Left Behind: Left Behind Series #1 (5 page)

“What
can I get for you?” a male voice asks.

When
I turn to look in the direction it came from, my drunken ass almost falls off
the stool and onto the floor. I’m not sure which feature to look at first. He
has sandy, blond hair, which is sticking straight up in a sexy as shit way;
crystal blue eyes that are almost the exact shade of my favorite gemstone,
aquamarine; perfect cheekbones; and facial hair, which is normally a huge
turnoff for me, but on this guy? Oh…my…god… The black shirt he’s wearing, with
the sleeves rolled up to the middle of his very beautiful forearms, is barely
containing the muscles of his whole upper body. Did I just say he had beautiful
forearms? “Are you okay?” he questions, looking at me a little concerned.

“I’m
sorry. I’m…I’m fine.” Damn him. He has me stuttering.

He
chuckles, which makes him even sexier. “Okay. What can I get for you?”

I
decide to stick with the martini’s Jade started earlier, but switch the flavor.
I don’t do well when I mix drinks up. “An apple martini and a shot of something
fun,” I say, a little more stable.

“Something
fun, huh?” he smirks at me. I nod and try not to look at his lips. “Okay.
Coming right up.” He has the martini out in seconds, but it takes him a few
more to get the shot ready. When he puts it on the bar in front of me, I have
no idea what to make of it.

“What
the hell is that?” I ask.

“Something
fun,” he laughs. “Try it. If you like those things,” he points to the martini
glass, “you’ll like this.”

“What’s
it called?” I wonder, picking it up to get a closer look.

“A
brain hemorrhage.”

“Well,
that’s just disgusting,” I blurt out because that’s exactly what the thing
looks like. The alcohol on the bottom is clear and it looks like Bailey’s on
top of it. Then a small amount of grenadine is dropped into the middle, pulling
part of the Bailey’s into the clear part below.

“Wimp,”
he mocks me. I’ll have none of that, so I immediately down the shot.

I
wipe my mouth with the back of my hand. “That’s actually not bad,” I admit.

“Told
you,” he smirks at me again. He needs to knock that shit off. “So, what’s your
deal?”

“What’s
my deal?” I ask, unsure of what he’s talking about.

“You
looked upset when you first came over here.”

“Doesn’t
that get old?”

“Doesn’t
what get old?” He throws a white towel over his shoulder and places both hands
on the bar in front of him. He has given me all of his attention. I glance from
side to side, checking to see if he should be waiting on someone else. It
appears as though there’s a bartender for every few customers. How many people
do they need back there?  

“Listening
to people’s problems. Don’t you get sick of it?” I pick up my drink, swirl it
around a time or two before sipping it.

“I
don’t usually. I just figured I’d make an exception for you.” It feels like
he’s undressing me with his eyes.

“Why
would you do that?” I want to know. If I hadn’t already been drinking, I
probably wouldn’t have had the nerve to ask him any of this.

“Why
do you ask so many questions?”

“Why
don’t you answer them?” I’m totally hiding most of my face behind the glass.

He
shakes his head. “Okay, I don’t like to see a pretty girl sad. I figured if I
asked you about it and you got it off your chest, I might get a chance to see
you smile and that…” He pauses. “That would definitely make my shitty night a
little better.”

“I’m
sorry you’re having a shitty night,” I say. “I bet mine is a little shittier
than yours, if that makes you feel any better.”

“Actually,
it makes me feel worse,” he says, barely loud enough for me to hear over the
music. I know he’s just flirting, but part of me feels guilty that I’m acting
like a spoiled brat.

“My
parents,” I tell him, pointing upstairs like he has any idea who my parents are.

“I
see. Parents can really suck.”

“Every
damn day of my life,” I tell him, finally getting the chance to rub my neck. He
places another one of his fancy shots down in front of me. “Thanks.” It’s gone
with a flick of my head. “Do you want to talk about why your night is so
shitty?” He still hasn’t looked away from me.

“That’s
not how this works,” he chuckles. “Tell me what your parents did to make you so
upset.”

“You
don’t have enough time or energy to listen to my bullshit,” I mumble before
sipping more of my martini.

“I
have all night, but if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s cool.”

“Don’t
let me hold you up. I’m sure you have other people to help,” I say,
reluctantly. I don’t really want him helping anyone else but me.

