged monster forces someone to wear something so atrocious.
Our uniforms are simple. If you’re a guy, you wear a black shirt and jeans; if you’re a girl, you wear a tank top and shorts. I wear whatever I want because, well, I can.
Cassidy looks down at her lap, smiling nervously, and I follow her slender arm’s movement when she bats her hand in the air. “Oh, yeah. My boss has a weird sense of—”
“Come with me.” I stand, cutting her off. She pierces me with a sharp glare, and again, I stifle a laugh. It’s too easy to tease her.
She follows me to the back of the building, past the main bar area and through a door that leads into a joint locker room. It’s important for me to give my employees a safe place to keep their belongings and somewhere to get their mind right before their shift. I’m not the asshole Cassidy or anyone else in Mackville wants to make me out to be, but it’s easier to let them think it.
The polite sound of Cassidy clearing her throat comes from behind me.
“This is where you’ll get ready for your shift,” I tell her, reaching into one of the bigger lockers to retrieve a wad of black material from inside an old canvas bag.
She leans against the cool metal behind her and unfolds the tiny scrap of clothing. “What is this?”
I slam the locker shut with a loud bang, causing her to jump. “That’s your uniform, sweetheart.”
“Um, my boobs are going to be hanging out of this,” she says with raised brows, holding the material away from her body suspiciously. The tiny black tank top is sure to leave little to the imagination.
“That’s the point.”
She turns toward me, opening her stance instead of cowering. I’m tempted to lean into her, but I resist. Instead, I lean my forearm against the locker beside her head, keeping a bit of distance between us. Goosebumps break out across her arms, and her big eyes widen reflexively. I trace the outline of her fit body with my gaze and breathe the intoxicating scent of jasmine deep down into my lungs. Her long blonde hair hangs loosely around her shoulders, and I wonder what it would be like to reach out and touch the silken strands.
I force a leash on my libido. She didn’t take this job because she wanted someone hitting on her; she took it because we’ve come to an understanding. I’ve made the mistake of getting too close to a woman I worked with before and paid for it dearly. We parted ways, and I’ve since made peace with the situation, but it still lingers in the back of my mind. It’s an ever-present reminder of why I shouldn’t press my lips to Cassidy’s right this second. If I’m going to be her boss, she needs to trust me, and I’m not going to be the one to break that trust.
