Bad Guys Don't Win (Janet Maple Series Book 4)

by Marie Astor

  “Like what?” he asked innocently, biting her thumb gently.

  She felt his leg brush against hers beneath the table. “Like that,” she panted. “If you don’t stop, we’ll have to get the rest of our dinner to go.”

  “So my flaws are forgiven?”

  “Yes,” she murmured, glad to see the waiter approaching with their next course.

  A picture of composure, Philip let go of her hand and smiled at the waiter. “That looks wonderful. We really enjoyed our first course and can’t wait to see what you have planned for us next.” He winked at Mila and all she could do was drain her champagne glass to quell the fire he’d ignited inside her. She couldn’t wait to get Philip to her place. She’d get her payback once he saw her in the red silk lace ensemble she had waiting for him in her bedroom. It was going to be a night he’d remember for a while.

  Chapter 2

  When Mila came in to work the next day, she felt as though she were floating on air. Last night had turned out to be very memorable indeed. After Philip had wowed her with the romantic dinner at Per Se, his chauffer dropped them off at Mila’s apartment. Usually Mila stayed at Philip’s luxurious townhouse in Tribeca. Last night she insisted that they go to her place since she wasn’t letting the red silk bustier along with matching lace panties, garter belt, and stockings she’d bought for the occasion collect dust in her lingerie closet. She’d promised Philip the surprise she had planned for him was worth forgoing the splendor of his digs and she had been right. Philip’s eyes looked like they were going to jump out of their sockets when he saw her all dressed up. He couldn’t wait to ‘unwrap his present,’ as he’d put it, but instead she’d made him take it slow—it was her time to tease him. They ended up making love until dawn and fell asleep exhausted, wrapped in each other’s arms. She had no idea how Philip found the will or the stamina to get up at seven a.m. for his business meeting—she was barely able to lift her head off the pillow to mouth goodbye to him when he left. Sleeping in late was definitely one of the major perks of owning a bar—the work was grueling, but it suited Mila’s night owl personality perfectly. She’d slept like a baby until noon and still had time to run errands before going to work at four—they’d be opening their doors at five p.m.

  Dreamily, Mila nodded at Amy who was already behind the bar, stocking freshly washed glasses from the dishwasher.

  “Looks like someone had a good time last night,” Amy caught Mila off guard. “You look very limber and relaxed,” Amy added with a grin. “I like your hair loose like that.”

  Mila shook her head, quickly tucking her mane into a ponytail. She got behind the bar next to Amy, put on her apron, and busied herself with shelving martini glasses. They had a ton of things to do before they opened their doors. “How was it last night? Busy?” she asked, hoping to steer the conversation away from herself and Philip. She wasn’t a prude, but when it came to Philip she liked to keep the details of their private life private.

  “It was fine. We made out just fine. You aren’t that good of a bartender you know,” Amy teased her.

  “Oh, really? Well then maybe I should take off early tonight as well,” Mila shot back.

  “Don’t push it. I just got a call from Claire—she’s got an audition and she can’t make it in tonight.”

  “Where’s she auditioning, a peep show? I thought auditions were held during the day.”

  “Apparently it’s an off, off, off Broadway play.”

  Mila rolled her eyes. “The girl’s barely worked here a month and she’s been out more than she’s been in.”

  “I guess she doesn’t mind missing out on tips.”

  “We’re running a bar here. How are we supposed to service our patrons without reliable service?”

  “Calm down, will ya? This is the service industry—the majority of people who work here have other aspirations.”

  “Like starring in an off, off, off Broadway play. I get it.”

  Amy shrugged. “Maybe if we could afford to hire full-time staff and offer employee benefits, we could attract more reliable and professional staff. You know, former off, off, off Broadway actors who became full-time professional bartenders. We should talk with our banker about the loan again.”

  “We should.” Mila instantly felt uneasy, the details of Philip’s offer to invest in their bar coming back into her mind. Amy and Mila’s was doing great, but they could do so much more with an injection of cash. The preliminary terms their bank had offered them were steep, manageable, but steep. If Philip was offering to cut them a break, would it be so wrong to accept his help?

