“You’re very good with them,” Brax suddenly said as I washed some glasses. “With all of us and the others. You’re very good.”
“Well, thanks,” I said. “Guess you’re sort of being used to being in charge of the group, huh?”
“Yes, I suppose,” Brax confessed. “I have certain leadership qualities, and I revel in being the alpha male, of course. Although Jax, in his own way, is sometimes more alpha male than I am.”
“Do you think...you criticize him too much?” I asked gingerly.
“Did he say that?” asked Brax.
“Not in so many words,” I deflected.
“My parents indulged him a bit, I’m afraid,” said Brax. “He was always a dreamer with the music and art and the Peace Corp. He wanted to change the world. Ambitious, but I thought it better to bring him down to Earth.”
“Why?” I asked.
“I guess because I was like him in my own way,” said Brax. “But somewhere along the way, I lost my idealism. I decided that money was the route to success. In some ways it is, but in more important ways it is not.”
“Did you bring your brother down to Earth, because you didn’t want him to suffer the same disappointment as you did?” I asked.
“No, more selfish than that, unfortunately,” said Brax, gazing into the distance. “I guess I didn’t want to believe you can change the world. If Jax had succeeded his way, then my way would’ve been wrong. I wanted to beat him competitively. That’s a terrible thing to say, because I actually admire his idealism quite a bit.”
“Did you ever tell him that?” I asked.
“Hmm, you know, perhaps it’s time I did,” Brax agreed. “You’re good to talk to, Claire. You see things clearly for me. I like that.”
“Ah, I’m just a fresh pair of eyes on an old situation,” I dismissed. “You guys did the same for me and much more.”
“Hopefully, we’ll be doing much more for you soon again,” suggested Brax. “I seem to recall a wonderful moment under the bar, but it’s a bit fuzzy.”
Fernando had an order up, so I took that moment to end the conversation. Did Brax forget or was he teasing? I wasn’t sure. I wouldn’t want to embarrass him, but that night couldn’t be the first time he got that drunk. Oh well. There would be enough time later to sort through that.
Kenner was moving a large rack of glassware from one side of the bar to another. He slipped and dropped the entire container of glass. The glassware shattered and the whole bar erupted in laughter and cheers but not me.
“Oh, God,” I said.
“I’m so sorry, Claire,” apologized Kenner. “It just slipped.”
“No. No worries,” I assured him. “We’re just going to be really short on glassware.”
I started sweeping up the piles of glass while Kenner held the dustpan.
“Hey, the limo passed a dollar store on the way back from the bakery. It’s not too far. Let me run down there and see what I can find,” he offered.
“How are you going to carry all the glasses back?” I pointed out. “We need like four dozen of them at least.”
Just then, Jax and Travis arrived with the bread. Problem solved. The boys took the bread in the back for Fernando, and Jax and Kenner left to find me more glasses. Travis took a seat at the bar. He smelled like bread.
“You smell delicious,” I teased.
“Yeah, I spent the last hour and a half sitting covered with bags of bread,” he laughed. “More carbs than I would eat in ten years!”
“Is that how you maintain that sexy bod?” I asked.
“It’s a lot more work than that!” Travis explained. “You have to literally count every calorie and anything even close to fat— forget it. It’s the only way you can get these.” Travis pulled up his shirt and showed off his six-pack. Tina was walking by with a tray of food. She slowed down to peek.
“Jesus Christ,” she muttered under her breath.
“Table six is waiting,” I reminded her.
She hurried off to table six. Quite frankly, I couldn’t blame her. Travis was, head to toe, an Abercrombie and Fitch model. When you look that good, admittedly, it didn’t matter what you wore. But on top of everything else, Travis had an amazing suit, expensive watch and jewelry with great taste in all of it. I zoned out just taking inventory in my mind.
“Claire?” he said, smiling.
“Sorry,” I snapped out of it. “Zoned out for a second.”
“No worries,” he said, grinning as he leaned back from the bar. “Happens all the time.”
“Thanks for getting all that bread,” I said.
“Thanks for justifying the use of our limo,” he said. “I thought it was a waste of money when Brax started doing it, but it’s actually paying off today.”
“It’s fine,” assured Brax. “It’s a company limo. I write the whole thing off as an expense. If we didn’t take a limo, the government would just tax us more. Who do you want to have a limo? Us or the government?”
“So wait, is all the booze inside the limo bar a write off too?” asked Travis.
“Yes, everything.”
“Did you tell us not to drink too much in the limo?” recalled Travis.
“I like to have a bourbon for the ride,” explained Brax. “If everyone has one, we’ll be drinking too much bourbon.”
