by Lisa N. Paul
“I’ve been tossing around an idea, so let me know what you think.” Julie sipped her wine. “About two weeks ago, Kyle had to get his car from the parking lot—he’d left it there when he went home with one of the bar bunnies after work. I have no idea what he sees in those women…don’t look at me that way, Dan. He could do some much better.”
“But he couldn’t do easier, babe, and that’s what he’s looking for. Get back to the topic, or we won’t make the eight-thirty movie.” When she rolled her eyes, Danny’s pulse quickened. “So glad you just did that, honey. I’ve been looking for a reason to fuck you in the office when everyone’s around. Pump my dick into you knowing full well that you can’t make a peep. Looks like tomorrow’s the day.” His cock twitched in his jeans at the mere thought. “Next time, don’t roll your eyes at me. It’s rude.”
He leaned in and touched his lips to hers. Her moan told him that her punishment would be pleasure for the both of them.
“Now, let’s get back to the Christmas bonus idea,” he said.
Julie licked her full bottom lip, exhaled, and continued. “Anyway, he had been a bit drunk and a lot hasty to leave after his shift, and he mistakenly left his car keys in the bar. It was freezing that night. Sleet, crazy winds, and the guy couldn’t get into his car or into the bar, being that it was three thirty in the morning.”
“Shit, what did he do? And why is this the first I’m hearing about it?” Danny’s gut clenched at the thought of his boy stuck in the cold.
“Max came and got him, drove him to Kyle’s apartment because all of his roommates were too intoxicated to answer their cell phones.” Julie sipped her wine. “The whole situation got me thinking. Those three, we treat them like family, and they treat us the same. They respect our bar, treat it like home. Would it be so bad if we gave them each a set of keys in case of an emergency?”
The idea floated before it settled into his brain. “No, honey, I think that a brilliant fucking idea.”
With the five of them gathered in the empty bar closed for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, love floated through Danny’s veins. In that moment, it didn’t matter what was going on in the world outside; his little family stood there before him, and he felt content.
“Danny, give them their gifts.” Excitement seeped from Julie’s pores as Danny handed out the envelopes and the boxes.
“Oh man, this is unnecessarily generous,” Max muttered when he lifted the check from the envelope.
“Shit, you two keep upping the bonuses, and I’ll have my own spaceship by next year.” Kyle’s wink made Julie laugh, but Danny wished he could buy that boy the happiness he deserved.
“Oh…my…God. This is…” Ashley had opened the box and pulled out the key with the note card attached. Tears filled her eyes, but none of them fell as she seemed to contain them by sheer will. “I don’t know what to say about this.”
Danny looped his arm around his wife as they both watched Kyle and Max open their boxes and pull out their keys. Kyle’s brows shot together as if he couldn’t make sense of the words, “You never knock on the door of your own home.” Kyle mouthed the words a second time before lifting his head and staring first at Julie, then at Danny.
“Is this the key to Danny’s?” His voice trembled as the question left his lips.
“Our bar, not our home,” Julie answered.
Kyle looked at Danny, who simply nodded.
“This is home,” Ashley said, apparently speaking for the three of them by the way they all nodded. “Thank you for giving me—us—a home. This is the greatest present I’ve ever gotten.”
What Max, Kyle, and Ashley didn’t realize was their arrivals into Danny and Julie’s lives were three of the greatest gifts they had ever received as well. It may not have been the loud Christmas Danny wished for once upon a time, but there in his bar stood his little family. He was a happy man.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Ashley and Ryan
JULIE AND DANNY were in the kitchen, discussing recipe changes with the cook, when on the monitor, they saw a man enter the bar and approach Ashley. They couldn’t hear what was said, but they saw the way Ashley’s body froze.
“Don’t like that at all. I’m going out there,” Danny announced.
“No, wait.” Julie grabbed her husband’s arm and stared at the screen. Her head tilted from side to side before her brow rose with understanding. “There’s something interesting going on between those two. Something familiar. Give them a few minutes, babe.”
