Page 96 of On the Rocks

“Perfect.” I added Horrebto my calendar, creating a reminder to book a reservation.

“We also have to get the ramen at SushiSushi. And try that new wing place that just opened near us. According to the foodies, we can’t miss their Souped-up Caesar.”

“What the hell is that?”

“You know…like the drinks that come with an entire burger on top of the glass?”

I groaned. “That is such a gimmick!”

“I know!” Jennifer hooked her arm through mine, tugging me through the door of Porcini—a boutique Italian eatery. Inside, the restaurant was bathed in low light, with floral patterned wallpaper and artwork framed in gold. “But it looked amazing. We’re not gonna talk about the price, though.”

“Probably needs a whole burger to hide the fact that the drink isn’t actually that good. Have you been scrolling Instagram?” I gave the hostess my name for the reservation, and she escorted us to our table.

“That’s where I started,” Jennifer said as we sat down. “Then I ended up on TikTok and didn’t surface for like three hours.”

I burst out laughing. “Been there, done that. Anyway, I’m happy to squeeze as much as we can out of restaurant week.”

“Which is why I love you.” We glanced at the menus quickly, but we’d already done our deep-dive online. Jennifer ordered the spaghetti alla carbonara, and I opted to try their cacio e pepe.“Also, I feel like I haven’t seen you in days,” she said once we’d ordered.

“I know. I’ve barely stopped during the transition.”

“How have things been since you left Elixir?”

I took a deep breath, the wordfineon the tip of my tongue, but when I released the breath, nothing came out.

Jennifer hummed softly. Apparently me saying nothing was enough to tell her plenty. “Are you sure turning down the offer from Ironwood Distilleries was the right move?”

Was it right for me? For my career? It was hard to see into the future, to know if I’d made the right call for the long run, but it really did feel like the best choice for menow. “I think so,” I told her, running my finger around the condensation on my water glass. “When I read through their contract proposal, the partnership didn’t feel like a good fit.”

“At all?” Jennifer asked. “Or just for right now?”

I considered her question. Ironwood Distilleries had been interested in having me design a signature drink. It was so similar to what I’d just done with Elixir that I would be repeating myself instead of moving forward. I still wanted to promote products I believed in, but jumping from one company to the next while slapping my Masked Mixer brand on products didn’t sound fulfilling. Maybe later on, I’d feel ready for that kind of partnership again.

“I guess I don’t know how I’ll feel in a few months or a year, but creating drinks for someone else just isn’t something I’m interested in right now.”

Our food arrived, and Jennifer twirled noodles onto her fork. “What’s your plan then?”

“I’m going to go back to my regular bartending gigs. I reached out to Mandie, my old bar manager, and she’s good with me coming back on full time. The students are all getting ready to go back to school, so they need staff.”

“Guess that worked out timing-wise.”

“Yeah. Other than that, I’m going to keep working on my Masked Mixer videos. I was also thinking I might look into taking a few classes at a community college.”

Jennifer frowned. “Really?”

“If I do want to open up my own speakeasy someday, I could probably use some business courses to learn things like accounting, bookkeeping…You know, all the non-alcohol related things.”

“That’s actually a great idea,” Jennifer said. She cleared her throat, and I could tell by the way she was looking at me that there was something more she wanted to say.

I tilted my head, frowning. “What?”

“Nothing bad, don’t go getting all defensive on me.” She laughed. “I’m really glad to see you moving on and taking the right steps in your career.”

“Mm-hmm, I’m waiting for thebut.”

“Buuuuut…I also hope you won’t use this as an excuse to avoid relationships.”

My next bite of pasta went down hard. I coughed, clearing my throat, confused by her words. When had I ever used work toavoid relationships? “I was with Levi for fifteen years, and it was only a year after that fell apart that I got together with Aiden,” I pointed out. “Does that sound like someone using work to avoid relationships?”

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