“Nope.
I’m all yours,” he says in a deep voice, as his sexy smirk returns. Well, shit.
If I wasn’t turned on before, I totally am now.

“Evan,
there’s a call for you on line three,” a tall blond interrupts us. At least now
I know his name.

“Take
a message, Meg. I’m busy,” he tells her, not taking his beautiful blue eyes off
of mine.

“Are
you freakin kidding me? Do I have to do everything around here tonight?!” she
snaps. Her tone causes him to spin in her direction.

“Did
I do something to you?!” he snaps back at her. “You’ve been pretty bitchy since
you walked in the door.”

She
loosens up right away. “No. I’m sorry.” She looks at me, then turns to walk
away.

“Meg…”

She
looks back at him. “I’m good. We’ll talk later,” she groans. He nods his head,
dismissing her.

“Sorry,
about her. She tends to be a little moody when she has to work Friday nights.”

“Maybe
you should take the call, Evan.”

“You
caught that, huh?” He grins. “Alright, out with it. Tell me yours. I’ve been
trying to figure out how to ask you anyway.”

“Kacie.”

“It’s
very nice to meet you, Kacie,” he smiles. I can’t help it. I smile back.

Evan

How
much bullshit is one guy supposed to take in one day? When I first came into
work this afternoon, there was a screw up with the liquor supplier, which took
me nearly three hours to get sorted out. How does this idiot still have a job
after fucking up my order so bad on a Friday afternoon? It was only a few hours
before opening. Not even thirty minutes later, I got a phone call from the
event coordinator saying she wouldn’t be able to make it in because she’s been
sick since last night. Then she reminded me about the party scheduled tonight
for some big shot, which will need to be covered. Fuck me! There’s no way I can
keep an eye on everything down here
and
give them the attention they’ll
demand. I realize how rude that sounds. They’re paying customers, but I can’t
stand people who act like they’re better than everyone else. If I owned this
club, we wouldn’t even have private parties. As much as it kills me to do it, I
have to call my cousin and tell her she has to come in to help out.

“What
do you need, Evan? It’s my day off,” she answers on the first ring. Great.
She’s already in one of her moods.

“Speaking
of that…” I start to say.

“No!
Absolutely not! There’s no way I’m coming in there tonight!” she yells. “Grow
the fuck up and deal with whatever the problem is!”

“Meg,
I’ve been dealing with nothing but problems since I walked in the fucking door
today! The least you could do is listen to what’s going on before you chew me
out!” I yell back. I’m not tolerating her miserable ass right now.

She
sighs loud enough for me to hear. “What is it that you’re unable to handle, my
dear cousin?” Sarcasm is one of her best traits, as long as it isn’t directed
at me.

Deep
breaths aren’t helping at this point. I want to reach through the phone and
strangle her. Leaning back in my chair…well, my uncle’s chair…I try to get my
temper under control. “Kylie called out and there’s a party scheduled.”

“Son
of a bitch!” she hollers. “I’m calling Daddy and telling him to fire her.”

“No,
you’re not,” I tell her. “The girl’s really sick. I can’t have her in here
puking all over everyone.”

“Fine,”
she mumbles, sounding defeated. “Who’s the party booked under?”

I scan
the paper for a name. “Addison Morgan.”

“I’m
surprised you don’t want to take that party,” she chuckles, almost viciously.
“She used to be a stripper at a club down the road.”

“No
thanks,” I say, momentarily reconsidering. “I’ll pass. How long until you can
get here?”

“About
an hour. Tell whoever my bartender is to go over Addison’s list of demands, I’m
sure it’s quite lengthy, and to start getting the room set up.” Then the bitch
hangs up on me.

I
really wish my uncle would wise up and realize I’m not capable of running this
place on my own. At the moment, he’s traveling all over Europe with my aunt.
They truly do deserve the vacation. They both have been working their asses off
on this club since before it opened. The pressure just gets to me sometimes,
but there’s no quitting when the uncle who helped you out is depending on
you.  

