Keep It Sexy (KIS Series Book 3) Page 4

  I pulled on the straps of my backpack before giving myself a small pep talk. The sign on the door said they were closed, but Jade warned me beforehand. She said the door would be unlocked and assured me her boss would be waiting.

  Inside, the room was warm and sensual with wine-red colored walls. I stood back, taking in the dark stained slab of wood that stretched from the front of the room all the way to the back, where it stopped a couple of feet away from a set of bright blue swinging doors I assumed went into the kitchen.

  The main dining room area had metallic, square tables and chairs randomly placed throughout the concrete floor. It was clear people didn’t come to eat but to drink. On the opposite side of the bar was an empty space used for dancing, and toward the back corner was a small hallway. The contrast of the silver tables and the warmth of the wood made the place look modern, but traditional at the same time. It seemed like the bar had an identity crisis, but it made sense in a way.

  As I explored the room, the swinging doors flew open and two men walked through them. One I presumed was the deliveryman, on account of his uniform, and the other held a clipboard. He had his head down as he read and signed paperwork. He was tall with thick brawny arms that were covered in vivid tattoos. He wore a white V-cut shirt, which showed off the ink on his chest, the vibrant colors popping against the unblemished umber color of his skin. His hair was a murky chestnut.

  As he signed the papers, two strands of shiny hair fell softly over his forehead. Handing the clipboard to the delivery guy, he lifted his head and locked eyes with me. They were the color of warm chocolate, and my breath escaped me, but it wasn’t until he smiled that I nearly fell apart. He had dimples. Like deep pour-some-whisky-inside-and-suck-them-dry dimples. When his gaze shamelessly traveled down my body, I snapped out of whatever stupor I was under. Lord, protect my ovaries from this man.

  “Hi, I’m Billie. I’m a friend of Jade’s.” I walked closer to him, extending my hand. “You must be Christian.” Without a second of hesitation, he took my hand.

  “You’re hired,” he said, still smiling. I was caught off-guard by this directness, and laughed.

  “What if I was a thief or just plain bad at the job?”

  He shook his head, still smirking. “Wouldn’t care. With a face and a voice like that, there’s no way you wouldn’t make me money.”

  I wasn’t sure why, but I felt my face flush a little. “Are you always so frank? Aren’t you afraid of a sexual harassment lawsuit?” I tried to sound serious, but failed miserably. My cheeks were starting to burn from the excessive smiling.

  “Are you going to sue me?” he asked, showing off a boyish grin, and finally dropping my hand. We were stilling shaking hands like a pair of idiots. Christian crossed his arms over his chest and his muscles tightened, expanded, his tattoos appearing to come alive. Holy baby Jesus on Christmas morning. Lord, my ovaries!

  Remembering his teasing question, I replied, “Not today,” forcing my stare back to his eyes. He chuckled, then nodded toward a table in the back of the bar.

  “Come sit, and we’ll talk about your schedule.”

  Chapter Five

  Christian

  I watched as Billie signed the packet of forms I had for new hires. She diligently read through every single form before she signed it. I liked that. I also liked how the middle of her eyebrows pinched when she was really concentrating. She was fucking adorable. When I came through the kitchen doors, I was surprised to find her inside.

  Jade had told me about her friend coming in for an interview, but I didn’t expect her friend to look like Billie. At first glance she was pure innocence, with her hair curled in big ringlets that bounced as she walked, reminding me of how it felt to have a crush on a girl in school.

  But that faded when I caught her gaze as she sized me up, her eyes flaring with desire. All I could picture was her in a naughty schoolgirl outfit. She was petite, and I wondered how fun it would be to throw her over my shoulder, how easy it would be. Billie had small curves, and when she smiled, it nearly knocked the air out of me. She had that look that brought men to their knees.

  The cheery tone in her voice alone would have been the reason why I hired her. Her voice was light and girly, and it sounded like she was flirting with me when she really wasn’t. The male customers would love her.

