Page 15 of Broken Rules
“You never know,” she said coyly. Given that her friend currently hated all men, perhaps William didn’t have a shot. Brandi was painfully beautiful, and despite their bathroom pep talk about ditching bad boys, she may take one look at William—all skin and bones, and only twenty-two—and turn her lovely nose up at him. Or...
Savannah lifted her shoulders. “Brandi just might surprise you. Anyway, she needs a nice guy to ask her out. I don’t know if she’ll say yes, but the compliment should improve her mood and soften her a little.” She smiled. “Brandi just needs a boost, and you can give her that, which will, in turn, give everyone a break from her attitude. And hey,” she said, flashing William a smile. “You might just get lucky.”
Behind her Wally laughed. “Very lucky.”
Savannah winked at the head chef before she turned on her heel and headed back to the bar.
The rest of the night finished off smoothly. Savannah was upstairs in the office when Brandi turned in her cash.
“How did you do?” Savannah asked, accepting the thick wad of bills wrapped in Brandi’s cash-out slip.
“I’m walking with one twenty. Not bad for a Monday night.”
Savannah nodded. “Not bad at all. How are you feeling?”
Brandi smiled and tossed her long, dark hair off her shoulder. “Great, but I can’t chat. I have to run. I’m going out.”
Savannah suppressed her smile. “Oh, with who?”
Brandi shrugged. “Just one of the guys from the kitchen. You wanna grab a drink with us?”
Savannah held up her glass of wine. “I already have one, but thanks. I still have to finish the money and input the specials for tomorrow. I’ll be here for a while.”
Brandi bent at the waist and gave her a hug. “Sorry I was a handful today.”
Savannah squeezed her back. “No worries. We all have shitty days. Go have fun with William.”
Brandi pulled away, her eyes wide. “How did you know?”
Smiling, Savannah winked at her. “Nothing goes on around here without me knowing. He’s a nice guy. Have fun.”
Brandi perked up. “Look at me dating a good guy for a change.”
“Let me know how it goes,” Savannah said. “I’ve been thinking about trying one of those myself.”
“Will do. I’m the last woman standing, by the way. Everybody else has taken off. Have a goodnight, Savvy.”
“Hold on,” Savannah said, causing her friend to pause. “Do me a favor. Leave by the back door, but double check to make sure the front door is locked. The new hostess can be pretty forgetful.” Savannah raised her eyes to the ceiling while her arms slumped at her sides. “Speaking of forgetful, what’s her name?”
Brandi smiled. “Heather, and I’ll double check the doors. See you in the AM.”
Savannah watched Brandi head out of the office with an extra skip in her step and sighed.
Great.
Savannah crossed her arms on her desk and buried her face in her elbow. Brandi was going out with a nice guy while all she could do was fantasize about an actual bad guy—not just a bad boy with a reputation for breaking hearts, but a legitimate criminal.
She sat up. “I suck,” she said out loud.
“I beg to differ,” a deep voice said.
Savannah jumped out of her chair and threw herself against the side wall, her heart pounding. “Who’s there,” she blurted, eying the open door to her office, which led out into the dry-storage area. Her heart was pounding. Brandi had said that everyone had already left. An image of Skeevie Stevie and his leering smile flashed in her mind.
“Oh God,” she gasped and snaked her hand out, seizing the phone. She dialed 911 the instant before a familiar masked face appeared in the doorway.
She froze. “It’s you!”
“This is 911. Where’s your emergency,” a woman’s voice said through the receiver.
