Her Dirty Bartenders (Men at Work #5) - Mika Lane Page 0,4

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Two of them got to their feet and sauntered over.

“Sorry guys,” I said, lying out of my ass. I wasn’t sorry. “We’re short-staffed tonight.”

“It’s all good, bro,” one of them said, balancing three glasses in his hands.

“Maze,” Marni called. “We’re ready for another round.”

Damn. This could get ugly.

I leaned toward them. “Look, ladies. I usually mind my own business. But since I know you, Marni, and see you almost every day at the gym, I know you’re somewhat health conscious. So, before I pour you two another round, are you sure that’s what you want? These martinis are awfully high-octane.”

She looked at her friend as they silently egged each other on.

They both nodded enthusiastically.

As I figured they would.

“Thanks, Maze,” she said. “Working alone tonight?”

I wiped down the bar with the disgusting towel I’d been using all night. Without a barback, it was almost impossible to keep the place neat and tidy. “Yeah. A couple people didn’t show.”

She held her glass up to me “Well, cheers. You’re doing a kick ass job.”

They giggled.

“So, Maze,” Marni’s friend said, “how long… have you had this… place?”

Christ, she wasn’t even halfway through her second and she was already slurring.

“Coming up on three years.”

For three years I’d been working my damn ass off. But I had to say, the money was fucking great. A few more years of this, and I could take my tired ass down to the Caribbean if I wanted to.

Although my business partners would probably lose their shit if I bailed.

I got to work polishing the glasses just coming out of the dishwasher, my absolute least favorite job in the world. But without a barback, the water spots weren’t going to come out on their own.

What was further fucking with my mood was that I was dreading tomorrow. The club was closed on Mondays, which meant inventory and other paperwork had to be tackled. My partners and I rotated these tasks, and it was my turn. That shit was deadly boring, and I was about the least detail-oriented person in the world. I always managed to screw something up. I was surprised they still even let me do the shit, that’s how many times I’d messed up.

I wasn’t doing it on purpose, with the hope they’d give up on me and do it themselves.

Honest.

The one saving grace about Monday, though, was that I got to teach my bartending class. Now, that got me out of bed in the morning. It was lively and fun, and we always had a great time. So, all was not lost.

“Um, Maze?” Marni’s friend called.

Their glasses were empty.

“That is your name, right? Maze,” she asked, dragging it out slowly.

Well. I hadn’t looked at her long enough to notice her gorgeous eyes, a sort of light brown with a dark ring around the edges of the iris. They angled up on the outer edges, giving her a slightly exotic appearance.

“Maze?” she asked again.

“Oh. Yeah, sorry.”

Busted for staring.

“Yes, Maze is my name. What’s yours again? Stella?”

She shook her head. “Just Stell.”

Jesus. I was going to have to get the scoop on this one from Marni later.

She held up her glass, clumsily waving it around. “We’re ready for another round,” she sang.

They leaned into each other and giggled again.

“All right, ladies.”

I knew better than to offer any advice. Once people had started drinking and the buzz set in, the ‘maybe I should stop now’ sensibility sailed right out the window.

Three martinis each? They were going to be a fucking mess.

And they were.

4

Maze

It was coming up on nine o’clock, which was when we closed on Sunday. Most of our patrons had left, except a few stragglers like Marni and Stell.

“Maze,” Marni slurred. “Can we get one more each? Please?” she begged, pushing her empty glass toward me.

“I’m going to the bathroom,” Stell said in a garbled voice. “Which way?”

Marni pointed. “Up the stairs.”

We watched her stumble across the floor, reaching for every table and chair along the way that might possibly help her balance.

Marni shook her head happily. “Love that girl. She’s my ride or die bitch. Seriously. Always has been. Always will be. You know what I mean, Maze?” she asked, tearing up.

Christ. The last thing I wanted to deal with was a crying drunk.

“Hey, Marni, I was thinking, maybe you’ve had enough—”

“Nonsense!” she yelled.

Okay, she was going from teary-eyed to belligerent. Great.

I turned back to putting liquor bottles in a locked cage, hoping to stall for Stell’s return. Surely I could talk some sense into her.

Right?

“Oh shit,