Page 6 of Cosmo

Sitting back as much as he could while being attached to the table, Liam sighed, “Fine. What?”

Having a convict spitting out words to him was as common as the pile of used coasters at the end of a Friday night at the pub. Murphy was not only used to it, he actually wouldn’t trust the guy if he didn’t act like an ass during the first meeting.

“You only get early parole if you have a home and a job, correct?”

“So?”

“I can give you both, if you work for me. All my employees live above the bar, there’s a room free. Job, place to lay your head, parole. Get it?”

Those heavy lids lowered more until Murphy could barely see the man’s incredible eyes. “And, what? All I have to do is fuck you?”

Laughing a little, Murphy said, “I don’t think my husband would like that much, so no. And you don’t have to do that with anyone, and in fact, it’s discouraged to even date the customers.”

The lad was right to be skeptical. Murphy wanted him for nefarious reasons, just not what he assumed they were.

“What the hell would I be doing?”

“Bartending, to start, and then, if you can be trusted with bigger jobs, we’ll talk then.”

Again, a twitch of his lips led to a smile that was all disbelief. “Sure. Pouring drinks. That’s all to get me out of here. A job anyone can do.”

“Not exactly anyone, Mr. MacManus.”

Murphy’s phone was pulled out, and he scrolled until he came to the video he wanted to play. After gently placing the phone between them, he started the video playing and watched Liam’s reaction.

Those narrowed, suspicious eyes widened comically, and Murphy barely held back his laughter.

Seeing the bottles being flipped in the air, the other bartenders tossing them back and forth to one another, spinning, shaking the cocktails in the shakers, the blenders buzzing, all the men dancing while pouring the drinks. It was a sight, Murphy knew.

“You want me todo that?”

“Trust me. None of those men came to me with those skills. It’s taken practice, and you get crash courses on the weekends.”

As Liam watched the men setting down the bottles and hopping on top of the bar to dance he sat back in his chair, shaking his head. “You got the wrong guy.”

“Like I said, it takes practice. You will have one night a week on your own, where you simply make drinks and talk to the customers. Then, on Friday and Saturday, you will work with the others, and they will take the focus off you until you are ready to join in the dancing and fun.”

“Fun? That’s…insane, dude!”

Murphy was used to the shock and denial. Every single one of his boys had protested the same way. “Liam…you don’t have to decide right now,” he said, taking his phone back and sliding it into his pocket. “But it will get you out of here. I’m looking for smart guys, guys that want to make a lot of money, and turn their life into something different.”

Staring somewhere on the table, Liam shrugged a little. “What if I can’t do it? I come back inside?”

“No. If you absolutely can’t handle it, I have friends that have businesses that can take you. I promise I’ll do whatever I can to keep you out of here, but that is also up to you. With me, you have a place to live and have men that will help you learn the routines and recipes for the drinks, and more money than you can count. There are opportunities for making more money too, down the line, when, like I said, I know I can trust you. For the other guys? Not so much, but you’ll be out of here, regardless.”

The guy was beautiful. Those gray/green eyes alone were hypnotizing, but his cherub mouth was intoxicating. The shirt he wore that day was even tighter, and it showed he was nicely in shape. The customers would go crazy for him.

“I have, like…how long?”

“To learn? I’d go as long as three months to blend in with the others and learn the drinks.”

“What about the other shit? What if I don’t want to do it?”

Murphy could see that the hidden details of the gig would bother him until he learned what they were. It didn’t matter, though. It was a deal breaker. “As I’ve said. I have friends that would hire you.”

“I get it. So, I’m not fucking old degenerates, right?”

“Right,” Murphy said with a laugh. “Unless you want to find some old degenerate and fuck them. That’s all on you.”

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