would have handled everything as well as William had, I knew there was no way I could have
physically restrained someone. Daddy hugged me tight as he kissed the top of my head and told me
how proud he was of me. “Jack’s on his way. When you didn’t answer your phone, he called
William.”
“Good.” There were bound to be questions, both from the police and from customers, and I
wasn’t sure I’d be able to come up with any answers. “Things like this don’t happen here. What if I’d
been the manager on duty?”
“You would have taken charge the same way you did tonight.”
“Maybe.” I shrugged. “But I’ll never be able to do what William did.”
“No, but you were calm in a moment of crisis. That’s huge. You took control of the situation, got
people where they needed to be, and took care of John, even though we both know the two of you
don’t get along. You put your personal feelings aside to keep everyone in the bar safe.” The way he
explained it, I did feel a bit more confident. “Before we go back out there, we need to get you cleaned
up a bit. Do you have a spare shirt in your office?”
I nodded. When I looked down at my shirt, the edges of my vision grew dark and I felt light-
headed. I looked like I’d been in the fight, not just helping someone after. Without another word,
Daddy slid a hand around to the small of my back. We stopped by my office and then he took me into
the private bathroom.
I was ready for tonight to be over.
* * *
We didn’t get home from the club until after midnight. Everyone was more subdued following the
incident. I kept waiting for my parents to say they weren’t comfortable with me working there, and I’d
formulated a series of rebuttals for the protests that never came.
“You have a great work family,” Mom said as she started a pot of coffee. Yes, it was the middle
of the night, but she’d likely be up for a few hours yet, and believed it was never too late for coffee.
“It’s easy to see how much they adore you.”
“What’s not to love about Sam?” Theron mused. He kissed the top of my head before pulling a
pack of cookies out of the pantry. I scowled at him. We had cookies and he didn’t tell me? He was a
big meanie. “They all look out for one another. Believe it or not, I had to get through William before I
could ask Sam out on a date.”
