Page 14 of Sweet Little Thing

The drive to the club was only thirteen minutes. There wasn’t much traffic this time of night. Two hours earlier, it would’ve taken an hour to get from Jasper’s house to the club. Going to work at eight in the evening had its few advantages. I’d cleaned and grocery shopped all day. My feet hurt, and I only wanted to shower and sit or lie down. That wasn’t going to happen. I had to work for the next seven hours. The idea exhausted me further. I pictured Heidi’s smile and forced myself from the car to give me strength.

The first person I saw was the redhead who had taken me to Carey’s office. She waved me over to her, “I need to get you a uniform. Then Neil will be showing you the ropes. You will shadow him and take notes.”

“Okay,” I replied, hurrying behind her, following her down the same hallway where Carey’s office could be found. We passed his door and went all the way to the end, the blue portal reading “Employees Only,” then opened by the redhead. There were uniforms on hangers along the back wall, and the dressingrooms were little cubicles. Mirrors, toilets, and a shower rounded off the place.

“This is where we dress, use the facilities, and take our breaks,” she said. She then approached the uniforms, selected one, and added, “A four, correct?”

“Yes, thank you,” I replied.

“Put this on.” She then reached down. Searched for a second and found them. A pair of red high heels with sparkly toes. “Wear these. Jazzy, yes?”

“I need an eight,” I told her, having no desire to squeeze my foot into yet another shoe.

She sat them down and picked up another pair. “Here, they run small. These are nines.”

The idea of walking around in heels didn’t seem so bad now that I knew my toes weren’t going to be cramped all night. I said, “Thank you.”

“Sure. Get dressed and then come to the front. Neil will be waiting on you.”

“Who’s Neil?”

She paused at the door. “Tall guy, brown hair in a ponytail. . .unmistakable. He will be looking for you. Go out to the front, and he’ll find you.”

“Okay,” I replied as she walked out. I still didn’t know her name. She wasn’t exactly the friendly sort. But then, well, she was busy.

I changed into the work uniform. Stood in front of the floor length mirror. The skirt was so short I was afraid to bend over. I’d have to watch that tonight. Slipping on the heels, I felt more vulnerable than I ever had before. Like I was on display. I didn’t like attention. This was going to get me attention.

I could always keep looking for another evening job. This didn’t have to be forever. It wasn’t like I was the only one dressed this way in the building. There were other servers as scantily clad,and more than likely, the customers would be. This was a club. I had to get over myself and pretend half-nakedness was stylish. Well, because it was.

I gave myself a pep talk and made my way back down the hallway towards the front, where Neil would be waiting for me. The first person I saw was the guy who had met me outside Carey’s office last night. He’d knocked on his door for me. When he saw me, he waved me over. That was Neil. I should have expected it when she said he had ponytail.

“Beulah, correct,” he said, extending his hand to me. “I’m Neil. Nice to meet you.”

“Yes, and it’s nice to officially meet you,” I replied.

He smirked. “Yeah, I was in a hurry last night, or I’d have been friendlier.”

“That’s fine. You were friendly enough.”

He glanced over the place. People were trickling in, but nothing seemed overwhelming. “This is the early crowd. They’re here to eat the bar food and do some socializing. The Monday night crowd isn’t that bad. It’s the slowest night of the week. That’s why Carey had you come in to start. This is the night he likes to train his newbies.” Neil pointed to the redhead. “That’s Shauna. She’s the manager over the waitresses and hostesses. She’s been here for five years, not the nicest person, but she works and runs the place smoothly.”

Neil began to walk, and I followed. “However, if you need something, come to me first, okay? Shauna doesn’t like dealing with the details. The larger issues are her concern. I’m second in command, Captain Details. If it’s too much for me to defeat, I immediately go to her. She’s big on the chain of command, so don’t go directly to her unless I tell you to. She looks pretty but can go monster in a second.”

We walked to the hostess stand, and he patted the countertop. It would be between me and the guests. “If the guests get toyou, they made it through security. If they’re under twenty-one, they’ll have on blue bracelets with our logo. You’ll greet them, take any bags, wraps, or jackets, which won’t be many this time of year, and then you’ll check them in. Tag their item with a number using these tickets, then give them the other half. Put their items back here in this room. In the winter, this is a busier job and much more of a hassle to deal with. Three people will then work the front. With me so far? Any questions?”

This seemed easy enough. My nerves had eased, and I nodded. “Yes, I’m good. What else?”

“Fast learner. I like it. Okay, you will look at this chart and decide what table, section, and area to sit them in. If they’ve paid for VIP reservations, you’ll have them stand away from the crowd, and then you’ll contact me or whoever is handling VIPs. We’ll seat them. You don’t handle that. You just handle the rest.”

The next few hours went on like this: I followed Neil around, and he never stopped talking, constantly teaching me something. I checked a few shopping bags and one silk wrap and tagged them into the coat check. When two rolled around, the place was almost empty, and I was told I could leave.

Sinking into my car, I slipped off my heels and stretched. I was going to be able to do this. I touched the hidden pocket of my skirt. Inside was fifty dollars in tips from customers. The lady with the silk wrap had given me a twenty-dollar bill when I returned her wrap to her. The other thirty came from guys that I seated. Neil said if they tipped me, I should be thankful and take it, so that’s exactly what I did.

Chapter

Twelve

Beulah

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