Page 5 of Come As You Are
Maria put a hand over her heart and closed her eyes. “That cuts me to the quick. Now pour me a glass of champagne so I can recover my bubbly personality.”
“I’ve got it,” I said and reached over my head for a champagne flute.
Both Toby and Maria had worked at Illyria since Antonio opened the club a decade before. They bickered and traded insults like an old married couple, but where Maria always came to work made up to the nines, tweezed and plucked, exfoliated and epilated until her appearance was as manufactured as a Kardashian, Toby was completely natural. A big, burly leather daddy, the twinks swooned over him especially when he worked in a harness that showed off his thickly furred chest andmuscular arms. Put him in a pair of chaps and he was a Tom of Finland wet dream come to life.
The final member of our rag-tag ensemble slid onto the stool next to Maria. Given the name Festus by his parents, Illyria’s bouncer was one of the dourest men I’d ever met. He was the kind of person who, if you commented on how beautiful the day was would recite skin cancer statistics and remind you to wear sunscreen because of how much damage UV rays could cause.
“Hey, Fest,” Tom said. “How’s it hanging today?”
“Very low,” Festus replied. “And I might have felt a lump.”
Maria and I rolled our eyes at each other because of course, he did.
“Who’s the deer in the headlights with Andrew?” Festus asked.
“A new victim,” Maria said.
“Andrew fired Colum,” Toby added.
“Was Colum too popular?” Festus asked. “Did he make Andrew feel like the toad he is?”
Toby shrugged. “Probably. I’m sure Colum will land with both feet solidly on the ground. He had beautiful legs.”
“And was always upright in his actions, so I don’t know what he could have done wrong.” Maria and Toby grinned at each other while I groaned inwardly. Puns were their love language and once they got started, it was better to keep your head down.
“Should we warn this new lamb that he’s wandered into the wolf’s den?”
“Are you worried he’ll be fleeced?” Maria asked.
I shook my head and finished off my bottle count, grateful that I could leave these idiots to their jokes while I went to the storeroom to collect what needed to be restocked for the evening.
As I stepped out from behind the bar, I felt a familiar prickling awareness and glanced toward Olivia’s office. Sure enough, she was observing the club from her window, and myheart beat a bit quicker at the sight of her. She’d rarely smiled since Antonio’s death, but now I saw the distinct upturn of her lips. Unfortunately, she was watching Andrew teach Vee how to swing himself up onto the raised go-go platforms without causing himself injury. I felt a pang in my chest. In all the time I’d known her, I had never seen Olivia look at anyone the way she was looking at Vee. Had she ever looked at me that way, I would have been thrilled beyond belief, but she never had, and while I was happy to see the cloud of sorrow lifted from her eyes, it hurt that it had nothing to do with me.
You’re a fool, Sebastian, I told myself as I made for the door that would take me to the storeroom.
I was almost to there when Mal caught up with me and told me Olivia had alerted him to the issue I’d seen earlier.
“I double-checked the stock,” he said. “While it was down, I don’t think it’s evidence of an issue. Just normal ebb and flow. We had a higher demand than usual for vodka and tequila last week. In the future, I’d appreciate it if you would come to me with things like this instead of bothering Olivia. She’s got enough on her mind right now without you worrying her over nonexistent issues.”
Gritting my teeth, I held back the curse that rose to my tongue. I knew what I’d seen an hour before, and it wasn’t just normal usage and a heavier than normal demand for certain alcohols. What had been missing were specific high-end labels and our most popular brands of premium alcohol.
“I’ll adjust my order to the supplier,” I said.
“No need,” Mal replied. “I’ve already taken care of it. I’ll let you know when the order arrives.”
“Thanks.”
“Not at all.”
With that, Mal swept past me and headed for the kitchen, his ubiquitous tablet clutched tightly in his hand. I swear, I hadnever seen him without that thing, and the sound of it clicking as he checked things off his lists grated on my ears. Antonio had trusted Mal with his life, but since his death, I’d been uneasy about how much Olivia relied on him to run the club.
She knew the business as well as Mal did, I was sure of it. Antonio had brought her on as his assistant manager and made sure she was involved in every facet of the club’s operation. She’d learned to bartend and could probably mix drinks better than I could, especially since I paid more attention to her during her monthly stints behind the bar than I did to the drinks I was pouring. She also had a great understanding of social media and marketing and had built up Illyria’s following over the years with clever promotions and loyalty offerings. All of Illyria’s branded merch was designed by her, and it sold well both in the club and online. When she came out on the floor, everyone knew who she was, and she always made a point of greeting our regulars and any VIPs who happened to be here, her memory of who was who just about flawless.
In short, I had no idea why she relied so heavily on Mal, but it set my teeth on edge, and I itched to see the order Mal had placed to our liquor distributor. With that in mind, I hurried into the storeroom to get what I needed for the bar, and to check what I’d seen earlier that day.
I’d say it surprised me to find that the stock I noticed missing earlier was back on the shelves, but Mal’s confidence when he told me I’d been mistaken continued to bother me as I collected what I needed and headed back into the club.
Andrew was still working with Vee, but Olivia was no longer visible in the window. Maria, Toby and Festus were still thick as thieves at the bar, and Mal was nowhere in sight. Thank God. I didn’t know what I would have done if he’d been lurking in the corners. Shaking my head, I returned to the bar and began replacing bottles that were nearly empty.
