What Her Dad Doesn't Know(2)

“And you will need to call them. So don’t feel bad about it. There’ll always be other paying customers.”

I wonder just how many customers they kick out in a night. I hope there won’t be any tonight. I’m already feeling self conscious about the glances I’m getting from the guys at the bar. Their glances that sweep me from head to toe are so brazen. It’s nothing like what I’m used to. The last place I worked at was a family restaurant, and the men there knew to keep their eyes to themselves for the most part.

“So that’s about it,” Melly says, hands on her hips. “Any questions?”

“No?” Even though I know this isn’t like a strip club, I still feel like the men at the bar are peeling the clothes off of me. I already know I’m hunching my back a little, trying to make myself look smaller. I’m so distracted by it that I didn’t even hear half of what Melly was saying.

“Okay, well you better get out there.” She juts her chin at the men. “I think they’re looking thirsty.”

I swallow. My first customers. I can do this, I tell myself as I make my way over to their end of the bar. It’s just a job. It’s just a job. It’s just a job. I repeat this to myself over and over during the course of the night. Melly’s at the bar too, to make sure that I do everything right. She laughs, tosses her hair, and flirts easily with the customers, pulling in the kind of tips that Lana promised me I’d get. My mantra helps me relax a little, and I’m even starting to smile a few times.

To be honest, the job isn’t terrible. After I get past the few guys who look at me like a piece of meat, I’m able to just focus on pouring drinks. The college guys are piling into the bar now, lured by the promise of cheap pitchers with the football game. One of them even asks for my number, but I turn him down quickly. My first relationship in college was pathetic, and I’m not ready to repeat the experience. He came after five minutes of grunting and fell asleep right after. I remember staring at the popcorn ceiling in his lumpy bed wondering why the hell people go to such great lengths to get laid. No thanks.

Just when I think everything’s gone smoothly for my first shift, the night takes a turn for the worse. It starts when an older guy, with greasy mullet streaked hair and a ripped sleeveless shirt walks in. Melly raises her eyebrows at me, then tilts her head at Steve. Her meanings clear. This guy was going to be trouble. He sits down at my section of the bar and I go over, hoping that my gut was wrong. It isn’t.

“Hi, what can I get for you tonight?”

“I’ll have a Bud Light and a double cheeseburger.”

I smile. Easy, I think. But the grin he gives me is aimed right at my breasts, and automatically I know he’s going to be a slimeball. At first he sticks to leers, but after another two pints, he starts to whistle every time I bend to get a glass or lean forward over the bar. I know I could call Steve over, but I hate making a scene. It’s my first day after all, and I’ve dealt with drunks before. Surely he’s got to leave sometime?

“Are you all done or do you still have room for dessert?” I ask brightly as I pick up his empty plate.

“Only if it’s you and a can of whipped cream on this bar,” he says.

I can tell he thinks he’s being clever, but his slurred words freeze the smile on my face. Men who can’t handle their liquor turns me off, not that I would be attracted to this sleaze.

“That’s not on the menu tonight,” I say, trying to brush his words off as a joke. I shouldn’t have expected him to get the hint.

“So I’ll take it to go,” he says, wobbling forward and invading my space. “When are you off?”

I take a step back automatically. My smile’s completely gone now. The last thing I want is this creep hanging around until my shift ends. And he would stay, I just knew it. Before I could say anything though, a large hand claps his shoulder and yanks him back.

“I think that’s enough out of you,” the man says, his voice quiet but steely. “Why don’t you get out of here before you make a bigger idiot out of yourself.”

I have no clue who my savior is, but I take the chance and head straight for Steve. After I explain to him what’s going on, he goes to throw the redneck out. It looked like he wanted to put up a fight, but Steve’s 250 lbs and built like a tank. There was no way he was going to win that battle. But I still hold my breath until the guy’s been booted out the front doors. Then I sag against the hallway to the employee room. There’s only ten minutes left on the clock, but I don’t think I could go back out there.