Cody’s back teeth ground together at the thought of his last hires. Thieving assholes.
Barry sighed. “Look, son, I’m just reminding you that you might be a helluva soldier, but you can’t run this place without staff.”
Cody opened his mouth to tell the old man they’d find someone, when the door to the bar opened and Vanessa walked in.
He barely held in a groan, while Barry cursed under his breath before disappearing into the kitchen. Yeah, she wasn’t exactly a crowd-pleaser.
“Cody.” She leaned across the counter, her generous cleavage on full display. “How are you?”
“I’m fine. What do you want, Vanessa?”
She pouted. “Don’t be like that. We said we’d remain friends.”
He laughed but the sound was humorless. “No.Yousaid we’d remain friends. My silence should have told you I had no interest in being friends with the woman who cheated on me with my high school best friend.”
Her brow pinched. Only for a moment, then it cleared. “Ex-best friend. You haven’t exactly been close to him since school.”
Did that change anything? It had still been a kick in the gut. “Last chance, Vanessa. Tell me what you want or get out.”
“Fine. I have to host a work luncheon. You know we take turns, and this month, it’s mine. It was supposed to be held at Sugar and Spice, butMrs. Sandlerjust informed me she can’t host anymore. No reason given. The coffee shop can’t take us. And my place is too small. So…”
Vanessa worked in marketing at an injectables office, where clients—and staff—got all sorts of fillers.
He laughed. “You’re shitting me, right? You want me to host your work luncheon at my bar?” Had the woman lost her goddamn mind? Why she thought he would do her any favors was beyond him.
“Cody—”
“No.” He turned and grabbed the box opener, using more force than necessary to open the blade.
“It’s scheduled for two weeks from now, and everything’s already been organized.”
“Sounds like your problem, Vanessa.” He grabbed a bottle and slotted it above the bar.
“Cody, please!”
He made the mistake of looking at her. There was a sheen of tears in her eyes.
“You don’t owe me anything,” she said quietly. “And I didn’t want to ask, but so much hasn’t gone to plan these last few months. Georgie passed away. Mom’s been sick.”
Georgie the Pomeranian had been her world. And her mom had been sick on and off for years with the onset of dementia. She hit him right where he lived—he understood the pain of a sick parent.
She swallowed. “Please? I can’t lose my job. I haven’t been there for that long, so I need to do a good job with this. One favor, and I promise I’ll never ask again.”
Jesus Christ. He couldn’t believe he was doing this… “Send me the details and what you need me to do.”
Her eyes widened, and she gasped lightly as she grabbed his hand over the bar. “Thank you! Thank you so much, Cody. You’re such a good person.”
Too damn good. He was only doing it because of the sick parent part. His dad had been sick for years before he’d finally passed, while his mother’s sickness had taken her a lot faster. Neither were losses he’d wish on another person, no matter how much he disliked them.
She stepped away from the bar. “I’ll message you tonight.”
Great. Something to look forward to.
She’d just left the bar when his oldest brother, Kayden, stepped in, his brows drawn. “What wasshedoing here?”
“You don’t want to know. You already finished for the day?”
Between leading hiking tours and his SAR responsibilities, Kayden generally worked long hours. He was damn good at his job, which was handy, seeing as so many tourists came here, only to get lost in the forest. The only thing Kayden lacked was patience.
