Page 137 of On The Rocks

Annette flipped her hand under mine and gripped it back. “Tell me.”

“There’s not much to tell.”

“C’mon, don’t lie to my face.”

I pressed my lips together, then blew out raspberries. “So, my mom was a bartender. How I learned all of this.”

She nodded. “Okay, that makes sense.”

“Her name was Daphne. She was a helluva bartender. Nothing fancy, just super no-nonsense and efficient.”

“Like you.”

My chest ached for a minute before it bloomed with warmth. “Yeah. I guess I am. Anyway, she had me pretty young and my dad wasn’t in the picture. I never even met him, so it was always just us against the world. But as we both know, the world can bepretty shitty. She had to work crazy shifts and couldn’t always find a babysitter.”

“So you’ve been in a bar since you were a kid.”

“You got it. I knew how to build a Guinness before I turned twelve.”

“Illegal as hell.”

“Yeah, but she mostly worked at little neighborhood bars in Arizona. Kids were doing a helluva lot worse things.”

“So, you want to open your own neighborhood bar? Kinda like the taproom.”

I shrugged. “I really don’t know anymore. I thought I wanted a club, but that didn’t feel right either. The place was perfect and...” I sighed.

“And it wasn’t.”

“Nope.”

She squeezed my hands. “Is it because you found your place already?”

“Maybe.”

“So tell your mom to get her butt out here. We’ll put her to work.”

My eyes filled. “I wish.”

“Oh, no. Did I put my foot in it?”

I laughed and flicked away the sudden tears. “My mom died when I was eighteen.”

“Jesus.” Annette dragged me into a hug. I was stiff for a minute, then leaned into her.

I’d been alone for so damn long. And I liked it dammit.

This was Griffin’s fault. I was turning into a smushball and it was all his damn fault.

I patted her back then eased away. “It’s okay. It was over ten years ago now.”

“It’s never okay. I might fight with my mom like we’re trying out for a reality show, but she’s my mom.”

“There’s an image.”

She shrugged. “Nancy Stern is a force.”

“So was my mom. She ran a bar with an iron fist.”

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