I knew it was really none of my business, but I had seen so many girls in bad situations that I felt like I had to keep an eye out for young, innocent girls who might get into trouble before they realized what was happening. More than once, I’d sent one of the busboys or servers out to walk a girl to her car if I’d gotten a bad vibe from one of the guys at the bar. I didn’t want to see any more girls get hurt.
Planning to keep a close eye on the group I’d just served shots to, I headed back to Mr. Gorgeous.
“So do you like Denver?” he asked again when I got back to him.
“I guess. I haven’t really been much of anywhere else.”
The man looked a little surprised. “Really?”
I figured that he had no idea that I didn’t have an extra dime to my name. “Yeah. I don’t really get to travel much.”
He thought for a second. “Well, you’d be the perfect person to help me out, then. I’m going to be in town for a week or so, and I could use some recommendations for good restaurants.”
I didn’t get to eat out very often. Goodness knows, Bug didn’t ever take me out. But I did know the hotspots from hearing other people talk about them.
“I’ll be happy to give you some places.” I looked around. “Be right back.”
A bartender’s work was never done, and I made another round of fresh drinks and to deliver some food that was ready. I set the plate of tamales in front of the man and decided to take a chance.
“What’s your name?” I asked, as I gave him silverware and a napkin.
“Luke,” he answered. “And that looks amazing.”
“Well, enjoy, and I’ll be back to check on you in a minute.”
Chapter 3
Luke
The tamales tasted like heaven. The filling was smoky, spicy chicken, and the green tomatillo sauce was tangy and blended perfectly with the sweet cornmeal. Just as I finished my beer, Krystal appeared in front of me to ask if I wanted another.
What I wanted was to know if she was single. She didn’t have a ring on, but she was young — probably too young to be married. The one thing I knew for sure was that she was smoking hot. She had long, dark hair that she wore pulled back in a ponytail, a fringe of bangs framing her face. Her bright blue eyes make my stomach flip, and the glimpse of a tattoo I’d caught when she’d been making drinks made me want to see the whole tattoo — preferably with her naked. She was gorgeous. Amazing cleavage, perfect ass, and beautiful smile. I kinda liked Denver so far, and I realized that for a few minutes I hadn’t thought about my parents’ death or the prospect of tracking down my birth parents — people who may or may not be happy to see me.
“Want to try something different?” Krystal asked, with a wide-eyed expression that made me wonder if she knew that I was thinking about her rather than another beer.
“What do you suggest?”
She turned around without a word and headed down to a tap at the far end of the bar.
“Trinity Flo IPA from Colorado Springs. It’s new, and it’s great with the tamales,” she said with confidence.
I took a sip, and she was right. The beer was aromatic and bitter, and it was the perfect complement to the sweet, spicy, smoky tamales.
“Perfect,” I said after I’d tasted it. I checked up and down the bar to see if she needed to tend t o any other customers, but she seemed pretty caught up. “So what’s there to do in town besides drink beer and stare at pretty girls?”
She smiled at me, and it looked for a second like she was blushing a little. I was surprised, because she seemed so sexy and confident.
“Well, the Rockies get back into town in a day or so, and going to a baseball game’s always fun. We have some great restaurants in town, and some great trails if you’re the outdoorsy type.”
Krystal seemed pretty friendly, and I decided to roll the dice.
“Any chance I can talk you into going to a ball game with me?”
She looked surprised. “Well, I’m gonna have to check my schedule and let you know,” she said with a wink before turning to pour a couple more beers for the server waiting at the end of the bar.
She hadn’t said no. That was a start.
I hadn’t realized just how hungry I was until I polished off the last bite of the huge plate of tamales. I watched Krystal work, turned on by her fantastic body and the ease with which she managed the very busy bar. She took the time to talk to everyone there, giving them her undivided attention, even if it was just for a few minutes. The little glimpses of her lower back tattoo made my mouth water, and I wondered what the chances were that I would have a chance to see it all.