Page 140 of On The Rocks

My gaze lowered to his lips, then rose to meet his gaze. “I’m working.”

“So?”

I pushed him away. “Later, ace.” From the corner of my eye I noticed the line at the outdoor bar. “Gotta go.”

“Did you get a break tonight?”

I glanced back at him. “You want to pull taps tonight?”

“I can.”

I arched a brow. “Is that right?”

“I bartended when I was younger.”

“Well, then.” I grabbed his arm. “Then I have use of you after all.”

“Nice, Lenny.”

I snickered and pushed him behind the outdoor bar. Since we didn’t do mixed drinks there, he couldn’t screw it up.

“CJ, you have a new barback.”

Her bright blue eyes widened. “I can use the help.”

“So, I’m just a barback? Rude.”

CJ giggled. “We’ll see how you do, Griffin.”

I left them to it and did the rounds as I’d intended. I made sure there wasn’t any people getting busy in the more private spaces. The memory of me and Griffin on one of those Adirondack chairs made me blush, and speed along the checkpoints.

With an armful of empties, I strode back to the main patio and did a quick scan of people. My brain was whirling with details and ideas about ideas I wanted to bring up to Kira for additional seating in the patio. The Adirondack chairs were great, but they took up a lot of space.

Maybe a half wall along the perimeter of the patio would be great for extra seating.

A blond came into focus from behind a big group of guys.

I frowned. Why did I recognize her?

Her long, almost white hair fluttered in the breeze. The dark-lined eyes made my stomach drop. No way.

I set the empties down on a table and threaded my way through the crowd.

A tall guy in a Ford baseball cap tapped my arm. “Hey, can we get another round?”

“Sure,” I said absently. “I’ll send someone over.” I slipped by him and the blond was gone.

It couldn’t be the same woman from the club in Florida.

I did a full 360º turn, but no blond.

Man, maybe I did need that break after all.

The memory of the odd conversation in the bathroom made me uneasy. She’d spoken to me as if she knew Griffin.

Which, I suppose she could have.

God, I was dumb. It was easy to forget Griffin was a famous rockstar some days. Here, he was just Griffin. Helpful, friendly, and more dedicated to the orchard than most actual employees.

---