Kickstart My Heart (Burgers and Brew Crue #1) - Lacey Black Page 0,3
to hire both and train them together. This way, if one doesn’t work out, we still have the other to fill the hole.”
“Day shift?” I ask. For some reason, it’s harder to fill that shift than the night one. Nights are covered by those who attend the nearby community college mostly. The tips are slightly better, since we’re usually busier for dinner than lunch. But don’t count our noon crowd out. This place is still plenty busy, and those servers make damn good money too.
“Yep,” Jameson confirms, jumping right in and helping me count cases of brew.
Our Server Manager, Gigi, is an older woman with decades of experience. She handles the training and scheduling of our servers, and also works the lunch crowd with two others. She’s fun, yet incredibly efficient, and isn’t afraid to put Jasper in his place when he starts to get a little out of line. We love her, that’s for sure.
We spend the next thirty minutes inventorying, and while I head to my small office to place this week’s order, Jameson heads off to tune his guitar on our small corner stage. We don’t hire bands, usually, but we don’t need to. Jameson is one hell of a musician, and his acoustic sessions on Friday and Saturday nights draw a damn good crowd.
When the orders are placed and my stomach growls, reminding me I haven’t eaten lunch yet, I slip out of my small space and head down the hallway. My destination is the kitchen to grab a quick snack before our owners’ meeting, but I’m stopped in my tracks. There’s a woman walking in the opposite direction, and for some reason, I’m enthralled. Her long, blonde hair hangs down her back in long waves and her black pants form to her ass like a second skin. And her hips—fuck—the sway of her hips has my cock getting hard in no time flat. For some reason, I can’t seem to make myself move my feet. I just stand there, watching her go.
Just before she pushes through the door that leads outside, she stops. Slowly, she turns around, and the craziest thing happens. I’m struck by lightning. Not literally, but damn, does it feel like it. My heart is pounding as our eyes meet from about fifteen feet apart. Even through the slightly darkened hallway, I can see the emerald green in her eyes. She has the creamiest white skin, almost too pale in comparison to my darker coloring, and her makeup is subtle, not nearly as smoky and dark as I’m accustomed to seeing here.
She’s simply breathtaking, and I want her as mine.
“Hey, man,” Isaac says, coming up behind me and slapping me on the back. “Did you meet Mallory Sargant?”
“Mallory?” I ask, my eyes still glued to the beauty before me.
“Yeah, Mallory. She’s our new lunch server.”
Just like that, I’m doused with a bucket of ice water. My heart drops into my shoes and my shoulders probably visibly sag. She’s a server. Of course she is. Mallory is an employee of Burgers and Brew, which can only mean one thing.
She’s off-limits.
Chapter Two
Mallory
Blue eyes.
That’s all I notice. The most unique blue eyes I’ve ever seen. They’re light, yet have a darker navy ring around them. They’re magnificent, really, and I can’t seem to look away, even though I try.
“Mallory, this is Walker Meyer, one of the owners. You’ll see him over on the bar side if you need alcoholic drinks, but Gigi will go through all of it in more depth tomorrow morning,” Isaac says.
I finally pull my eyes away from the tall, muscular guy beside him and smile at my new boss. “Great. I look forward to it. Walker, it was a pleasure to meet you,” I reply, stepping forward and extending my hand.
Walker places his large hand in mind. When our palms meet, an electric current zips through my fingers and courses through my veins. It’s the most shocking and exhilarating sensation I’ve ever experienced. “Pleasure, Mallory.” The way he says my name, it’s like that first lick of an ice cream cone on a hot summer day. I just want to…sigh.
And maybe ask him to say it again.
“Well, Mallory, we’ll let you go. You’ll meet the rest of the team tomorrow morning. See you at ten,” Isaac says cheerfully, throwing me a little wave.
“Thank you, Mr. Thompson,” I reply, turning back to the doorway.
Isaac chuckles behind me. “Just Isaac, Mallory. Isaac is fine.”
“Right. Sorry.” I feel a slight blush return to my