I was pissed off for her.
“Did you explain what happened and why you did it?” I asked curiously.
She nodded, looking pissed. “I did. I told them everything that happened. They didn’t believe me.”
I hated that for her.
Even more, I hated that I kind of liked that she was being forced into a corner when it came to not working here.
No matter who was here working, or how ‘safe’ she said it was, there was always the potential to have things escalate when alcohol, horny men, and aggression was in the picture. Much like it was at the strip joint she was currently working at.
“You want to grab a bite to eat after your shift?” I asked curiously.
Amelia placed both elbows onto the bar and leaned into them, her face in her hands as she stared at me.
I tried valiantly not to look down her shirt but fucked myself with only a quick glance down.
The tank she was wearing allowed me to see straight down her shirt, and she was wearing a red lace bra.
Sweet baby Jesus.
“I don’t get off for another hour,” she told me, amused by where I was looking. “Actually.” She looked at her watch. “Make that two, at least. I was supposed to be here to train Tomi. Not sure what’s going to happen now.”
“Well,” the mayor, Lynn, said as he came up and leaned an arm against the bar, “I’m going to pull one of the waitresses off rotation, bring her over here, and have you train her. Tomi’s gone.”
Amelia smirked.
“She was a bitch, anyway. If she’s late for this, she’s going to be late for other shit, and I’m not going to play that game. Her being a bitch to you was strike three tonight,” Lynn murmured, his eyes lighting on me. “Who are you?”
I held out my hand. “Adam Stoker. This one’s man.”
Lynn’s brows rose. “This one?” He turned to survey Amelia. “Your pop know?”
Amelia grinned salaciously. “No.”
“Fuck,” he snorted. “That ain’t good.”
Curious, I said, “Why not?”
“Because Silas Mackenzie doesn’t like being kept in the dark about shit. Especially not when it comes to his girls,” he answered, looking from me to Amelia and back. “Did you tell him that you were quitting?”
She shrugged. “I told him I was looking into another job. I didn’t give him an exact timeline.”
Lynn shook his head and laughed, but that laughter cut off when Tomi came storming through the room from the back somewhere, a box of shit in her hands. She gave one withering look in Amelia’s direction, then stomped the rest of the way out the door.
“Ruh-roh,” Lynn teased. “I think I pissed her off.”
“I think I pissed her off,” Amelia corrected. “You were just the person that fired her for something that I supposedly did.”
Lynn shrugged. “Whatever the reason, I’m glad that she showed her true colors before I had to depend too fully on her. I’m sending Nadine over. Think she’ll fit well?”
Apparently, the woman under question had been the topless chick from earlier.
She came up seconds after her name was mentioned with a tray full of empties and set them expertly on the counter, all the while keeping her swaying breasts away from the bar, the tray of mugs, and our group.
It was rather quite impressive seeing as her boobs were quite large.
When I looked up it was to find Amelia looking at me with mirth in her eyes.
I shrugged.
I mean, it was a fuckin’ set of tits. What man wouldn’t look? I didn’t care if they were gay or straight. Taken and happy or single and not. A man was going to look. Just like a fuckin’ woman would.
“Nadine,” Lynn said as she finished firing off another order. “How would you like a pay raise, better hours, and the ability to still make tips?”
Nadine looked at Lynn with a raised brow. “I would say that that’s impossible to do, and call you a liar.”
Lynn shook his head and laughed, then gestured toward Amelia. “Amelia’s leaving. She needs to train someone to take over her position. And since her hours are the ones you’d be covering, they’re the best I have to offer. And the pay raise comes because you won’t be getting the same tips that you used to have since you won’t be topless back here.”
Nadine frowned. “How different are we talking about when it comes to tips? I mean, I work here because I have shit to pay.”
Lynn snorted. “How about you try it out. You don’t like it, I’ll put you back where you were, after I find a bartender to cover this shift.”
“I’ll try it, I suppose.” She paused. “Not having these bad boys out would be kind of nice.”
The ‘bad boys’ being her tits.
“Go get a shirt on and head back to allow her to train you for tonight,” Lynn ordered. His eyes met mine then. “Not that I mind you being here, but you can talk to her when she gets off. Either find a table or find the door.”