Page 51 of Dirty Little Secret
“What can I get you guys?” I asked the three men who’d just sat down.
“Beers,” came one’s reply. “Anything you got on tap. And cheap, too. I lost a bet, and I’m buying the rounds tonight.”
“Got ya.” I left them and went to the next table, as that order would be easy to remember. “Hi, you two, what can I get for you this evening?” I asked the couple who’d sat down while I was at the bar.
“A gin and tonic for me,” the man said as he wrapped his arm around the woman at his side. “And she’ll have a martini, a dirty one, please.”
“Okie dokie,” I said before heading back to the bar.
Taylor, still chatting with Kane, spotted me and waited for me to get to them. “I hope you don’t mind. I wanted to properly introduce myself to Kane. The baby-daddy.”
Kane’s frown at that name let me know that he probably wasn’t a fan of hers so far. “I don’t think I like that title, Taylor.”
Giving her a stoic stare, I added, “Me neither.” Ashley came to get my order. “Three drafts, whatever’s the cheapest, a dirty martini, and a gin and tonic.”
Ashley nodded. “By the way, Rob came up and told me to let you girls know that he wants you to step it up. Do a little dancing on the bar, get some guys doing body-shots. Ramp up the atmosphere.” Then she set to work on the drinks.
Taylor winked at me. “Oh, goody! You get to show off your sexy moves, Zee.”
I did not want to show off any sexy moves with Kane watching me. “I’ll sit this one out.”
“The hell you will,” I heard Rob say from behind me. His gray eyes flashed to Kane. “Is this your boyfriend, Zee?”
Kane stood up, extending his hand. “Hello, I’m Dr. Kane Price. Zandra and I have a son together.”
“Is that so?” Rob asked as he shook Kane’s hand. “Well, she and I have a boss/employee relationship, and as her boss, I’m asking her to get on top of this bar and dance, and then allow men to drink shots out of her bellybutton. Are you opposed to that? Wait—I don’t care whether you are or not. This is her job, and she’ll do as I say or she can go find another one.”
Not liking the aggression in my boss’s voice, I interjected. “Rob, he’s not saying I can’t do it. I just don’t want to.” I looked him in the eyes. “Not right now.”
“You don’t want to because he’s here,” he said. And he was right about that.
But I didn’t want Kane to think that. “No. I just don’t feel like it right now.”
Kane took his seat, sipping on the drink he’d ordered, letting me fight my own battle. I liked that about him, but then again, it would’ve been nice of him to say something maybe.
I saw an opportunity for Kane to be my hero, my knight in shining armor. He could’ve told Rob that he would take care of me and that I could quit the damn job and go live with him and our son and we would have our happily ever after. Only he didn’t do that. He sat there, sipping on his drink, waiting to see what I would do for myself.
“Well, I said do it, Zee,” came Rob’s reply.
Knowing Kane was watching me to see how I would handle this situation, probably analyzing my every word to see how I would handle similar things when it came to Fox, I squared my shoulders and prepared to do battle with my boss. “I said no. Now move, so I can take these orders to my customers.”
I didn’t know if there was a fire in my eyes, or what the hell had happened, but Rob stepped to one side. “Fine.”
I won!
Or had I?
Rob’s expression was hard. I had a sinking feeling he wasn’t exactly letting me win. But for now, it looked that way. Being in front of Kane, I didn’t let it get to me too much.
Taking the tray, I went to serve the drinks, feeling the weight of Rob’s stare on my back. “Fucking asshole,” I muttered underneath my breath.
For the next hour, I worked my ass off, barely getting the chance to say a single word to Kane, who still sat at the bar nursing the one drink. Everything was going well until a rowdy group of college boys came into the club, sitting at one of my tables. I quickly became the center of their attention.
“What can I get you guys?” I asked the group. There were eight of them in total. They were all pretty big, and the testosterone filled the air around them.
One burly guy got up, picked me up without a word, and sat me on the table. “Body-shots. On your sexy little body, baby.”
To my horror, another waitress, Jerrie, came up to the table with a bottle of Captain Morgan in her hand. “I’ve got ya, Zee.”
