“No shit?”
How had I thought this guy was charming? He was actually a bit of a jerk.
“I’d just passed the level three test—”
“You’re a sommelier?”
“I am.”
“I thought you were a lawyer.”
“I am.”
He was impressed despite himself, and rightly so. Working the necessary hours in the restaurant business while being full-time as an attorney hadn’t been fun, but hating your day job tended to be a good kick in the pants.
“Marco?” a voice called to him from behind the bar. Another good-looking guy...though he didn’t hold a candle to my current company. At least not in the looks department. I’m pretty sure he had a better personality, though. The bar wasn’t all that high.
You did slink in here to get a look at the place without introducing yourself.
Silencing my inner voice, I justified my opinion based on the swiftness of his change in personality. Clearly he had the charm dialed way up, but what should I have expected from a guy that looked like him? To be a nice, down-to-earth type?
The bartender likely saw what I did. The bar had gone from crowded to jampacked while we talked. Alanna was just getting her beer now. Two, thankfully. I was going to need another.
My companion held up his arm as if saying, ‘one sec.’
“We should probably talk more,” he said as if it was the last thing he wanted to do.
Good. The feeling was mutual.
“Probably,” I said, non-committally. “Thanks for the beer,” I added as Alanna sat back down.
“My pleasure,” he said as if it was anything but. “Alanna, nice to meet you.”
Without a backward glance at me, he walked away.
Good riddance.
FIVE
marco
The bar was empty.
Money, counted. Everything was cleaned and refilled and Grado Brewing Company was closed for the night. Since we shut down at eight, and it was still only nine-thirty, it was no shock that the bar filled with my siblings, one by one. All of them lived on property, like I did, in the lakeside cottages that were just a short walk away.
Thankfully, I liked my family.
I took a long swig of my favorite of all our beers. Our equipment wouldn’t be fully operational until this month, and it would be at least six months before we could fully take over production, but in the meantime, Rochester Brewing was doing one hell of a job contract brewing. Grado Lager was as good as any beer on the market.
“Hey babe,” Min said as she made her way behind the bar to Hudson.
“I’m heading out,” Karla grabbed her purse from under the bar. “Date night with my son.”
Karla had two kids, a boy and a girl. Her son was younger, ten maybe? “Sounds fun for him,” I said just as my sister-in-law Brooke happened to be within swatting distance. That earned a slap on the shoulder.
“Behave Marco.”
Karla didn’t seem to be offended. “I just want you to feel like a part of the family,” I told her.