“Lame,” Silver said.
I rolled my eyes. “Shut up and drink.”
“Cheers.” We touched glass to glass and then to the wood of the bar. Naomi mimicked us, and I watched her as she knocked back her shot.
I expected her to start gasping and wheezing like a sorority sister during pledge week. But those hazel eyes went wide as she looked at her empty glass. “So apparently I’ve never had good tequila before.”
“Welcome to Honky Tonk,” Max said.
“Thanks. And now that my first shift is officially complete,” Naomi put her glass and apron on the bar and turned to me. “I quit.”
She headed for the door.
“Nooooo!” Silver and Max called after her.
“You better do something,” Silver said, pinning me with a glare. “She’s good.”
“And she’s trying to support a kid, Knoxy. Have a heart,” Max pointed out.
I swore under my breath. “Walk each other out,” I ordered and then went after Naomi.
I found her in the parking lot next to an ancient ten-speed.
“You’re not riding that thing home,” I announced, grabbing the handlebars.
Naomi let out a long sigh. “You’re lucky I’m too tired to pedal or fight. But I still quit.”
“No, you don’t.” Handing her the apron, I hauled the bike over to my truck and put it in the bed. She limped along after me, shoulders slumped.
“Jesus, you look like you got trampled by a herd of horses.”
“I’m not used to being on my feet for hours at a time. Okay, Mr. Pushes Paper From a Comfy Desk Chair?”
I opened the passenger side door and gestured for her to get in. She winced when she climbed up.
I waited until she was settled before shutting her door then rounding the hood and sliding behind the wheel. “You’re not quitting,” I said just in case she hadn’t heard me the first time.
“Oh, I’m definitely quitting. It’s the only thing that got me through the shift. I plotted all night. I’d be the best damn server you ever saw, and then when you had your change of heart, I’d tell you I quit.”
“You’re un-quitting.”
She yawned. “You’re just saying that so you can fire me.”
“No. I’m not,” I said grimly.
“You wanted me to quit,” she reminded me. “I quit. You win. Yay you.”
“Yeah, well, you didn’t suck. And you need the money.”
“Your benevolence is astounding.”
I shook my head. Even exhausted, her vocabulary still hit high on the SAT scale.
She rested her head against the seat. “What are we waiting for?”
“Making sure the girls walk out together and get in their cars.”
“That’s nice of you,” she said, yawning again.