Page 94 of On The Rocks

“What a way to go.” Justin sighed wistfully, then he laughed at my hard look. “Don’t worry about me, man. I already tried to show my interest there.”

My shoulders tightened. “Is that right?”

“She sunk my battleship, if you will.”

Landon rolled his eyes. “Maybe I don’t want to take a job, after all.”

“Yeah, you’ll have to get on board with lame jokes if you work here.” I relaxed. “And if you want to pick up some extra hours, we’ll be looking for help over at the concert stage down the road.”

“Man, I guess tonight turned into a far better deal than I thought. Bye, Ashley, hello jobs.”

“I’m going to get back to it.”

Justin nodded and the two of them kept talking. I wasn’t sure if Kira would be on board with the way Justin did his hiring, but I had a feeling both Kira and Beckett were used to his impulsive ways.

I buzzed by CJ and the outdoor bar then I headed back inside to the two bars set-up inside. The crowd had thinned considerably, but Lennon was nowhere to be found. Maybe she was in the back. I headed for the storage area with the kegs. They’d given me the code since I helped out more than not.

She wasn’t there.

The kitchen was closed, but maybe she needed a little quiet. I pushed through the swinging doors, but the kitchen was dark,and the staff already gone for the night. The music wasn’t quite as pulsing back here, and I could actually think. I went down the hall and tried the door to Kira’s office.

Locked and no light from under the door.

A tiny niggle of worry wormed into my gut.

She wouldn’t leave with how busy it was. I went farther down the hall to the walk-in fridge. Then I heard a voice.

“Hey! Anyone!”

I hurried down the hall. “Lennon?”

“Oh my God.” She slapped at the door. “Hurry up and let me out of here, please!”

Her voice was a little strained. How the hell long had she been back here? I tried the handle, but it was locked. “What’s the code?”

“3-2-3-8, wait, no.” I heard a thunk against the door. “Shit.”

“Hey, darlin’. It’s okay.”

She blew out a breath. “3-3-2-8.”

I punched them as the light went green. I swung it open, and she flew out and into my arms, knocking me back a step. “Hey...” I coasted a hand down her hair to her back. “It’s okay.”She was trembling. “It’s okay.”

“Sorry.” She gulped in a breath, her face pressed into my chest. “Just a second.”

“How long were you back here?”

“I don’t even know. I didn’t have my phone.”

I wrapped my arms tighter around her. “It’s okay now.”

“Sorry. Just brought back a few old memories.” She pressed her cheek against my heart as her shaking subsided.

“Want to talk about it?”

“Not really.”

“Okay.” I rubbed my hand up and down her back.

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