Desiree downed her shot and slammed the glass on the bar.
Lincoln poured her another but never took his eyes off Lucky.
She blushed, pulled a card out of her wallet, and slid it across the bar. “You’re in luck. I have one spot available on Tuesday at ten. Can we meet at your house and go over what you’d like done? I’ll give you my quote and we can take it from there?”
“First, try the sangria.”
Desiree snatched up the glass and took a sip first. “Delicious.” She smiled at Lincoln, who narrowed his gaze and lost his smile as annoyance wrinkled his brow.
Lucky took the glass, sipped, and let her eyes roll back as the sweet, peachy taste exploded on her tongue. She hummed her approval, hoping Lincoln would appreciate how much she liked it. “That’s fantastic. Reminds me of summer. You should make a strawberry, raspberry version, too.” She didn’t know why she said that, except she really loved sangria. She didn’t normally talk to strangers so freely. But he felt like someone she knew because she knew Hawk and that made Lincoln feel familiar.
Lincoln’s eyes lit up. “I’ll get on that. We can put it on the summer menu.”
“If you need a taste tester,” Desiree purred. “I’d love to help.”
Lincoln barely spared her a glance. “Thanks for taking care of my brother. Drinks are on me.”
Lucky held up her glass. “Thank you. This really is my new favorite. I hope you keep it on the menu.”
“Anytime you want one, come in and we’ll make it for you.”
“Thanks. I’ll let you get back to work.” The number of people waiting for a drink had tripled while she monopolized his time. “I’ll see you Tuesday at ten.”
“Actually, during the week is really hard for me. Could you come on Sunday, say four?”
Not like she’d be doing anything but binge watchingVirgin Riveron Netflix. “Sure. No problem. Text me the address to the number on my card.”
He held out his hand for her to shake. “Thank you. See you Sunday.”
She wanted to take his hand, but hesitated.
Desiree piped up. “Yeah. She’s not going to touch you. Hates it.”
Lincoln’s gaze met her shocked and embarrassed one as he dropped his hand and gave her a nod and a soft smile to let her know it was okay. “I get it. Hawk went through that for a while. Have fun tonight.” He winked at her. “Let me know if you need anything else.”
Before Lincoln went on to the next customer, she stopped him. “Actually…” She didn’t know how being a wing-woman worked, but she owed Desiree for bringing her here tonight and getting her another job to fill the empty slot in her schedule. And with Hawk’s brother. “My friend here…Desiree…she was hoping you two might hit it off.”
Lincoln’s smile dimmed. “Yeah.”
Desiree’s eyes lit up. And then…
“I’m actually taking a break from dating for a while. No hard feelings. I just—” He shrugged his massive shoulders.
“You don’t have to explain. Thank you for the drinks.” Lucky hated when people put her on the spot and wanted Lincoln to know he didn’t owe them any kind of explanation.
He hadn’t asked for one about why she didn’t want to shake his hand.
Lincoln leaned in close. “Sunday. And be safe. If you need a ride home later, let me know. I’ll call you a cab.” He waited for her nod of agreement, then walked to the other end of the bar and started filling orders.
Desiree gripped her arm like a vice and pulled her away from the bar. “How could you humiliate me like that?”
She was going to have bruises. “What? I didn’t. I was just trying to set you up. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
“Not like that. Not in front of everyone. Not with you bungling your way through it. And then I had to watch him eying you and you flirting with him.”
“I wasn’t flirting. I was trying to get a job.” She didn’t know why Desiree was acting so mean when Lucky had tried to do her a favor.
Desiree rolled her eyes. “Come on. Maybe we can salvage this night.”