Her tone clearly implied that her request was not a request at all, hence Danny backed away from the door. They stared at the screen, transfixed, tranquility practically hugging her husband. Ashley’s voice broke the barrier of the kitchen door.
“Hello? You still in there?” Ashley shouted at the man. “I asked, why the hell are you in my bar?”
Tranquility gone. Danny snapped into action.
“Oh really, so it’s your bar now is it, little girl?” Danny’s voice held humor as he swaggered into the main bar to address Ashley, Julie right on his heels.
So that’s Ryan Baker, Julie thought after being introduced to the handsome younger man. The Ryan Baker. Ashley’s one true love. Over the years, Ashley, through tons of Julie’s prompting and patience, had opened up to Julie and Danny about her past. They’d learned of her brother Leo’s passing and the horrific circumstances surrounding his death. Ashley had explained her relationship, or lack thereof, with her parents, and after a while, she told them minimal details about her one true love. Looking at the gorgeous, dark-haired, tattooed, modelesque-man whose eyes barely left Ashley, Julie could understand the difficulty in moving on from him.
For the rest of the day, Ryan stuck by Ashley’s side like glue, as if he was afraid if he blinked, she’d vanish and he’d be lost…again. As tightly wound as Ashley was in Ryan’s presence, the spicy girl’s eyes held a softness that had been missing since the day she came to Charistown.
Hmm, interesting. Maybe I can finally get her to talk to me about him. Julie saw Ashley drink another shot of tequila and head for the restroom. Then again, maybe tomorrow would be better.
###
“THEY BICKER, THEY laugh, they flirt, they fight,” Danny said to his empty office as Ashley’s sassy words, no doubt directed at Ryan, filtered through the bar walls. He rubbed his hand over the week’s worth of scruff that lined his jaw. “Six months he’s been here, and while every day is different, they’re all the same. It’s like that movie Groundhog Day. Something’s gotta give eventually.”
No one knew what would happen during a shift when Ashley and Ryan were together behind the bar. The only thing guaranteed was perfect service and comical entertainment.
“Those two are gonna drive me to drink.” Julie shook her head as she entered the office, closed the door, and stared at Danny, who looked at her from his desk chair with a smirk.
“You own a bar, honey. Have at it. Or…” He reached for her, his eyes hungry and his brow arched with mischief. “You can take your frustrations out on me.”
“Mmm, I like the sound of that.” She stretched to flip the lock on the door.
“Max?” Danny spoke into the phone that connected the office to the bar. “Julie and I are taking a conference call. No interruptions for at least a half hour. Got it?” Danny’s full-on smile told Julie that Max had something less than appropriate to say before the call was disconnected.
“Are you gonna share?” Julie asked about Max’s comment.
“Never. Now get your sweet ass over here and let me help you with some of your frustrations.”
Her man could bottle his relaxation techniques, but just like him, she didn’t share.
Chapter Twenty-Four
A Sunday Dinner
“MY GOD, THAT was amazing, Danny.”
Danny peeked at his wife’s face and quickly returned his eyes to the road. They had landed in Philadelphia an hour before and were on their way back to Charistown after a four-day va
cation in Key West.
“It was awesome, wasn’t it? All of us being together… Christ, I can’t remember the last time that happened. Watching my dad, Chris, and Chester trying to one-up each other was funny as hell.”
Julie snorted.
“What? What was that for?” Danny huffed, trying his best to sound annoyed even though he felt anything but.
“Really, hun? You don’t think you were part of that silliness?”
Shrugging his acquiescence, memories of the weekend floated through his mind. “So how about Chester? Finally found himself a woman…I never saw that coming.” Meeting his friend’s girlfriend had blown Danny’s mind. He wasn’t surprised she was beautiful—he’d have expected nothing less—but her appropriate age and maturity…wow. Just wow.