  “Uh-oh, I know that look. What’s on your mind?”

  “Nothing.” Mila sighed. She knew she had to tell Amy about Philip’s offer. After all, Amy was the majority partner, and it was her decision too. She was going to tell her, but first she needed to decide what she was going to do if Amy was going to say yes. The possibility made Mila so nervous that a stack of shot glasses she was in the process of putting on the shelf nearly slipped out of her hands.

  Amy burrowed into her with an X-ray stare. “Out with it before you cost us a fortune in broken glassware.”

  Mila leaned against the bar stand, biting her lips. “I need to tell you something.”

  “I already figured that. Wait a minute, is everything all right with you and Philip? You looked so happy when you walked in, so I thought you were just being your usual cryptic self, but if anything is wrong, I’m gonna personally kick the bastard in the balls and make him—”

  “Everything is great,” Mila cut off Amy’s tirade before it got any more graphic. “Better than I could’ve hoped for, actually.”

  “Wait a minute—” Amy’s eyes widened. “Show me your left hand! “Did he—”

  “Propose? No.” Mila produced both hands for inspection. She’d be a liar if she didn’t admit she’d thought about the possibility of Philip popping the question. Someday, once she was set on her path and knew where she was going, she’d welcome it, but right now it would only wreak havoc in her life.

  “Sorry, I got overly excited there for a moment. So everything is good between you love birds?”

  “Philip wants to invest in our bar,” Mila blurted out, unable to keep the suspense up any longer. It was better to just get it out in the open.

  Amy’s eyes lit up. “He does? That’s great, Mila! Wasn’t he named one of the savviest investors of the year or something like that?”

  “He made Forbes’ top one hundred most successful entrepreneurs of the year list.”

  “Isn’t that amazing? It means our business has real potential, or Philip wouldn’t be offering to invest in it.”

  “Are you sure about that? What if he’s just offering because—”

  “Because what? Because he’s sleeping with you?”

  “You don’t have to put it so crudely,” Mila countered.

  “Pardon my manners,” Amy quipped. “I didn’t realize my language would offend you.”

  “Knock it off.” Mila sighed. She had no idea why she got so touchy all of a sudden. She and Amy went way back to the time when they waitressed at Hogs and Heifers, dancing in their bras on bar stands. Mila was no sheltered flower, but Philip was changing that and it scared her. “Yes, it worries me that he’s only willing to give us the money because he’s sleeping with me,” she forced herself to say the words even though they stung her tongue—what she had with Philip went beyond the bedroom, or at least she hoped so. “And it scares me that it’s going to diminish everything we’ve done—it will no longer be our bar—it’ll be his too. And no matter how hard we work, people will always think we got our break because Philip Barrett invested in us.”

  “Since when do you worry about what people think? From what I remember, this isn’t the first time you’re dating a wealthy guy, but none of them have ever offered to invest in your business before.”

  “That’s because I didn’t have a business.”

  “Or maybe it’s because none of them resp
ected or valued you the way Philip does.”

  “That too. I’m scared of losing what I have with him, and I’m scared of losing what I’ve achieved here, with you. Amy and Mila’s is our place—we built it from scratch. I’m scared of messing up, again.”

  Amy reached for Mila’s hand, squeezing it in a comforting gesture. “You won’t mess up. I won’t let you. But I won’t let you miss out on a great opportunity either. We’re going to meet with Philip tomorrow and look at the terms that he’s offering. If his offer beats the bank’s, we’re taking it. Plain and simple. I don’t like pulling rank, but I’m the majority partner here and I have the votes,” Amy finished triumphantly.

  “Philip also thought we should expand into the vacant lot next to us. He knows the owner and could get us a break on the rent.”

  “That’s awesome! I thought about expanding, but I didn’t think we could swing it with the bank’s rates. But if the numbers work out, I’m all for it.”

