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What a shitty Monday.
My counseling sessions were a fiasco. My supervisor threatened to pull his sponsorship if I didn’t change my methods. No idea what that means, but I have to talk to him tomorrow after he’s rested.
This is the last stretch—one hundred and seventy-two hours to go. Walking the few steps from my apartment door to the Silver Moon, I pull my parka closer to cover myself from the rain. Thankfully, today the back door is open.
“Hey, Reed,” I holler from the back entrance, looking at the pile of boxes. Weird. Usually, Joe, the other bartender, is the one who moves the inventory around. Where is he?
“Anyone home?”
“T, bring one of the boxes by the entrance, please,” Reed calls back. I bend down to pick up two cardboard boxes and head to the front of the bar.
“Where is Joe?” I place them on the floor, grab the box cutter, and cut through the tape. “Is he sick?”
I hope he has one of those twenty-four-hour flu things and he’s back tomorrow.
“No, he got married,” Reed responds nonchalantly. I tilt my head, waiting for more. “He called earlier, Stella and he eloped in Vegas. They’re on their honeymoon.”
Stella is one of the waitresses. She and Joe have been dating for about a year. Never knew how serious they were, but they drip sweetness and hotness when they’re together. That’s cool they got married. Wait a minute, honeymoon. We’re losing two people for how long?
“Are you sure about them being married?” I ask. “Because that’s… huge. Married. Wow. When are we expecting them back?”
Reed stops stocking the shelves and looks at me. “They don’t know yet, T. He mentioned a long honeymoon and perhaps finding a new place to live.”
I’m not panicking, but losing two people is going to be dreadful.
Pointing at the papers on top of the bar, Reed continues, “We have to cover their shifts. For now, I want to hold off on any hiring. What if I hire new people and they come back in a week?”
Okay, it’s probably time to sound the alarm and run. Without them, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays will be chaos.
“It’s temporary.” Reed’s voice doesn’t sound reassuring. If anything, I think he’s more concerned than I am.
This is the moment when I should pull my weight. “It’s fine. We can do it.How can I help you?”
From now until they’re back, I’m going to work every day at the bar. The promise of paid overtime is a bonus. Reed already talked to the other two waiters, and they’ll take some of Stella’s shifts. He adds that maybe some nights, he’ll send me home right after closing since I’d be the one opening the place. That adds a couple of hours I can use to work on my jewelry.
This is the silver lining. The shitty Monday finally clears.
I think?
I glance at the vodka bottles and wonder if I should quit before I push myself too far and break down.
ChapterTwenty-Five
Thea
I wipethe counter for the twentieth time in the past ten minutes.
No one mentioned Tuesdays were so slow.
It’s eleven, and I’ve served only a handful of patrons. If only I had someone to chat with, but no one is drinking by the bar. Though, suddenly my heart skips a couple of beats. My eyes turn to the door and in walks a handsome man. His eyes land on me, and he flashes me his hundred-watt grin.
Matt.
His hypnotizing gaze doesn’t allow me to move.
“Hello, Butterfly,” he says, cocking his head to the side as he watches me.
The warm and fuzzy feelings that he’s inducing inside my body remind me that I have to compose and force myself to stop staring.