“I’m not surprised. Not at all,” Julie murmured. “Something happened to him, Danny. Something bad, tragic. He’s never shared it with me, but I know it deep down in my soul. A man like Chester loves hard, and I have the feeling that he only loves hard once. Maybe he’d already found it and lost it, or maybe he never found it at all. All I know is that he’s found something with Carmella. It may not be life-altering love, but it certainly has made him happier than I’ve ever seen him. It’s like he finally found…”
“Peace. He found his peace.” All of the conversations the two men had shared over the years swirled through Danny’s mind. It took Chester a hell of a lot longer than it did Danny, but the older man had found his peace. Danny’s cheeks lifted as the realization hit home.
“Your dad looked great…healthy,” Julie remarked. “You’d never know that he’d been hospitalized just a few months ago.”
Allan had gotten the flu in the fall and it landed him in the hospital for nearly a week. Danny and Julie flew down to North Carolina to be with Allan and Anita, leaving the bar in Max, Kyle, Ashley, and Ryan’s capable hands. It had been a remarkable feeling when, after twenty-four hours, they realized they hadn’t so much as thought of their bar or its well-being. Once they returned home, they spoke with their four bartenders, people they had taken to calling their kids, about them once again taking over so Danny and Julie could take a much needed, well-deserved vacation.
Obviously, with the two of them on their way home from the Florida Keys, the request was well received and accepted.
“What do you think about the cute duo that started coming in on Thursday nights?”
Julie’s question took his mind away from Florida and delivered it to the bar.
“Lyla and Janie,” Julie clarified unnecessarily.
He knew exactly who they were. He made it his business to know the regulars, and he’d made it his mission to know the people his kids showed interest in. Janie Silver appealed to Max in a way Danny hadn’t seen in the decade Max had been working for the Marcuses, so Danny paid close attention.
He grinned. “What do I think? I think those two are gonna be around for quite some time.”
“Ahh, so you noticed it too, huh?” Danny’s silence got Julie speaking. “Max looks at Janie like he can’t decide if he wants to devour her or run from her.” She giggled. “My guess is he’ll do both, though I hope not in that order. That sweet girl looks at him with stars in her eyes. I’d hate for him to ruin that. It could ruin her.”
Danny couldn’t disagree. As usual, his wife’s assessment was spot-on. “What about the other one, Lyla?”
“Hmm, that one is tough.”
He thought the same thing. From the moment he’d laid eyes on the petite brunette, he saw something he had never seen before. The woman was a complete contradiction. Her beauty was extraordinary, but often times it was masked behind sarcasm and dry wit. If one chose to only look skin deep, they might not see the kindness behind what could be considered rude.
In the few weeks that the ladies had been spending their Thursday nights at the bar, Danny had noticed Lyla’s sharp sense of humor, but he also saw how quickly she could bank pain if someone else’s attempt at funny crossed an invisible line she had drawn. She didn’t mind receiving drinks from men but frowned upon cocktails on the house. Regardless of how she got her drinks, her tips were generous to a fault. She was fiercely protective of Janie and from the start included Ashley in their conversations, which made the protective side of Danny happy as hell.
What did he think about Lyla Dalton? Something in her blue eyes spoke to him; he just didn’t understand what they were saying…yet. The woman ran deep, deeper than he could possibly imagine, but she was good people. And good people always had a place at Danny’s on Main.
Danny said, “Kyle and Lyla seem to speak the same language, the way they edge around flirting with one another but take home random hookups instead. Those two are similar creatures—playing with fire. Sure as hell hope they don’t burn each other.”
“Kyle deserves to find a good woman. Maybe Lyla will be just what he needs. I think she and Janie are gonna fit in just fine,” Julie concluded with optimism.
Danny lifted his chin. “It’ll definitely be interesting.”
###
INTERESTING WAS AN understatement. Janie Silver and Lyla Dalton were sugar and jalapeños. It didn’t matter that the duo wasn’t Danny’s staff; they meshed with the group and quickly found their place in Danny and Julie’s family. With their quirky sense of humor, willingness to listen, and the desire to help out whenever needed, Janie and Lyla seemed to give so much more than they asked for in return. But then again, wasn’t that the same with all of Danny’s kids?
