Page 17 of Guarded Secrets
“How are you holding up, prom queen? This job isn’t for sissies.”
Ah, there it was. Josie had been unhappy ever since Keeley’d shown up, and she’d learned her high school rival was her new coworker.
Back in the day, Josie’d tried bullying her, but Keeley’d had a tight friend group who’d stuck up for her. She recalled overhearing teachers talking and Josie being described as rough around the edges. The assessment seemed right.
Keeley could get along with pretty much anybody, but Josie’d made that a challenge. She saw everything as a competition, whether for swim team captain (which had gone to Josie), GPA (an easy victory for Keeley), or, during their senior year, prom queen.
Josie had not taken it well when Keeley’d been chosen by the student body and earned the prom queen crown, and she had no doubt Josie and her coven of mean girls were responsible for the Montaigne house being TP’ed, eggs thrown against the windows, and a crude chalk drawing of an erect penis with the word “slut” showing up on the garage door the following night.
So here they were, both working at Easy Money, where right off the bat Josie’d telegraphed the message loud and clear that Owen was hers and Keeley better not even think about looking in that direction.
“It’s Keeley, and I’m holding up fine.”
Josie had gone the opposite direction on the Easy Money polo and was wearing a shirt a size too small. She’d left the buttons undone, and the material pulled tight across her chest showcased her impressive boobs. Points for Owen that he kept his gaze well above the danger zone when he took the check holders with credit cards from Josie.
Cyndi Lomeli, who’d been a couple years ahead of them in school, sat at a stool two seats away. She leaned toward Keeley to whisper conspiratorially, “Let me know if you need any pointers, sweetie. I come in here so often I bet I could run the place myself. Or if Owen doesn’t treat you right. He can be a grump sometimes, but he’s really a big teddy bear.”
Owen was a big teddy bear? She’d seen him moody, growly, and intense. But not once had she thought he acted like a big, cuddly teddy bear. She smiled. “Thanks, Cyndi.”
“Owen, honey,” Josie cooed as she leaned over the bar, cleavage on full display. “My car is acting up so I had to walk here today. You think you could give me a ride home after we close?” She gave an obvious wink. “I could make it worth your while.”
Owen set drinks on Dion’s tray then took the check holders to Josie. Dion, a college student with beautiful brown eyes and a Don Juan vibe, was the other server for the evening.
Owen nodded to Josie. “I’ll get you home.”
When Owen moved down the bar to mix a drink, Josie turned to Keeley and Cyndi, a smirk on her lips. “And that, ladies, is how it’s done. See the big hands and big feet on that man? You know what that means, right? I’m gonna get me some of that tonight.”
Barf. That kind of predatory pursuit had never appealed to Keeley, but she wondered if it might appeal to Owen. What did she know? Maybe he was a man-whore and was into it.
Ignoring the unsettled feeling, and unwilling to attribute it to jealousy, she stretched her legs. She needed to build up her stamina if she was going to be on her feet and on the move for long stretches of time.
Owen had started her bussing tables, taking the empties through the swinging door. Three cooks worked at the grill and prep station at the far end of the kitchen. Closer to the door was the stainless sink and a heavy-duty dishwasher. She’d already pushed through four loads, mostly glasses.
Wrangling middle schoolers was exhausting, but waitressing was exhaustion on a whole different level. Her mind was still spinning over what had transpired over the past two days.
Was it only yesterday that she’d packed her teacher things into her car, ending up stranded on the mountain until rescue came in the form of the grumpy, sexy bar owner?
And this morning she’d been there when her friends learned they were all pregnant. That was mind-blowing in itself.
And now, only hours later, she was working in a bar for the grumpy, sexy bar owner who thought she might be in danger. Unreal.
In the last hour, Owen had relented and given her two tables. She’d been to Easy Money often enough as a customer she was already familiar with the menu.
In addition to beer and hard cider, the bar served hard liquor and basic cocktails. So far, taking orders had gone pretty well. She’d messed up only once, delivering a gin martini because she’d neglected to specify the customer had ordered one with vodka.
Owen set a glass of ice water in front of her with a scowl. “Drink it.”
“Bossy much, boss-man?” That earned her another scowl.
She felt like she’d been moving nonstop, carrying trays heavy with drinks and clearing the empties. At a guess, she’d walked back and forth across the floor to the bar at least a hundred times. She arched her back again. Maybe two hundred.
She spun on the stool to take in the ambiance. Easy Money was a popular hangout for both regulars and tourists who visited the mountain towns of California’s gold country where fortunes had been made as often as dreams dashed in the gold rush following the discovery of gold in 1848.
A glass-block three-quarter wall separated the dining area for those who preferred a quieter atmosphere.
Keeley thought Easy Money looked charming with its open beams and the long mahogany bar gleaming in the warm light. Theplace had been in operation since before the turn of the twentieth century, and she liked how Owen respected its history. He’d made large prints from black-and-white photos showing the early days of the town and hung them in tasteful groupings along the walls.
She also liked how Owen supported local producers, including Walker’s Cider Mill Hard line of hard ciders: apple, apple cinnamon, and pear. The glass Owen was filling was for a customer sitting on Cyndi’s other side, who’d ordered a hard cider for the first time. Sometimes converts were made one sale at a time.