  Mila threw up her hands, knowing she was outnumbered. “I’ll call him tomorrow.”

  “Call him now. I don’t want him to change his mind.”

  “All right.” Mila was about to reach for her cell phone when the front door opened and a tall girl with dark, long hair walked inside. She was dressed in skinny jeans, leather jacket, and a tight black top that prominently displayed her ample cleavage.

  “Sorry, we aren’t open yet,” Amy said apologetically.

  “Damn, I forgot to lock the door.” Mila shook her head. “We open at five,” she informed the girl who was still lingering by the bar stand.

  “Oh, excuse me, sorry to barge in on you like this. I was just wondering if you might be hiring?” the girl asked.

  Mila was about to say that they weren’t—since technically they really weren’t, but Amy intercepted her, “As a matter of fact, we are. Do you have any experience bar tending?”

  “My last job was with Red Door, and before that I waitressed at bars all over the city—it’s all in here. My references are attached.” She put a copy of her résumé on the bar stand. “Sorry, I should’ve brought more copies.”

  “I see.” Mila shot Amy a look—Red Door was a strip bar, a fact she happened to know because it was only a few blocks away from their own bar and she passed it on her way to work every day.

  “That’s quite an impressive list, Jess Hall,” Amy observed, getting the girl’s name from the résumé. “I’m Amy and this is Mila. We own Amy and Mila’s together.”

  “So nice to meet you. And thank you.”

  “So what made you leave Red Door?” Mila asked.

  Jess looked squarely at her when she answered without a trace of embarrassment in her voice. “I’ll just say that the management expected more from its bartenders than the standard duties.”

  “Sleazy bastards,” Amy muttered. “When can you start?” she added.

  Jess’s face lit up. “When do you need me to? The sooner the better.”

  “How about tonight? One of our girls couldn’t make it in, so we’re short staffed. We pay minimum wage and whatever you make from the tips is yours.”

  “Sounds good to me, as long as I don’t have to do anything other than mixing and serving drinks.”

  “That pretty much sums it up. Oh, we might ask you to help out the busboys with the dishes if we’re short staffed, but that’s the extent of it—there won’t be any funny business, if that’s what you’re worried about. In fact, we have a strict policy about professional staff and client interactions. A little bit of flirting is fine—we all know that’s the way to get them to buy more drinks, but that’s where it ends. This is a place of business. If you’re looking for a date, it’s gotta be elsewhere.” Amy crossed her arms on her chest. “These are the rules. If they sound good to you, you can start tonight.”

  “That sounds perfect. You won’t have to worry about me breaking any of your rules,” Jess assured them. “Where can I leave my things?”

  “Downstairs. I’ll show you the employee changing room.” Amy headed towards the stairs in the back leading to the basement.

  A few minutes later, Amy was back behind the bar. “Jess will be up here in a few minutes. She’s just freshening up.”

  “Good.” Mila pursed her lips. “The glasses are all stocked. We’re running short on vermouth and Southern Comfort, so I’m going to go downstairs and place an order. We still got a few minutes before opening time.”

  “Okay, sounds good.” Amy nodded. Mila was about to walk away when Amy stopped her. “Hey, aren’t you going to tell me what you think about our new hire? That’s what I call perfect timing.”

  “Does it really matter what I think? You just went ahead and hired her without asking me.”

  Amy seemed taken aback. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. I just thought if you had any objections, you’d speak up. She seems like a hard worker. Don’t you think?”

  “We hardly know anything about her,” Mila shot back, “but what does it matter what I think when you’ve made it clear that you’re the majority partner and you call all the shots.”

  “I didn’t mean it like that, and you know it. You’re taking the whole thing out of context.” Amy narrowed her eyes. “Wait a minute, are you mad at me for wanting to hear Philip’s offer? Is that what it is? If you don’t want to do it, I won’t force you. I don’t need any favors from you or him.”

  Mila sighed. The last thing they both needed was to get into a stupid fight right before opening time. “I’m sorry. I’m just being overly touchy. But don’t you think we should’ve at least checked this girl’s references before hiring her? For crying out loud, you left her alone downstairs and we don’t even know her.”

