"Gawkers aren't good for business?"
"Not if they aren't spending. I keep telling Mitch we need to become relevant again, because we're really lacking new business. And when the tourists forget about us, we're in trouble." She took another turn. "So how come you don't know all this if you grew up in Los Angeles?"
"I know some of it. I've just never been big on nightlife."
"Why not?"
"I work a lot. In my twenties I was an employee by day and an entrepreneur by night."
"Building your firm? What's it called?"
"Bolt Ventures, but no, I'm referring to my first company," he said. "I went through a lot during those years, but it eventually paid off."
"Do you have hobbies?" she asked, arching an eyebrow. Before he could answer, she added, "Outside of work."
He blew out a laugh. "Some," he said. "Mostly it's just work, though."
"God, you must love what you do," she said and smiled. "I'm all for working hard, but it's nothing without some fun."
"Don't worry," he said evenly. "Because I work hard, I get to have fun too."
Her smile wavered wondering how a guy like Beau had fun. Johnny played guitar, but only for himself. A rock band in high school was the last time he'd performed publicly. Otherwise it was video games or tinkering with cars and bikes at the auto shop where his best friend was a mechanic.
Beau, on the other hand, wouldn't play an instrument. Not the guitar, anyway. She couldn't picture him with a gaming controller or a wrench in his hand either. He was tightly wound. If a man like him didn't loosen up once in a while, he'd snap.
Johnny didn't stress out often, but even he needed to unwind. A couple years back, Hey Joe's alcohol order had gotten mixed up right before the only bartender on duty called and quit. "At least he called," Lola had said, but Johnny wouldn't hear it. His parents had moved to Florida days before, and Lola's car-long gone, now-wouldn't start. Johnny's eyebrows had been so low on his forehead, she'd worried he'd scare off customers. With five minutes to open, Lola had taken him in the back and given him the blowjob of his life. He'd been fine after that.
Lola squinted at Beau. It'd been years since she'd thought of that. She definitely had sex on her mind tonight. Had Beau ever been blown in a seedy bar like this? Would it relax him? Turn him on? Would he find that … fun?
"I'm boring you," Beau said. "I never go on about myself this much. Either the Macallan's kicking in or you're too easy to talk to."
Lola was about to tell him to keep talking-she liked having a new voice in the bar. It didn't hurt that that voice was bottomless, as if it came from some untouched depths inside him. And steady, in a comforting way. She could listen to him all night. She shook the feeling off.
"So what'll you do if this place gets bought out?" he asked.
"I try not to think about it," Lola said. "It'd be hard on us. Johnny loves this place as if it were his own."
"And what about you?"
Over Beau's head were some photographs of the owner's dad with bands and customers who were long gone. "There's a lot of history here," she said, her eyes wandering over the pictures. "I'm closer to the people here than I am my own family."
"But you could see yourself doing something different," he guessed.
"Different?" It hadn't occurred to her. Johnny had been bartending for twelve years, and she'd been by his side for eight of them. They were a team. "The late-night scene can get old," she admitted. "I suppose if it were between moving to a different bar or trying something else, I'd maybe think about something else." Lola hadn't even known she'd be open to a change until she'd said it aloud. She'd assumed she and Johnny would always work together, but Johnny'd never do anything outside the nightlife industry.
"Something like … ?" Beau asked.
She considered it a moment. "A restaurant would make sense, or a coffee shop. At least the hours would be better."
"So then serving food and drinks is your passion," Beau said.
She simultaneously laughed and scoffed. "I wouldn't go that far. I'm just being realistic about my options. They're limited without a college degree."
"You didn't go to school?"
"Dropped out my first semester." Lola mock-gasped with her fingers over her mouth. "Unheard of in your world, isn't it?"
"No." He frowned. "I didn't go to college either."