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“What? Wait, should I start serving straight away?”
“You didn’t think I was going to put you behind the bar? You never know, you might water down a beer, and I don’t want to be in trouble with Billy.”
I roll my eyes.
Buck smiles softly, digging his one dimple in his left cheek. “Come on, cutie, go charm those big guys.”
I hold back a curse at his stupid nickname. His few extra years seem to make him think he can call me anything he wants. But this is my first night at High Peaks Bar, and I don’t want to get fired after five minutes of work.
I take a deep breath and head to the table I’m supposed to serve. I’m lucky that I’m not shy, or at least I know how to hide my shyness under a tough cookie look. I get to the table where four local bikers are sitting, each one more serious than the other. They give me a quick hello, and I don’t waste any time in going back to the bar.
Buck is serving a pretty blonde who seems under his spell. Once she walks away with her drink, I slap my hand on the counter and place the empty tray on it, a triumphant expression on my face.
“Come on, cutie, give me the next order!”
Buck turns to me, eyebrows raised. “You didn’t kill anyone on the way?”
I stop myself from rolling my eyes again as he prepares a second order for me.
The door to the bar opens and a girl from my cognitive psychology class enters, quickly followed by two other girls. High Peaks Bar seems to gather the entire population of the city on Saturday nights, especially the students. Most of them are near the two pool tables at the back of the room. My gaze wanders to them, and it is a completely different student that comes to mind. A far too invasive memory comes to mind: a tall, dark, soaking wet man staring at me with his different colored eyes as the rain pours down on us.
I mentally slap myself. It took Tucker coming to my rescue for me to almost—and I emphasize “almost”—find him sympathetic. As he scrutinized me in great detail the other day, my body seemed in no hurry to escape, as if delighted to remain paralyzed under the spell of his hypnotic gaze.
Wait, did I really just have this stupid thought? Damn it, get me out of here before I become a romance novel heroine!
A tanned hand rises to my face. Buck snaps his fingers an inch from my face.
“Hey,” I grumble, stepping back.
“Are you still here?” he asks me. “You weren’t listening at all to what I was saying.”
I straighten my chin, putting a hand on the back pocket of my tight jeans. “Of course, I was.”
“So, take that tray over to the table I just indicated,” he teases, handing me the drinks.
I turn to the crowd. Shit, which table did he just tell me about? I hear a laugh behind my back.
“At the end on the right!”
“I knew that,” I mumble through my teeth as I walk over to the seven students gathered around a small table of four.
After handing a Coke to a strong-jawed blond man who keeps staring at me strangely, I rush to serve the others to escape his interested gaze. I feel his eyes burn into my back as I cross the room, reaching the bar while tucking a short strand of hair back behind my ear. Do we know each other? No, he doesn’t look familiar.
The front door opens once more. I let out a sigh as TJ enters the bar, one hand in his pocket, the other tugging at the braid of the tall brunette accompanying him—Sarah. Yeleen enters right behind him, a tall guy on her heels, her gaze focused on her phone. My eyes linger behind them. Thank God, no sign of Tucker…
The eyes of the students in the bar turn to them. Some greet them while others just observe them. It’s crazy how Yeleen and her gang attract attention among the partygoers. They must know that they are dealing with the infamous Pack.
I turn my back on the newcomers. Buck watches me from behind the counter. With a teasing look on his face, he points to the table TJ and company are sitting at. I hold back from glaring at my new colleague and pull out the little notebook stuck in the back pocket of my jeans.
It’s only when I get a few steps away from their table that Yeleen, who is fiddling with the hair of the tall guy next to her, finally notices me. The guy with her turns his attention to me. Given his build, I guess he practices a competitive sport and must be a real machine on the field. Yeleen gives me a big smile when I reach the table.
“Welcome,” I begin.
TJ turns his head in my direction, his blond eyebrows rising in surprise.
“My best friend!”
I squint as I open the notebook, “Stop calling me that, TJ. I’m not your best friend.”