When Danny found himself counting the two brunettes among his kids, he couldn’t have felt more pleasure. He didn’t need any more responsibility, but their eyes told him that they would accept his support, maybe flourish from it…no matter their age, they would embrace it. Chester had been there for him, and this was Danny’s way to pay it forward. It just so happened that with the right people, being a mentor came with a lifetime of love as well.
***
“A SUNDAY DINNER, Danny,” Julie practically sang as she placed her cell phone on the desk.
“Sorry, honey, what?” He had just entered the office and shut the door. Dinner hour on a Wednesday evening was packed, so the only way they’d be able to have a conversation was if the door was closed.
Excitement bloomed in her belly as she told Danny about her call. “That was Janie on the phone just now. Apparently she and Lyla have family dinners together every Sunday night. They’ve been doing it, just the two of them, since they were eighteen.” That part of Janie’s story made Julie’s heart hurt. Where were their families? “Anyway, she invited us to their dinner. All of us, Danny—you, me, Kyle, Max, Ashley, and Ryan, having dinner on Sunday night.” Her voice was practically a squeal, but her delight was impossible was to contain. “I’m baking dessert. I’m so excited.”
“Sunday dinner,” Danny repeated. “At Janie’s place.” An indefinable emotion sparked in his hazel eyes before humor crossed his face. “Why in fuck did we never think of that?”
“We’re pretty amazing, babe, but we can’t think of everything,” Julie teased. Danny’s smile was sexy. Didn’t matter how many times she saw it, it still took her breath away.
“Looking forward to dinner, honey. But I came in here to tell you something less than amazing… something else I didn’t think of.” A grimace combined with a hint of bashfulness wasn’t a look Danny Marcus wore every day—hell, Julie hadn’t seen that look more than once or twice in nearly three decades.
“Dan, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t know how the fuck I did this, but I didn’t place the vodka order last week,” he confessed. “I thought I pressed ‘enter’ on that damn computer form, but when the shipment came this morning, no vodka. According to the receipt, I ordered everything else, but not that.” He ran his hands over his scruff-covered face. “We only have eight bottles of vodka left until Friday afternoon delivery.”
Julie sighed, unable to hold back her relief. “It’s okay.”
“It’s not
okay. Eight bottles may get us through tonight—maybe—but Thursday nights are our busiest night of the week. I screwed up. Damn new computer system. I liked the old system so much better.”
“Danny, I love you, you know that, yes?”
Aggravated hazel eyes met hers, and he nodded.
“Then you should also know that after spending nearly thirty years not just behind a bar but behind the scenes, I double-check all paperwork all the time. And knowing that as amazing and talented as you are with everything—except for computers”—Julie grinned guiltily—“I triple-check all the orders. I saw the mistake. The vodka was ordered, just a little late. It’ll be here this afternoon.”
“You’re so wrong, honey,” Danny murmured, shaking his head, his mouth curling up on the sides.
Julie stood up and walked into Danny’s open arms. “What am I wrong about?”
“You do think of everything.” He lifted her chin, tilting her head back to meet his gaze. “You’re amazing.” He smiled, and it was sexy as hell.
***
“THANK YOU FOR coming. Honestly, this was so much fun,” Janie said, her turquoise eyes dancing with happiness. “Next week dinner’s at Lyla’s house. She has more room than I do, but she’ll force you to wash the dishes.”
Danny accepted her tight hug and returned it. He watched as his woman spoke to Lyla and laughed for the umpteenth time that evening, and he reveled in the sweet sound. Her laughter had been his music for more than twenty-eight years, but he noticed that with each addition to their “family,” her happiness changed. Morphed. Grew into something she had always wished for—a maternal love for those she chose to care for. Those who looked at her with respect and looked to her for guidance. In return, she looked to them for trust and unconditional love.