Four
years ago, I recognized there wasn’t anything left for me in New York. My
parents were still mourning the death of my twin brother and blaming me for not
preventing it. Hell, there were days I blamed myself for not preventing it. The
night he ran out of our apartment replays over and over in my head. I’m
constantly looking for any way I could have stopped him from leaving that
night. If our roles were reversed, he wouldn’t have been able to stop me,
either. We had just gotten home from work when a friend of ours called and said
my brother’s girlfriend was at a bar with another guy, so he took off. About a
block from the bar, a drunk driver hit my brother as he waited to cross the
street. He never made it to the hospital. Turns out, the bitch had been
sleeping around on him for over a month. My brother lost his life over someone
who didn’t even care about him. That’s exactly why I’ll never date. Anyway, I
called my uncle just as he was opening the club and he offered me a bartending
job. I hopped on a plane the next day and never looked back.

So
here I am, dealing with all this bullshit so my uncle can take a break. Meg
eventually shows her face and things get a little better. She’s grumpy and
taking it out on almost anyone who gets in her way, but at least she’s here to
take care of the party. One less thing I have to worry about. A few minutes
before the doors open for the night, someone calls me out to the main floor where
two of the waitresses are arguing.

“What
the hell is going on out here?” I interrupt. Immediately, they both turn to me
and, by the looks I’m getting, I know exactly what the problem is.

“You
son of a bitch!” they bitch together. Okay, so this particular problem happens
to be my fault.

“Please
tell me you didn’t sleep with both of them!” Meg hollers from the other side of
the bar.

“On
the same day!” Mia barks. Why the hell is anyone surprised? This is the kind of
shit I’m known for.

“You’re
an asshole. I quit!” Roxy yells and storms by me, making sure to crash her arm
into mine.

“I
quit, too.” Mia follows her. Fuck me, again!

“You
can’t quit right before we open!” I call out. They ignore me and keep walking.

“Let
me guess. Now you want me to take care of the party
and
both of their
sections?” Meg asks.

“Shut
the fuck up, Meg!” I yell over my shoulder as I head into the office. I’m sure
I can persuade at least one waitress to come in tonight.

Somehow,
I was able to convince two other girls to come in and help me out. I’m sure
they will be looking to collect on some type of reimbursement in the very near
future. Hopefully it’s Meg’s night when they do. Now that we’ve been open for a
little over an hour, it’s time to make my rounds around the club. This can
either be the worst part of the night or the best part, depending on what’s
going on and who’s here. The waitresses tell me all the tables are full and the
hostess says there’s a line out front. All good news. A few of my friends are
hanging out, so I stop over and chat for a bit.

Once
we’re all caught up, I need to check on the alcohol. That’s when I see her. One
of the most beautiful girls ever to step foot in this club is walking toward
the bar. Hell, she’s one of the most beautiful girls I’ve ever seen. She’s
shorter than I’m used to, but that doesn’t bother me. The lighting is low, but
I can tell she has fair skin, which makes me think she’s not from around here.
The way that blue dress falls over her body has me craving to find out what’s
underneath of it. To top it off, she’s a redhead. Redheads tend to be a bit
tricky to handle, but with a body like that, she just may be worth the
challenge.

“Hey,”
I say to the guy sitting in front of me as I slide a bottle across the bar.
“Here’s a beer on the house for your seat.” He shrugs, takes it, and gets up.
“I got this one,” I tell the bartender.

He
looks in the direction I just indicated and sighs. “How come you always get the
pretty ones?” he asks, tossing me a clean towel.

“There
has to be some perks to being the boss, especially after the day I’ve had.”

“You
suck,” he mutters.

As
soon as she climbs up on the stool, I notice the look on her face. I’ve seen it
many times before. It’s the glazed over sad look that says “I’m trying to get
drunk to ease the pain”. She doesn’t really tell me what the problem is. Right
away, I can tell she’s cocky, sassy and, on better days, probably fun as shit
to be around. It takes Meg interrupting our conversation for me to grow the balls
needed to ask her name. There’s a first. The smile I was trying desperately to
get out of her eventually shows, but before I can commit it to memory, it’s
gone again. Someone calls her name and makes it disappear instantly.

“Kacie,”
some guy I’ve never seen before calls. She squeezes both of her hands into
tight fists and her whole body tenses. Whoever he is, she clearly doesn’t want
anything to do with him. I watch him approach her with another guy beside him.
She forgets all about me, which really pisses me off. “Come back up to the
party. Your parents are looking for you,” he says, laying his hand over her
wrist.

