“If you need it, you tell them the Jack will give you a reference.”
Eyes wide, he bobbed his head respectfully. “Yes, ma’am. Thank you, ma’am.” With that he slid off his stool. There was a spring in his step that she hadn’t seen when he came in.
Taryn wasn’t in the habit of helping her customers out. Jed, though, he was an old-timer—he’d had the same bar stool the whole time she’d been here.
She turned away to hide her smile. It wouldn’t do for anyone to get ideas and start thinking the Jack was getting soft. When she turned back, a newcomer sat in Jed’s place, looking completely out of place.
“What can I get you?” She took in his shaggy and short dark hair, somehow completely at odds with his company-man clothes. He was cute—if you ignored the corporate vibes.
Corporate types only ever came to Razor Jack’s on a dare. There were a lot of higher-end bars around the skyscrapers downtown. That was where the drones usually spent their money.
“Whiskey neat.”
Well, well. Looked like he had a bit more personality than the usual worker bee.
Grabbing a middle-of-the-line bottle from the speed rack, she held it up for his approval. He nodded and she turned away to get a glass. While she did, she studied him in the mirror on the back wall, picking up little details that were out of place with his corporate air.
He’d turned to study the bar. His profile was strong and his posture was relaxed, but still alert. Like recognized like—this was a man who knew trouble could come out of nowhere.
Her instincts prickled. He wasn’t your typical corporate employee. Why was he here?
She set his drink on the counter, but kept a hand on it. “Fifteen credits.” A couple of credits more than it actually cost. She was testing him, but she wasn’t sure why.
He didn’t blink at the price, just slid a chip over the bar to her.
Taryn released the glass, disappointment flaring in her stomach. Maybe she was seeing things that weren’t there. Anyone familiar with this part of town would have known how much that drink should cost.
“Enjoy your drink,” she said.
“Wait.” He grabbed her hand.
Taryn froze. Years of practice were the only thing that controlled the impulse to yank her hand away. Violently. “Remove your hand before I do it for you.” People didn’t touch her without her permission. Most in here knew better. Just another sign that he’d stumbled into a place that he didn’t know and didn’t belong.
He dropped his hand. “Sorry. I have a question.”
“What?” she snapped.
“Is the Jack in tonight?”
Taryn’s jaw dropped. Well, damn, he really was new here.
Chapter3
“What’syour business with the Jack?”
Ash sipped his whiskey, his eyes never leaving the bartender’s dark gaze. Her threat to remove his hand had been dead serious. When he’d spent time here before, the bartenders hadn’t been so... flinty.
It was an interesting change on top of others he’d noticed. A subtle lightness in the air for all the bar’s dim lighting. A less chaotic vibe. Small changes that spoke of larger ones. Ones he needed to understand and didn’t.
Negotiating with the Jack was a delicate dance and he couldn’t afford a misstep.
“That’s between the Jack and me,” he said, unwilling to share his business with anyone.
She’d obviously pegged him as an outsider since she’d tried to gouge him on the drink. He’d gotten the better of that deal, though. The payment details on his credit chip weren’t linked to him. They pulled from the account of some rich asshole who wouldn’t notice the extra charges. And if he did—well, it wouldn’t trace back to Ash.
“You got an appointment?” She crossed her arms over her chest, a move that pulled the black fabric tight against her torso, outlining breasts that would be plump handfuls. Damn, she was hot, with her long dark hair and dusky skin.
Rein it in, Ash. You can’t afford to be distracted by a pretty face.
