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Chapter One

Reid

“Hey! Hey bartender! Hey!” The words cut through the noise of the bar and grated on my ears. Instead of telling the speaker to fuck off like I wanted to, I had to put a smile on my face and move over to where the woman was snapping her fingers and yelling at me.

“What can I get for you?” I asked for what felt like the thousandth time that night.

The woman gave me a flirty look and leaned in. “Surprise me.”

Great. My favorite. The chances that I’d make something she wouldn’t like and would then complain about were high. Luckily, this was not my first rodeo. Figuratively. I’d never actually been to a rodeo.

“You got it,” I told her with a wink, and she giggled. Most of the time, I didn’t mind that part of my job involved flirting with customers to get better tips. But some nights? Like tonight? All I wanted was to go home and not have to talk or smile at anyone for at least ten hours.

Alas, I still had three hours left in my shift and they were going to be brutal as the night wore on and the alcohol flowed. I had no issues with cutting anyone off, and the bouncers would back me up, but still.

I made the woman one of our signature drinks that was a universal crowd pleaser and she declared it was the best drink she’d ever had, so that was something. Hopefully she’d also tell me that with a generous tip.

As the night wore on, I switched my body to function on autopilot, moving back and forth, mixing drinks and wiping spills and keeping track of the other bartenders. It was Saturday night and even though it was the end of April, there wasn’t much else to do in the city on a Friday night but to slog through the slush and get warm and wasted in a bar. If I didn’t work here, it might be something I’d do. Not every weekend, but if I was with my friends then I would. Although, now that two of my closest friends were happily coupled, they weren’t as much fun to go out with and I’d told them that to their faces.

At least I still had Jo. She was single as hell while she fought her way through grad school, and I was single because I hated most people. That, and my one and only brush with serious romance ended up earning me one spectacularly broken heart. Never again.

“Can I tell you a secret?” a voice slurred in what she thought was a whisper but was actually a tipsy yell.

“Sure,” I told her, smiling. She could barely focus her eyes so if she was trying to order another drink, she was out of luck. I’d be ordering her a car to take her home. I glanced over and caught one of the bouncer’s eyes in case I needed some backup.

“I’m not even, I’m not even a lesbian,” she tried to tell me but ended up telling just about everyone.

“Okay,” I said.

“I wish I was. Men are just the worsttttt, you know? My fiancé cheated on me with his fucking coworker. She’s a whore.”

I nodded because this was also part of my job: coddling people who got emotional when they drank. I wouldn’t say that I was a therapist, but I did a lot of listening to people’s problems.

“I’m so sorry to hear that,” I said. “Are you here by yourself?”

She shook her head and nearly knocked herself over. “My friend Shhhara is with me.”

Well where the hell was she? Come get your friend, Shhhara.

“There you are!” a voice said as a woman came over to my new friend.

“Shhharaaaaa,” the other girl said, throwing her arms around her friend and almost falling into her. “I’m gonna get another drink.”

“No, baby, you’re not. We’re gonna go home, okay?”

“You good?” I asked Sara, who looked to be steady on her feet.

“Why aren’t I gayyyyyy?” the other woman wailed.

Sara gave me a sheepish look.

“She won’t even remember in the morning,” I said.

“I would hope not,” Sara said, dragging her friend away from the bar.

Shaking my head, I moved on to the next person and realized it was Jo.

“What’s a girl like you doing in a place like this?” I asked.