“Get
your disgusting hand off of me,” she spits out. I’m ready to interrupt when he
slowly pulls his hand back, probably afraid of the consequences if he didn’t.

“Look.
I’m sorry how that went up there with your dad. My intention wasn’t to piss you
off,” he tells her.

“Then
leave me the fuck alone.” She never looks his way. She never looks at me
either, though. She just picks up her glass and takes another sip.

“I
can’t do that. Your dad wants me to bring you back to the party.”

This
gets her attention. “If he told you to jump off a bridge, would you jump?” she
asks, downing the rest of her drink.

“How
much does she owe you?” the asshole asks me, pulling out his wallet. There’s no
way in hell I’m letting him pay for her drinks.

“Nothing,”
I say. She looks at me for a second, but I glance away. “She already paid.” I
don’t want him to know I’m taking care of it for her. She doesn’t need any more
shit from this guy. 

“Kacie,”
a voice I recognize calls out. “Are you okay?” I look over to see Jade grabbing
her arm. “Come on. We’re going home. Jake went to get the car.” Jade and I
exchange a look. She’s letting me know she’s got the situation under control.
Kacie never looks back at me, but I watch her all the way to the front door.

“I’m
so screwed,” the guy says to his friend. “I’m never going to get the promotion
now.” I definitely have to stay around and listen to this shit.

“Oh,
come on. You’ll get her. Just be your normal charming self. If that doesn’t
work, be your other normal self. Pushy and demanding,” the friend mocks.

“That
shit won’t fly with her,” he says.

“Fuck
that. You can push any girl around. Just flash dollar signs and you can get
them to do whatever the hell you want.”

“She
comes from money. I’m telling you, it won’t work.” He runs his hand through his
hair and leans on the bar. They both order a beer from the bartender standing
next to me. I can’t believe these two are actually standing here, talking about
a girl like this. It’s really pissing me off, although I’m not sure why. I’ve
done and said some pretty shitty things myself when it comes to the opposite
sex.

“Then
act like a girl and get her to like you. Once you get close enough, put your
foot down.”

“Put
my foot down? How would you propose I do that exactly? Does Kacie Foster look
like the type of girl who will tolerate that shit?” He’s not as dumb as he
looks. At least I know her last name now.

“Stop
being such a bitch. If you want the job that bad, just do it.”

“Were
you not just listening to her?” he snaps. “She talked to her dad like that,
too. She may be hot as hell, but she’s also the feistiest, most pretentious,
most obnoxious person ever created. That girl is untamable. I’d have to sleep
with one eye open for the rest of my life if I pulled any shit with her.”

The
friend starts laughing. “Maybe, but I bet she’s awesome in bed.” Even though I was
wondering that myself, I have to walk away. These two are going to make me lose
it, but since they didn’t actually do anything wrong, I can’t kick them out.

All
seems to be in order out here, so I spend some time in the office keeping myself
busy with paperwork. It’s almost midnight when the hostess calls me from the
main desk. “Yeah?” I answer.

“Danny
asked me to tell you he’s here,” she tells me.

“I’m
on my way,” I say, leaving the papers scattered on the desk.

I
find my friend sitting at his usual table with his usual entourage. “There he
is,” Danny calls out when I reach the table. “We’ve been looking all over for
you. Someone have you busy back there?” I can only laugh because I’ve been
caught many times with girls coming in and out of the office.

“Not
tonight. Sometimes I actually have to work around here,” I reply, shaking his
hand. “What’s up?” I pull over a chair.

“Just
thought I’d stop by and let you know your car should be ready to go by Tuesday.
Wednesday afternoon, at the latest. The rest of the parts came in yesterday and
I’ve had these guys on it since.” Danny Rodriguez is one of the best mechanics
I’ve come across.

“Perfect
timing, as usual, Danny,” I smile. “I’ll be able to enter it in the next race.”

“I
always deliver on time. Any idea when this next race is?”

“No.
Should be soon, though. It’s been a couple of months since the last one and I’m
sure they’ll want to get it in before Memorial Day weekend. Even more cops
around once the holiday hits.”

“Let
me know the second you hear. I want in this time around. The shit going into
this new car of yours is crazy. There’s no way you can lose,” he
says.