"Nope." He let the P pop at the end and smiled at me.
"Then why did you change your plans?"
He quirked an eyebrow at me. "Why do you think, Addilyn?"
"Because of me?" He nodded, and the butterflies went swarming in my belly again. "So you want to spend more time with me while you're here?"
"That's an understatement if I ever heard one."
I glanced over his shoulder at the guy he'd scared away. "If you keep coming in while I'm on shift, you're not going to do me any favors when it comes to tips," I grumbled. "And I was kind of hoping I'd be able to pad my checking account by working extra over Spring Break."
"I'll more than make up for it," he promised, and I had a feeling he didn't just mean the tips I'd get from him.
"Promises, promises," I teased.
"I will always keep my word when it comes to you."
"Wow," I breathed, speechless for the first time in my life. He said it with such conviction; I couldn't help but believe him.
The bachelorette party called me down to the other end of the bar, and the spell was broken. I made them a round of blowjob shots and took a couple of photos of the group with the maid of honor's phone. When I was done, Dane was on his cell phone. He was speaking softly, but in a firm tone, and I caught the tail end of his conversation when I walked up.
"It's the best offer you're going to get. Do us both a favor and take it." The huge grin that spread across his face made me think whoever was on the other end of the call had decided to say yes. "Don't forget, the deal hinges on you taking care of the matter we discussed. Immediately."
He listened for a moment longer. "It's a pleasure doing business with you."
"A business call at"-I looked over at the Sweetwater Brewery clock on the wall-"almost midnight?"
"I'm not very patient when it comes to something I want."
I was saved from responding to that loaded statement by the ringing of the phone on the wall behind the bar.
"Club Cache. This is Addilyn. How can I help you?"
"Hey, Addilyn. It's Bob Stone." I held back a deep sigh as I waited to hear what the owner wanted. Calls from him generally left me feeling pissed off, like last month when he decided we needed to wear sexy leprechaun outfits for St. Patrick's Day. The guy was a moron, but I couldn't complain too much since he hired me on as a bartender when I was only nineteen and had no experience. In that case, his habit of thinking with his little brain worked in my favor. Since then, not so much. "Listen, I'm making some changes to the schedule for the week. And … well … I need you to drop some of your shifts to open space up."
My shoulders drooped. "How many?" I asked softly, hoping he meant one or two at most.
"All of them, from now through next Sunday."
"Are you kidding me?" I snapped. "That's all of my Spring Break, Bob. I picked up several additional shifts. I'm supposed to work every single day between now and then."
"I know," he sighed, sounding like I was the one putting him out when he'd just yanked the rug out from under me. "That's why I'm going to cut you a check for all the hours you were supposed to work plus lost tips."
My gaze darted around. I was sure he wasn't being serious since he didn't even offer us paid sick time. "Is this a trick? Are they filming a reality show here or something?"
"No," he barked. "I'm trying to do the right thing since this is a last minute change that's out of your control. But if you want to be a bitch about it, I can fire you instead."
"Bitch? Who? Me? No way," I denied as innocently as possible. "I'll be here with bells on to pick up that check whenever you say."
Just like that, I suddenly found myself with nine days of freedom on my hands … and I had a hot guy staring at me who I might even want to spend some of it with. Maybe.
3
Dane
Bob Stone was a lucky bastard. If I hadn't already made him an offer to buy the club, I would have had it shut down after listening to Addilyn's side of their conversation. I still might, depending on how things went, so maybe he wasn't quite so lucky as I originally thought. Reneging on a deal with a guy who treated her like that wouldn't make me lose too much sleep.
On the surface, it seemed crazy, me buying the club because I wanted Addilyn to have free time to spend with me. In reality, it was a calculated risk with very little downside since I already had a buyer lined up. I'd managed to talk my buddy around to the idea of me buying the place instead of him, but I promised to find him the perfect place to invest in as a way to make it up to him. If I decided I didn't want to own the place, I could easily turn around and sell it to him.