Page 29 of A Taste of Trouble

Her regular was being especially hostile tonight, but maybe he was right. Her customers were used to top-notch service. They never had to ask for their drinks. But tonight, Liv was too preoccupied with Jake. This hottie was bad news all around. Maybe Meg should swoop in and grab his attention.

“I'll be right there, Burt. Keep your panties on.” Liv dropped the drinks in front of the two men and sauntered over. There was no mistaking Jake's stare—it burned a trail down her back to rest on her backside, and she had to suppress the urge to wiggle her ass as she sashayed away.

“Burt, you have half a beer left. What's with the 'tude?” Liv poured him another and plunked it in front of him. “Are you going to be a problem for me tonight?”

“Bah!” He waved her away, his old man moustache wet from the foam of his draft. “Go and do your job. I'm sure other people are just as thirsty as I am.”

The evening progressed with little excitement. Meg was doing well on the floor and Liv still had a bar that was two customers deep. Chris and Jake had hit it off and were pounding back the drinks. Toward the end of the night, Jake had switched from beer to rye and Coke.

Every once in a while, Liv would look over and see them both staring. She wondered what they could possibly be talking about.

He'd gone from a hopeful one-night stand she'd never see again, to a permanent fixture in her everyday thoughts. She'd never felt like this before. Was this what a relationship was all about? Constantly thinking about and analyzing the other person's actions? If it was, she knew she'd made the right choice by avoiding it all these years.

Jake was just a crush. He was sexy, but still just a crush. She got aroused at the memory of his hands on her body and his breath on her neck, but that was all superficial. She could find pleasure with any man. It didn't have to be Jake. But deep down, Liv knew that wasn't the truth. Something in her gut made her want to explore all he had to offer.

And if he did offer, she wouldn't be able to turn him down.

“Liv!” One of her customers yelled from her left. “Can we get some drinks down here?”

Snapping back to reality, she headed over to serve her customers. Despite how odd it felt, she didn't stop the smile tugging her cheeks toward her ears.

But the moment she glanced over at Jake, overwhelming heat flowed through her body, parking itself at her core.

Luckily, her brain won

out over her libido and logic slipped its way inside. Maybe these feelings were symptomatic of the stress she was under from the bakery. That was something she had to consider. Maybe, to make herself feel better, she built Jake up to be some sort of superman. There was only one way to find out.

Unfortunately, Jake didn't leave Chris's side all night. Her plan to get him alone looked bleaker by the minute.

“Are you ready to cash out with me, Burt?” Liv asked the surly old man. “I called you a cab. It should be here any minute.”

“I paid my bill already.” His voice was angry.

“No, you didn't, Burt.” Liv shook her head, trying her best to keep her cool. “Your bill is right here in front of you.”

He waved her off again. “Bah, I paid.”

“What's going on with you tonight, Burt?” She felt anxious, nervous. She'd never let Burt get to her before. She looked over and saw Jake watching intently. “I'm just going to put you on the wall of shame and then Mr. McLean will come after you. You don't want that, do you?”

“I would rather pay him than you,” he grumbled.

Anger rose up before she could contain it. “Just pay the bill, Burt!”

“Is there a problem here?” Jake had joined the two of them. She didn't even notice him get up from his stool.

“No problem. I've got it under control.”

“Horrible. She's horrible. Look how she treats customers.” Burt was looking at Jake. “Why haven't they fired her yet?”

“I don't think it's very nice of you to be talking about Liv that way,” Jake said.

She appreciated his concern, but it fell on deaf ears. Burt wouldn't remember this tomorrow.

“I will say whatever I want. She's a bitch!”

Jake recoiled at Burt's comment. Liv took it in stride. This wasn't new, and was the perfect example of why she didn't go that extra mile to be nice to people.

“Hey, now. That is uncalled for. I've seen her serve you all night and you barely had to ask.”

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