AllFreeNovel
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I take a deep breath. “I’m moving next week. I rented an apartment in Manhattan.”
“That’s great,” he says. “Where?” He sits down across from me. It’s so strange to see him sitting. We all call him “Man on Fire” because of the way he tears around the restaurant.
“Wall Street district, on Broad Street.”
He shakes his head and whistles through his teeth. “Wow, that’s a nice area. Must cost a fortune,” he says with a smile.
“I’m subletting, it’s very reasonable,” I assure him.
“So, what do you need? More hours to pay for the place?”
“Not exactly.” I take another deep breath. “I’m giving my notice.”
He looks at me with shock at first, but then a smile crosses his face. “I figured this day would come. I was hoping I had more time,” he sighs.
“You knew?” I gasp.
“Of course I knew. You just got a great job. I didn’t expect you to stay here forever. As much as I would like you to.”
“I don’t want to quit. I love working for you.” I start to tear up. He is, and will always be, the best boss I will ever have.
He gets up and walks behind the bar, grabbing two bottles of beer. Opening them, he brings them back to the table, pushing one of the bottles in front of me. “There will always be a place for you here,” he says with adoration. “I can never replace you, as hard as I might try. You’ll will be missed, Liv.” He picks up his beer bottle. “To your new endeavors. I hope they bring you happiness,” he says, which makes me cry even harder. We clink glasses, and I struggle not to drink the entire bottle in one gulp.
“I’m really going to miss this place,” I say through my tears.
Anthony smiles. “Don’t be sad. I’m not going anywhere.”
“I could guest bartend sometime.”
“Anytime, you know that.” His voice is soft and comforting. I smile, knowing that he means every word. “You need to help me find a replacement, not that you can be replaced,” he corrects under his breath.
“There isn’t anyone here that can take the days?” I ask concerned.
“Of course there are, but they suck.” Oh, wow. “Do you know of any good bartenders that need extra hours or something full time?”
“No, not really.”
“Fine. I’ll hire someone, but you’ll need to help me break them in before you go.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” With that, he stands up and gives me a hug. “Let’s finish cleaning so we can get the hell out of here.”
After a Saturday evening of web surfing to no avail, I head downstairs to dig through the refrigerator for some semblance of dinner. I was lucky enough to find someone to pick up my shift tonight so I can finish packing. Finding nothing in the fridge, I decide to heat up a can of soup. As I come back up the stairs, I hear my phone ringing from under my pillow. It’s Chase.
> “Hello.”
“Hello, beautiful.” Ah, that seductive voice. “How was your day?”
“It’s been okay,” I reply. “I broke the news about the apartment to my mom yesterday.”
“How did she take it?”
“Better than I expected. She wants to buy me a bed.”
“I’m glad it went well. I know how nervous you were about talking to her.”
“I told her I’d be moving next weekend. I need to start packing, and she wants to help.”
“I can come over as well,” he says wistfully.
