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Twice a week we host pub quizzes, and on Fridays, we have karaoke. The good people of Mercury Ridge can’t get enough of trivia and out-of-tune covers of 90’s boy bands and Kelly Clarkson.
Then there are the big sporting events, of course. With big-screen TVs throughout the restaurant, we draw huge crowds for Sunday Night Football, and we’re guaranteed to be slammed during March Madness.Pun intended. Throw St. Patrick’s Day on top of the NCAA basketball schedule, and it’s the perfect storm.
With less than an hour to opening, I check in with the bartenders. They’re each armed with a tube of green food coloring. I’ve never been a fan of the tradition of serving green beer for St. Patrick’s Day, but after last year’s catastrophe, Iloatheit.
“One drop goes a long way,” I remind them for the hundredth time. They all nod dutifully, but there’s a glint in Mitch’s eye that worries me. “I mean it.”
A slow grin stretches across his face. “Sure thing, boss.”
“I have my eye on you,” I warn before pushing through the swinging doors to the kitchen.
In anticipation of selling lots of Leprechaun Slice pizzas, Jared’s helping the kitchen crew make pesto. I join one of the prep stations to help slice and dice green peppers.
I try to avoid staring at Jared. But seriously, the man is impossible to ignore.How can he make chopping basil look so unbelievably sexy?
I feel his eyes on me, and I know he’s wondering what I was going to ask him earlier.
Good question.I’m not entirely sure myself.
I think I was going to ask if he ever wishes he’d left Mercury Ridge. Which would have beenreallystupid, since it’s the last thing I want him to do.
Surely, there’s a way for me to help him chase his dreams without encouraging him to move to New England.
Maybe I can entice him to be a full business partner? It was always my plan to make him a partner, but after I realized I was in love with him, I haven’t been able to think of the wordpartnerwithout my cheeks flaming brighter than Mt. Vesuvius before it obliterated Pompeii. If I speak the word aloud, will Jared see straight through me, realizing that I want him to be my partner inallthings?
And he may have zero interest in being my business partner, anyway. The business is successful, and even turns a profit, albeit a small one. By becoming a partner, he'll assume an awful lot of risk without any guarantee of an increase in income.
He’d probably be much better off going to law school…
“Are you listening, boss?” Bryce, the head cook’s voice cuts through my thoughts.
“She’s on a different planet,” another cook says.
“Earth to Mikki,” Jared teases.
Their words click into place and I look up to see everyone in the kitchen grinning at me. I can’t help but notice that Jared’s smile doesn’t reach his eyes, though. He knows something is off with me.
Pull it together, Mikki. You’re the boss, and this is a big night.
I paste a smile onto my face. “What? Can’t a girl daydream for a minute without getting called out on it?”
“So, youwerelistening!” Bryce says.
I shake my head. “’Fraid not.”
Jared smiles again, and this time his eyes crinkle at the corners.A genuine smile.“A winning lottery ticket was sold at the Mercury Ridge Mini-Mart. Bryce is fantasizing about how he’d spend his winnings.”
My eyes grow wide. “Someone in Mercury Ridge won the lottery? Wasn’t it up to sixty million or something?”
“No one won the jackpot, but there were several million-dollar winners. And one of them is from Mercury Ridge,” Bryce says.
“We don’t know that for sure,” Jared points out. “It could have been someone just passing through.”
“Well, it wasn’t me. But a man can still dream…” Bryce’s face is wistful. “I’d spend a full year traveling the world.”
Tossing my diced peppers into a bowl, I reach for another and start slicing. “You don’t need a million dollars to travel the world.”
Bryce grins. “You do if you want to wine and dine supermodels in every country.”