  “What is she going to do? Walk away with a case of Jameson? Our computer systems are password protected and all the petty cash is locked in a safe. I just thought we could use an extra hand—if she doesn’t work out, we’ll let her go. It’s that simple.”

  “I hope so. I just hope she’s not a mass murderer or something.”

  Amy rolled her eyes. “We’re not in a Stephen King novel, for crying out loud.”

  “No, but I still would like to call Red Door and see what they have to say about her.”

  “Sure, that’d be a very useful reference since those guys are the pinnacle of discretion and work ethic.”

  “It’s better than nothing,” Mila countered.

  Amy handed Mila Jess’s résumé. “Why don’t you go downstairs and check her out right now?”

  “Now? We’re about to open—there’s no time.”

  “I think I can hold the fort for a few minutes. It won’t get busy for another half an hour or so. If anything doesn’t check out, she’s out.”

  Just then Mila noticed Jess walking towards them. “I think I’ll do just that.” She smiled brightly at Jess. “Amy is going to show you the ropes. I have to take care of restocking downstairs.”

  Amy checked her watch. “It’s opening time. You’re going to get baptized by fire, Jess.”

  “I hope I won’t disappoint you.” Jess took her place behind the bar.

  Once downstairs, Mila got to work right away, checking out Jess’s references. She made sure not to stay away too long though, since she could tell from the noise coming from upstairs that the place was filling up fast. In less than twenty minutes she was back upstairs.

  “I need two Bloody Mary’s and a gin and tonic,” Amy shouted.

  “Coming right up,” Jess beat Mila to the task.

  Mila exchanged glances with Amy. “I see it’s going well.” She noticed Jess’s hands busily mixing drinks—the speed and dexterity of her movements was proof enough that she was no stranger to being behind the bar stand.

  “So, what do you think?” Amy asked. She kept her voice low, but it was so noisy in the bar that there was no danger of Jess overhearing them.

  “I think you made the right call,” Mila conceded.

  “What about the references?” Amy asked.

  �
�They all checked out,” Mila said sheepishly. “I guess I overreacted. I should’ve trusted your gut feeling.”

  “There was a time when I took a chance and hired you,” Amy pointed out. “Although it does feel like a lifetime ago.”

  “It sure does,” Mila agreed, remembering the time Amy used to be a manager at Hogs and Heifers. A lot of things had happened to her since then, both good and bad. For a while it had seemed like the bad streak was drowning out the good one, but now things were finally looking up and Mila hoped that the dark streak in her life was over. Perhaps it was time to give someone else a chance, just like she had been given a chance in the past.

  “Great then. I’m sure glad we have an extra set of hands helping us out tonight,” Amy said without a trace of triumph in her voice. “We would’ve been swamped without Jess.”

  “Hey there, ladies, can I get two whiskey sours for me and my buddy here?” The request came from a heavy guy with a bushy beard. He was dressed in a biker jacket.

  “We’ve been waiting for a while,” his friend piped in. He was just as heavy and was wearing a similar biker jacket, but his beard was much shorter. Both men had beads of perspiration glistening on their foreheads.

  “Coming right up, gentlemen.” Mila hurried to mix the cocktails.

  “Keep an eye on those two,” Amy whispered. “It’s their third drink and they’ve both been here less than twenty minutes.”

  Mila shrugged. “Since when is that a problem? Don’t we want paying customers?”

  “Yes we do, but we don’t want rowdy drunks who cost more in damaged property than they spend on drinks,” Amy countered.

  “Don’t worry, I got it,” Mila assured her.

  “Good. Because I’m dying to pee. I’ll be right back,” Amy whispered.

  Mila placed the drinks on the counter. “Here are your drinks, gentlemen. Sip and enjoy. The night is still young.”

  “Men don’t sip,” the guy with the bushy beard growled. He picked up his drink and drained the glass without breaking for breath. His friend followed suit.