  When I hired her, she giggled, and I chuckled with her because it was contagious. Light pink appeared along the tops of her cheeks, and the remainder of my breath escaped me. Now I was staring at her while she filled out paperwork. She had me in a daze and I couldn’t explain why.

  Billie was leaning against the table, her elbows and arms flat on the surface. She wore a V-cut cream-colored sweater, and because of our height difference I was able to see a fragment of her cleavage peeking through the top. Images of me palming her breasts flashed in my mind. Shit. I was still staring down her shirt when she looked up and caught me.

  “There’s nothing in there for you,” she said jokingly. Looking at her eyes this time, I leaned in closer to her. I was suddenly hit with the sweet smell of her skin. I was trying to make her blush but instead it backfired and I was lost in her scent, big brown eyes, and the small amount of skin peeking through.

  “You sure about that?” I managed to whisper. She sat back and watched me. I was afraid I’d made her feel uncomfortable, but then she chuckled, biting her bottom lip. Damn.

  “Four to two?” she asked. I blinked, trying to understand her question.

  “Huh?”

  Billie chuckled as she stood, handing me the papers. “The times I’m working.”

  Oh. I cleared my throat as I nodded. “Yeah, Thursday through Sunday. Monday and Tuesdays are your days off and on Wednesday you’ll start at four.”

  “Sounds good,” she replied, lifting a backpack I hadn’t noticed until now over her shoulders. She backed away. “See ya tomorrow, boss.”

  She saluted me, then turned around and walked out of the door. I grunted as I watched her exit. That’s when I noticed a patch etched on her backpack. I had seen it before, but where?

  ***

  “So, you hired my girl Billie?” Jade asked when she strolled into my office. The night was dwindling, and we were preparing to close. I was finishing up some paperwork and inputting Billie’s information into the system. Sybil McAllister. Sybil. Interesting.

  “Yeah, she’ll be a good addition,” I replied as I typed in her date of birth. Looking back to the forms to make sure I had it correct, I noticed Jade standing in front of me with an uncomfortable expression on her face. I sat back on my chair. “What’s up, Jade?”

  She bit down on both her lips, telling me she was nervous about something.

  “I want to talk to you about Ava,” she said.

  “Is she okay?” I straightened in my seat.

  “Yeah, she’s fine. Actually, this is more about you and this illusion you seem to have about her—”

  “Goodnight, Jade.” I stopped her right there. This wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have with anyone, especially Jade, Ava’s closest friend here at the bar.

  I returned my attention to my computer screen.

  “Chris, come on. I’m being serious. You—”

  “Goodnight, Jade,” I said through my teeth. I didn’t want to be a dick to her, but this was none of her business.

  “Fine,” she grumbled, and stormed out of office. God, these chicks were driving me insane and not in a good way. Minutes later, my door opened and Ava stepped inside. Of course. Prepare for the wrath of Ava Veneziano.

  “What did you do to Jade?” She smirked, then crossed her arms over her chest, pushing her breasts up higher than they already were. Nice.

  “Nothing, she’ll get over it,” I said, licking my lips while getting off my chair and sauntering over to her. She sported the black t-shirt with Blush printed to the left. It was painted on her, as were the leather black pants she wore. Damn, she was sexy. Ava grunted, then held her hand up to stop me.

>   “Goodnight, Chris,” she said, leaving me alone in my office. I chuckled, then closed my eyes, imagining all the times she had her mouth wrapped around my dick. She always knew what to do, and she knew what I liked. Yeah, I wasn’t ready to let her go yet.

  The next morning, I drove back to Blush and finished some paperwork before putting away the new inventory. A while later, I was stocking the new shipment of bottles behind the bar when Jade came in.

  “Hi,” she said shyly. Well, I’ll be damned, Jade was embarrassed.

  “Hey.” I grinned, rising to meet her eyes.

  “All right, I know, it’s none of my business.” She sighed. “But I’m just trying to look out for you.” She glanced away nervously.

  “Because you love me?” I teased. Jade grunted.

