Page 2 of Taking Orders in the Underworld

“Tomas can take on your tables. There’s only an hour left, it’s only a few extra tables and dessert orders. You can handle that, can’t you Tomas? Nika’s definitely trained you well enough for that?”

“Yes, sir. Not a problem.”

Garth smiled wide and slyly at Nika.

“That’s settled then.”

She wanted to slap the smile off his smug face. She debated doing it, too, until she felt a little touch on her elbow.

At first she thought it was Rae. Rae who had been the catalyst for all this change in the first place. Garth’s soft spot for the other Arae had led to him jeopardising theoneplace and theonlyjob Nika had ever loved. On top of that, Rae had the nerve to have a perfectly-imperfect demeanour, where nothing was ever too much trouble for her to take on. It grated against Nika, who had always been taught that perfection was the standard to attain.

Luckily, it wasn’t her who touched Nika, but Lexie – the grill chef – instead.

“Want to take a fire stick break with me?”

Nika released a breath, rolling her shoulders and cracking her neck. “Sure.”

Before she turned to leave, she pointed a long, pale finger at Tomas. “You better not screw it up.”

Tomas gulped and nodded.

“The boy will be fine, Nika,” Garth drawled.

She sent him a glower and made her way back through the kitchen to the service entrance outside, where Lexie was waiting for her, fire stick in hand. The voluptuous vampiric demon, taller still than Nika, looked down at her with an expression that suggested Nika had been out of line back inside. Nika scowled back at her, feeling like a chastised child.

“What?” she said, as she snatched the fire stick Lexie offered her, lit it, and took a long drag.

Lexie shrugged. “Seems like you’re going out of your way to make sure you aren’t Garth’s favourite anymore.”

“Oh please, I haven’t been Garth’s favourite ever since his little right-hand Rae in there showed up.”

“She’s been good for business. You, on the other hand, I hear almost just decapitated a dog with a plate shard.”

“Hardly on purpose.”

“That’s not the point, is it? You’re making mistakes, noticeable ones.”

“Isn’t everyone allowed to make mistakes?” Nika snapped.

Lexie snorted out a laugh, smoke billowing out her nostrils. “For anyone else, yes. But I’ve known you since we were five, running around in Tartarus.Youdon’t make mistakes. You make, what is it you call them? That’s right – calculated moves.”

“So?”

“So? What’s the gameplan here, Nika?”

Nika was about to open her mouth and tell her long-time friend exactly what she planned to do about Garth’s newfound independence, when Yani poked his head out of the service entrance, a loose curl of his wet hair bouncing around his forehead from under his chef’s cap.

“Lexie, someone’s just put through an order for oxen steaks – and I know you’ll kill me if I grill them like a fish.”

“Damn straight I’ll kill you. Those cost a fortune to trade for, and that’s once you find them,” Lexie muttered. “I’ll be right there.”

Then she turned back to Nika. “Are you going to be okay?”

Nika waved her off. “I’ll be fine.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, see you.”

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