“Where’s Joe at?”
“Taking a break. He figured I was doing well enough, he didn’t need to hover and watch my every move.”
“He’s right about dat. You’re good, cher. You make it look easy.”
Kylie smiled a little. “Thanks. I did this for three years, a while back. You should have seen how many bottles of liquor I broke in the beginning. I think I lost more than I made the first few weeks.”
Remy chuckled. “Happens to us all when we start someting new.” He spotted Joe coming back and winked at her. “I’ll let you get back to work. I need to go have a chat wit’ Emelise real quick.”
Kylie watched him go. She felt a pang of regret and pushed it down. She didn’t need to even think about letting herself get close to anyone. It didn’t matter how nice he seemed. She struggled to push back memories that threatened to pull her under. Not here, not now. She needed to work. It took more effort than she liked for her to push the memories back inside the little box in her mind so she could focus on the drink orders she had to make.
Remy
Remy headed to the ground floor of Scarlet Flux and made a beeline for Emelise, who was sitting on a stool at the bar next to Caine.
“We need to talk.” He knew he was abrupt and the look his Alpha gave him wasn’t a pleasant one. “Dis is important.” He wasn’t going to let himself be swayed by the dark look he received from Caine.
Emelise arched a brow. “My office. And you, stop glaring,” she said to Caine before she motioned for Remy to follow her. She wasn’t surprised when Caine joined them.
“What’s going on?” She only waited for the door to close behind them before asking.
“I was up in da VIP lounge, enjoyin’ da show Kylie was puttin’ on makin’ drinks, when some drunk grabbed her wrist. Someting about it scared her; I saw it in her eyes. He let her go when I got in his face, but I shouldn’t have had to do it. Da bouncer for upstairs didn’t show. Did you know dat?”
“Yes, I knew, but Joe is up there. He’s more than capable of handling a drunk.”
“Not if he’s on break when someting happens.” There was an angry growl in his voice.
“Watch yourself.” There was obvious threat in Caine’s voice.
Remy forced himself to calm down. “My apologies, Emelise. I’m not tryin’ to take tings out on you. I don’t know what’s gone on in her past, but she was scared when dat drunk grabbed her. You need a bouncer dat you can depend on. I want da job.”
Emelise gave him a look. “Is that so? Why should I give you the job, Remy? Just so you can stalk Kylie without looking like that’s what you’re doing?”
“No. So I can make sure drunks don’t get outta hand wit’ her or any of da servers. If dey’re grabbin’ her, what do you tink dey’re doin’ to da servers?”
She frowned at that. “No one has said anything to me about problems with patrons. I think I need to have a meeting with my staff after we close tonight.” She rubbed her temples a moment. “What about Delacroix Carpentry and Architecture? Are you planning on ignoring the company you’ve built with your brother?”
Remy shook his head. “Naw. I can do dat in da daytime and still be here at night, especially when my mate is workin’.”
“Fine, you’ve got the job. Don’t make me regret it, Remy Delacroix.”
Remy winked at her. “Wouldn’t dream of it, cher.” He nodded at his Alpha and left. He didn’t even care if he got paid to be the bouncer. He wanted to be there to keep Kylie, and the other women, safe. But most especially, Kylie.
He sauntered back upstairs and moved to lean against the bar until Kylie noticed him. “You don’t have to worry about some drunk grabbin’ you again. You’re lookin’ at da VIP Lounge’s new bouncer.”
Kylie blinked. “Emelise hired you to be the bouncer? Just like that?”
He shrugged. “What can I say, I made a good argument. You let me know if dere are any troublemakers I haven’t spotted yet,” he told her with a wink before he moved to a spot where he could keep an eye on the entire area. He could tell she was startled he was working there now and that puzzled him. The woman was a mystery he looked forward to figuring out.
Kylie
Once the last patron was gone and the doors were closed and locked, clean-up began. The entire staff helped so that it was done quickly.
It was while they were cleaning that Emelise spoke up. “I need everyone’s attention. Something happened tonight that shouldn’t have. Our newest member, Kylie, had some trouble with a drunk grabbing her wrist. It was brought to my attention that if the Drink Mixologist was grabbed, chances were good some of the servers were, as well. Yet, no one has said one word to me about any problems they’ve had with patrons. That’s not the kind of club I run. If something happens, I want to know about it. If someone is harassing a staff member, in any way, I need to know so that they can be removed from the premises and banned from the club. I will not have any of my staff feeling unsafe while at work.”
Several of the female servers shared glances before one spoke up. “We weren’t sure you’d want to know about it. I mean, this is a business that sells alcohol. It comes with the territory, especially if you’re a woman.”
“Bullshit. It might be a case of business as usual for some clubs, but not here. No one has a right to put their hands on you, for any reason, without your explicit consent. I don’t care who they are.”