  “Unfortunately. You’re like the brother I never had, you know?” She punched my shoulder. Just then, we looked to the bar door when it opened, and Claudia swayed inside. I felt Jade’s head snap back in my direction but I continued to look at Claudia.

  She had also grown up in the same neighborhood Ava and I lived in. But unlike us, she never embraced it. She didn’t work, and her parents still supported her along with her sister and her sister’s two kids. When my mom told Claudia’s parents I had opened a bar, Claudia insisted I get her a job. And out of a favor to my mother, I did. I knew Claudia had an ulterior motive for wanting to work here, and I still didn’t know what it was. I was desperate and needed someone to come in and start working, so I also hired Claudia, knowing Jade and Ava would not like it.

  “Claudia? Christian, seriously?” Jade said under her breath as Claudia sauntered closer, an extra swing to her hips and a flirty smile on her face. I smirked back. “Do you not remember the last time she was in here and the problems she caused?” Jade continued.

  Claudia was somewhat of a regular at the bar. She’d get drunk and flirt with someone’s boyfriend, instigating an argument—or so that’s what I was told. She would only come in on my days off. Jade hated her as a customer. Ava had her own reasons for hating Claudia and now I wondered how they would handle her as a co-worker.

  “Hola, Christian,” Claudia purred, “Oh. Hey, Jade.” She barely looked at Jade while she spoke. Chuckling, I rounded the bar, grabbing some forms I had left on the nearest table for Claudia to fill out.

  “Fill this out for me,” I said with a smile as we exchanged kisses on the cheek. Call me an asshole, but I found their dislike for each other amusing. While Claudia sat on a bar stool completing the forms, Ava came in from the back door. Immediately, her eyes locked on Claudia’s face and she glared at her like she was going to pull out her hair in desperation, irritation, or both. Shit.

  “Ava.” Claudia seethed.

  “Claudia,” Ava countered, just as nasty.

  This was a catfight I didn’t want to see. Before I could put the brakes on it, Ava gripped my elbow and pulled me in the direction of my office. I was surprised she had the strength she did; who knew someone so feminine could be so strong?

  Ava threw me against my office chair and slammed the door. And fuck me, did it turn me on. There was nothing sexier than a woman who could take charge.

  “Wait! Before you rip off my balls and feed them to me, I was desperate. I needed someone fast,” I said urgently. Ava didn’t look amused.

  “This makes it the second time you got desperate and went to her, Chris.” When Ava and I were involved, she would get real pissed when I went to Claudia each time she went off with some different guy.

  “We were kids, baby,” I hummed, getting off the chair and slowly moving toward her.

  “Yeah, whatever. I’m not accountable for my actions around her, Christian. I’ll teach her some manners if I have to. My way.” Ava was my kryptonite, always would be; if she said to fire Claudia, I would in a second. She had no idea how reckless and out of control she made me feel. I stepped closer to her until her back hit the door. I glanced down, admiring her body, and that’s when I noticed the mark on her cleavage.

  “What’s this?” I asked, pointing at the hickey.

  “You know what it is.”

  “You’re letting some dude mark you now?” My blood was beginning to boil because Ava had never let anyone else leave her a hickey. I pushed down on her flesh as the urge to take her overcame me. I wanted to claim her as mine even though she’d never been mine and never would be. As I curved my hand over her breast, she pushed me back.

  “He’s not some dude. I’m dating him.” Her words sliced through me, and I knew exactly who she was talking about.

  “It’s the guy with the beard, isn’t it?” For weeks now, this man would come in and just stare at her as she worked.

  “Yeah,” she said without any reluctance.

  “Isn’t he a little old for you?” I backed away from her while crossing my arms over my chest.

  “And what if he is? How does that concern you, Chris?”

  It was as if she’d taken a white-hot knife and pushed it through my heart without any remorse. Years of me taking crap for Ava, getting my assed kicked because she’d fucked around with the wrong dude. Years of watching her pursue other men, listening to her getting fucked by other guys. How they would talk about her. How many times had I scarred my knuckles over defending her? How many times had I given myself to her physically because she didn’t want to talk about her issues? And every time, it felt like she was taking a piece of my heart with her. Years, months, and days all came crashing down. She didn’t care about me. She never had.

