Page 61 of The Main Event

“Oh.” Tammy nodded sagely. “A night with the boys. That’s both healthy and necessary.”

I could’ve asked why she believed that, but I didn’t care enough to wade into that mess. Instead, I focused on Sheryl. “So, if I’m reading this correctly, we’re booked solid through the first weekend following Halloween. I would’ve thought that Halloween would be our last hurrah.”

“It used to be that way,” Sheryl replied. “But now people think they can avoid the crowd by coming one week late and it’s almost as busy as Halloween now.”

“Do we expect that to continue to the following weekend eventually?”

“I think it will start going earlier rather than later simply because of the weather, but I can’t actually make a prediction because it’s hard to tell.”

“Right.” I ran my tongue over my lips. “And we have parties every Friday and Saturday through that weekend.”

“Most Sundays too,” Sheryl replied. “Daisy tends to do teas and children’s parties on Sundays. They’re quick. They only require two or three staff members. They’re over in two or three hours and cleanup is minimal. I know she’s been packing them in of late and even though those parties don’t make as much as the big parties at night, they’re still making a nice profit.”

“And there are some midweek ones, too,” I pressed.

Sheryl made a funny face. “Yeah. We usually have at least one, sometimes two. Daisy has all the info on them, though. I only get a brief rundown of what to expect each week. You should ask her.”

I should ask Daisy about the parties. How swimmingly would that go? I’d probably spoken a grand total of fifty words to the woman in two weeks. Sure, I’d pined from afar, but that didn’t mean we were interacting on anything other than a superficial level.

I had no intention of pointing that out to the other workers, though. “Right.” I flashed a smile I didn’t feel. “I’ll talk about it with Daisy.”

I stumbled into Tammy, who was still hovering for some inexplicable reason, as I was trying to turn. “Is there something else you need?” I sputtered, flustered as I had to grip the front desk in order not to trip.

“If you can’t have a dinner meeting tonight, how about tomorrow?” she asked.

She obviously wasn’t going to let it go. “Why don’t you just look at my schedule and carve out an hour, and we’ll have a meeting here,during business hours,next week.” Something occurred to me, and I added the next part simply because my survival instincts were kicking in. “We’ll have the meeting in the bar and have sandwiches.”And there will be witnesses there,I silently added.

“Oh, but I think a dinner will be more productive,” Tammy pressed. She was like a shark scenting blood in the water.

“Unfortunately, I have plans most evenings for the next few weeks, and the ones I don’t have plans for I’m going to want to embrace the downtime,” I replied. “We’re heading into the busy season. I just can’t swing it. I’m sorry. Figure out a time for us to meet in the bar.”

With that, I safely stepped around her this time and pointed myself at my office.

Sheryl called out to me before I made it two steps. “Daisy is in the bar,” she said.

Daisy. Right. I flashed her a grateful smile even though I kind of wanted to throttle her. “I’ll ask her about the parties,” I offered.

“She would know best,” Sheryl agreed. She looked amused. “Have fun.” She waved me off with a little too much enthusiasm.

Yes, the gossip mill at the Hunter was still in fine form.

I tried not to picture myself walking to the gallows as I trudged into the bar. Several tables were taken, but it was still quiet, which I appreciated. Daisy was at her usual table, which was close enough for her to keep up a running commentary with Levi as he worked behind the bar. I had no idea what they were talking about today, but they seemed happy to chatter away.

“Mom thinks he’s seeing someone,” Daisy said to Levi. I had no idea who she was talking about.

“Isn’t he always seeing somebody?” Levi countered. He looked to be jotting down notes on an index card. “I’m pretty sure your father is considered a catch in Boston. I mean … he’s got a good job. His condo is nice. He has a good relationship with his adult daughter, and there’s no chance of him and your mom getting back together. Who would make a better sugar daddy than your dad?”

Daisy glared at him. “My father isn’t going to be anybody’s sugar daddy. Don’t be gross.”

“He could be if he wanted,” Levi persisted. “He’s still got his looks. His suits are nice. I used to have a crush on him when I was about fourteen.”

Daisy looked scandalized. “Don’t tell me things like that. How would you like it if I said I had a crush on your dad when I was fourteen?”

They both seemed to consider it for a beat before bursting into laughter in tandem.

“My father is many things, but he’s not going to be anybody’s sugar daddy,” Levi said.

“Your dad isn’t crush-worthy and we both know it,” Daisy said. “You can’t have a crush on my dad, though. Besides, I don’t think he’s seeing someone just to have a date for corporate parties. I think it might be serious.”

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