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Chapter Two
The Grog was packedwhen Sera Lovely walked in at 6 p.m. It was a dingy corner bar with a karaoke machine, sticky tables, and watered-down drinks. The service was slow, and the beers on tap were always questionable. Looking around, she tried to come up with why it was crowded. It was the Grog—why would anyone willingly be there?
She lived three blocks away, so this was her bar. If she wanted a drink in the evening, she came here. People at the bar should greet her by name and ask about her day. It wasn’t great, but it was her bar.
She hadn’t even bothered to change before coming in today; she needed alcohol, and she needed it badly. If there was a drink called “sex on the desk,” she would be getting a double. Instead, she tried to remember what she had last time. It was good and strong, and exactly what she needed. But sadly, she had no idea what it was called, or even what was in it. But that was definitely what she wanted right now.
At the surprising full bar, she leaned over one of the empty stools to knock hard on the scarred wood three times as if it were a front door. Instantly, the bartender turned to her and headed her way. His easy smile made her day a little brighter, or maybe it was because he controlled the booze, and they were closer than ever.
“Hey, Sera. Your usual?” Okay, maybe she knew some of the bartenders. Cliff had spent some time in her house over the last few months. Not with her, but with her daughter, Lucy. Sometimes it was like he was the son she never had and never wanted, but was there anyway. Like a leech.
“Yes, Cliff.” She smiled at him in appreciation. Now she didn’t have to remember anything. He was a good-looking guy but not her type. Mostly because he was also the most annoying man she had ever met. He’d never met a woman he didn’t hit on, including her. His only save gracing was that he was genuine with his words.
“Bad day? You didn’t even change.” He set the glass near her.
“Yeah, it was a shitshow. What’s going on tonight?” She waved at the people. It was busier than on a Friday night when they had a live band. For a Thursday, it was unacceptable.
“We made some sort of twenty-five best bars in the city list. An error, I’m sure, but every shitty douchebag has been in here for the last few days. Tips are good.” Cliff said, not caring that someone might hear him. That’s how Cliff was.
“Are my girls making good tips?” she asked him, taking a sip of her drink. It was the one she had been thinking of, and Cliff had made it perfectly.
“Luce works at eight, and Buzz is floating around. Agatha is in at midnight, and Harper worked this afternoon.” He named off almost all her adult girls. The only one missing was currently a university professor who didn’t wait tables anymore. She had a “real job,” as she liked to say. Except nearly all her girls had a “real” job. Bartending and waitressing were for money, fun, and free booze, which gave their mother free booze also—an added bonus.
“Thanks, Cliff. I want another, and point me to a table with some Lovely ladies at it.” Cliff saluted her with a cocky grin. He was nuts.
When a second drink was in her hand, Cliff pointed her to the corner, of course. Buzz and Lucy were leaning against the wall, each in a booth with their legs stretched out in front of them. It didn’t matter how full the bar was; they had a table, and they were not sharing.
Lucy saw her first and waved, swinging her feet down from the bench. Sliding in beside her, Sera set her glasses down carefully, not wanting to spill her drinks.
“Bad day, Mom?” Buzz asked from across the table, nodding at her double drinks.
“Shitshow,” Sera repeated what she had told Cliff. “Cliff made them extra strong for me.”
Buzz, whose real name was Beatrix, just laughed and took a drink from one, then made a face and shook her head. Buzz hated girly drinks, but they were Sera’s favorite.
Buzz was as flighty and interesting as her name. The redhead was short and constantly trying new things. She had just spent the day waitressing but was actually a reporter for the Times. She didn’t get any good stories, but it was only a matter of time before she made her name. For now, she was busy all the time, just the same.
With her hair up in a ponytail, she looked younger than her twenty-five years and usually got carded when they went out. Not here, though. Maybe that was because her older sisters worked here and always gave their little sisters a slide when the need was there.
Buzz was the youngest of the stepdaughters, but her personality was closest aligned to Sera’s. That wasn’t saying much since four of the five were outgoing and chatty like Sera. But maybe she was reading too much into her parenting skills. They were half grown before she even met them, so maybe it wasn’t all her.
Beside her, Lucy’s fingers bounced on the table like she was missing her piano. Lucy was always in motion; her body never stopped moving, except to sleep. Currently, Lucy was a caterer with her sister Harper, but she also cleaned office buildings in her off time.
The two sisters at the table looked nothing alike. Even their brown eyes were not even close to the same shade. Lucy’s dark brown hair was up in the same style as her sister’s, and the yellow T-shirt she wore was as bold and bright as she was.
All Sera’s stepdaughters looked different but were supposed to be the product of the same union—something Sera had questioned since meeting them fifteen years before. Not that she would ever get an answer since their father had abandoned them to her within weeks of their marriage, and their birth mother was already long gone by then.
“So, what evil thing happened to make the HR director need two drinks?” Lucy also tried the beverage. She shrugged at the taste and went back to hers: a beer in a formerly frosty mug, by the looks of it.
“Sex in the conference room.” She took a long-awaited drink.
“You?” Buzz asked with a questioning eyebrow raised.
Sera tried not to spit out the liquid but found herself choking on it as she swallowed it. It burned when it went down, making her suck in breaths of air. Sometimes drinking was a hazard when her kids were around. Eating could turn out the same way.
“Fuck, Buzz. No!” she finally said through the burn. Both girls were laughing at her because they knew what had happened.
“Two drinks, Sera?” Harper knocked her sister’s feet to the floor as she slid into the booth with them.
