“Case does.”
“Case... has Joey.” Her expression turned hard. “What? They watch the kitchen for each other.” And since Case didn’t have help until very recently, you’d think he’d be a hell of a lot more grateful for Joey’s support.
Men.
She ground her teeth together, clearly annoyed by my suggestion.
“I get it,” I said, working hard to sound sympathetic. “This is a hard gig. But hard things can be good things.”
“That’s what she said,” Charlie said from across the empty dining room.
Ally threw her head back and laughed, then ambled over to the bar with an, “Oh, my God, you’re never going to believe this—” story meant for Charlie.
I went back to my cash. Ally, Charlie, and Miles made lewd jokes and laughed their heads off at the bar while I ticked off my managerial duties involving counting tills, making notes on inventory, and checking all the employees out.
Eliza had disappeared hours ago, and Will had taken the night off. The siblings had left Charlie in charge in an overarching sort of way to show them they trusted him.
This was a new development in their relationship. As they vigilantly worked toward a healthier family dynamic with each other, they’d listened to Charlie’s complaints about being constantly treated like a liability. It was big of them. Brave of them.
Annoying of them since the only nights they ever seemed to leave him “in charge” were the same nights I was running the show at Craft.
Not that I wasn’t usually running the show around here, but three weeks ago, I’d taken the weekend off and had they let Charlie close down even once? No. Nope. Not even once.
We were all standing around the bar when Ally let out a frustrated groan as she stared at her phone. “For fuck’s sake,” she snarled. “Not again.”
I turned away from her to check some of the liquor bottles that had been running low earlier in the evening. Her drama was not my drama.
“My ride bailed,” she groaned. “And Ubers are surging right now.”
A sinking feeling spiraled through me.
“Ugh, that sucks,” Charlie sympathized.
I let out a slow breath. If I didn’t want the inevitable to happen, I had to take her home. At least that would save her from “accidentally” falling into Charlie’s bed tonight and losing another server with potential.
“I need better friends,” Ally groaned. I turned around just in time to catch her shoot a pleading look at Charlie. Her eyelashes fluttered seductively, and she bit her bottom lip. She stepped forward and crossed her arms so her boobs were suddenly a main attraction.
For a split second, I felt bad for Charlie. Was it his fault he was so damn attractive? Was it his fault girls tended to throw themselves at him? Girls who should know better? Girls who didn’t even seem like the throwing-themselves-at-him type? Like me, for instance.
But that was years ago.
Charlie’s gaze dropped to her fantastic boobs, and he cleared his throat awkwardly. “Uh, didn’t you tell me you live near Duke?”
Ally looked hopeful. “Yes.”
“Miles can take you home,” Charlie offered, not glancing at Miles once. For his part, Miles dropped a lemon; he was as surprised as I was to hear his name being offered up as a transportation sacrifice. “He lives over there.”
“I do?” Miles asked wide-eyed.
Charlie turned and shot him a wink. “Yeah, buddy. I bet her place is even on the way.”
“Oh.” Ally sounded disappointed. “Could you? That would be great. Thanks, Miles.”
“Uh, yeah, sure.” Miles looked totally baffled. “I guess I can do that. Wait, where do you live?”
As she rattled off her address and nearby landmarks, I watched Charlie. I was as puzzled as Miles. Ally wasn’t exactly throwing herself at Charlie, but she was clearly disappointed that he’d suggested Miles take her home.
It wasn’t that I thought Charlie was a manwhore. It was that Ally was gorgeous and young and, well, shallow. She was everything Charlie usually went for. She was his perfect hookup. And maybe she hadn’t wanted to hook up with him. Perhaps she just wanted to get to know him better... But I’d seen Charlie put in the groundwork many times over the years.