  “You’re a bitch,” I said without thinking.

  “Excuse me?” Anger rose from the pit of my stomach.

  “You know how I feel about you, Ava.” Her face had gone pale, confused. “Don’t you fucking look at me like you don’t know. For years I’ve been in love with you, then you up and leave and fall for some rich prick. Now you’re back and you’re with some guy who’s, what? Ten years older than you? Come into work with a fucking hickey on your tit, displaying it like it’s some sort of fucking badge of honor!” I was breathing hard and I knew I’d yelled all that out and instantly regretted it. She reached out, but I moved away. “Don’t fucking touch me!” I snarled.

  “Chris, don’t do this, please don’t do this.” Her voice was cracking and it was killing me to see her like this, but I wouldn’t be her doormat anymore.

  “No! I’ve held back, knowing you wouldn’t want to hear it because you have issues, but fuck, I’m tired of putting you first when you don’t even give a fuck about me.”

  “That’s not true!” she begged, her eyes glistening with tears. I felt another cut slice right through me. Then a hard knock sounded behind the door, startling us both.

  “Christian, ya llego la otra mesera,” Jaime, my cook, called out to let me know Billie had arrived.

  “Orale,” I said, clearing my throat, glaring back at Ava. “We’re done with this conversation. I’d appreciate it if from now on we keep this—” I signaled between us. “—strictly professional, which shouldn’t be hard for you because we weren’t really friends to begin with, were we?”

  I took Ava’s silence as validation. She looked down and I could swear I saw tears running down her cheeks. I wanted to comfort her and apologize for being an asshole and yelling at her, but I couldn’t muster up the strength.

  “Excuse me,” I said sharply so she could step away from the door.

  Closing the door behind me, I seized a few seconds before stepping farther into the bar where everyone would be able to see me.

  Chapter Six

  Billie

  I walked into Blush to discover Jade and another girl standing at the bar. Jade perked up when she saw me. She jumped over the bar, running to me for a hug.

  “You’ll love it here.” She squealed as she wrapped her arms around me, and then we both froze when we heard yelling coming from the back of the room toward Christian’s office. We turned to see the other girl standing against the bar, just as surprised. Soon, a short m
an with a chef’s jacket and a thick mustache appeared as the swinging doors closed behind him.

  “Es Christian y Ava?” the man asked Jade.

  Jade nodded yes. Frowning, she took my hand and introduced me to the man and girl who were now standing next to each other.

  “Jaime, this is Billie. She’s our new bartender and part-time waitress.” We said hello, and shook hands. “And this is Claudia, the other waitress,” Jade continued with a tone I knew all too well. She didn’t like her…at all.

  Claudia was pretty enough, with healthy looking hair, clear skin, and a decent body…okay, she was fucking gorgeous. It appeared Christian only knew gorgeous women. That insecure feeling started to blossom once again in my stomach and I had to take a couple of seconds before greeting her.

  “Nice to meet you,” I said. She smiled back sweetly…way too sweet.

  “I’ll go tell Christian you’re here,” Jaime called as he headed away from us.

  I glanced over to Jade, asking her with my eyes what was going on. She shrugged like she knew, but nothing specifically. Christian came out of the back behind Jaime, and the look in his gaze destroyed me. His warm brown eyes looked so sad and lost. The urge to help him stifled me. I knew right away I was royally fucked.

  Minutes after Chris had emerged, so did the reason behind his sad eyes. Ava. I instantly recognized her from Jade’s Facebook pictures. We were introduced, and she was friendly enough, but I knew we would never be friends. There was a barrier behind her eyes and I didn’t care much to know why.

  As the night progressed, we got so busy I had to concentrate on what the customers were ordering and ignore my coworkers. While preparing orders for a large table, I sang quietly to myself, knowing the bar was too loud for anyone to hear me. At least I thought no one heard me. I felt his stare burn into the side of my face. I was mid-chorus when I looked up at him.