“Yeah, but it’s a write off,” said Travis.
“I’m not stopping at the liquor every two blocks just so you can get drunk,” said Brax. “You don’t even like bourbon.”
“I like free bourbon,” said Travis.
“It’s not free, it’s a write-off,” explained Brax.
“That sounds free.”
“We still have to pay for it then write it off and get some of the money back,” explained Brax. “You could rent your own limo and stock the bar however you like.”
“Is it a write off?”
“Yes. Transportation to and from work is a write off.”
“Then you can’t write off coming here, man.”
“We’re talking about business, aren’t we?”
“Well, yeah. I guess.”
“See that? Business trip.”
“If you ladies are finished,” I joked. “Travis, would you mind moving some food out of the kitchen window. And Brax, can you pour me six pitchers?”
“My word,” said Brax. “We’re asleep at the switch. Sorry, boss.”
The lunch rush grinded on. It was getting insane. There was so much cash in the register that I had to move half of it upstairs to the safe just to get it out of the way. I even had to cash out all the dollar bills in the tip jar, because it was getting full. Now it was a lot lower but all twenties. Sometimes I wished Saint Paddy’s Day was every day.
Kenner and Jax came back with several boxes of glasses. They didn’t quite match what I already had in the bar, but they were close enough. After a quick washing and stacking, we were back in business. They bought enough not only to replace the glasses Kenner broke, but a few dozen more, which was exactly what I could use.
By this time, the bar had become completely packed, and it was getting harder and harder to move across the room. Fernando ran out of pesto for his Shamrock Burgers and had to switch to green ketchup. It wouldn’t taste the same, but at least it would look the same.
The guys were helping as best as they could, but since they weren’t in uniforms, they had to keep explaining to customers who they were. Since it had gotten so loud in the bar, it became a longer and longer process. Brax was constantly pouring. I mean, he literally poured from one glass or pitcher to the next.
Tina and the other part-time waitress were scooping all the tips, even the ones the guys earned. Fortunately, none of them actually cared about the tips. The music didn’t help. I was shouting orders to Fernando and the guys.
On nights like this, orders got messed up. With a room this packed, customers couldn’t complain. Were they going to send back a sandwich it took forty minutes to get? Not a chance. The key was t
o keep the beer flowing, which we did. We were unloading the taps so fast that I had to keep running back to the cooler to hook up fresh kegs.
“Claire!” shouted Jax over the noise. “We have to go!”
“Okay, babe!” I yelled back. “Thanks for all your help again!”
“You sure you can handle this?!”
“It’s fine! Go! I’ll see you later!”
“I’m not sure we’ll get back here tonight! We have to go to the club for the auction!”
“What?!” I shouted.
I couldn’t hear Jax over the noise. He finally just waved it off and left with the guys. I was on my own but in my element.
Chapter 16 – Brax
After leaving the cacophony at the bar, we headed to the club for the auction. In the past, I had normally looked forward to this event. This time, I thought that it would be nothing but tedium. The bar was much more exciting. Plus, Claire was there. And who would be here at the club?
Typically, the club girls were human versions of puffed up show dogs, but I’d never say that out loud. They were pampered and good-looking for sure but of little substance. They talked endlessly about where they wanted to travel, how they enjoyed their designer clothes and their friends, who were just as feckless as them.
We were all expected to contribute, even if we didn’t “buy a date.” I had come to the conclusion that Travis was right. The entire enterprise of the club was a bloated waste of money and extravagance.
“God, I hate this place now,” said Travis. “Back at the bar, I felt it was a real place, ya know? Real people and a real event. This is just a joke to me now.”
“You used to love coming up here,” said Jax. “What did you love about it?”
“It’s full of rich suckers. Great chance to network,” admitted Travis. “Now that I’m rich, I feel like the sucker.”
“Jax and I come from a long line of those suckers, sir,” I reminded him. “But I do see you point.”
“I mean, what is this? It’s like a meat market of women? This is 2018! The club has got to do something better, man,” said Travis.
“Indeed. Hold them to a higher standard,” I agreed. “Perhaps we can bring this up at the next membership meeting. I would champion your cause.”
“Yeah, okay,” agreed Travis. “Maybe we could change things.”
We acquired our usual VIP table near the stage. The gorgeous bottle service girls were waiting for us and were pouring. At minimum, this was costing me five thousand dollars. It wasn’t the money; it was the principle of the thing. Honestly, what was all this for? Fundraising for an overpriced club? It didn’t make any sense. They could simply raise their prices. It wasn’t like anyone here couldn’t afford it if they did.
“Gentlemen, welcome to the bachelorette auction!” said the announcer. “Our first lady is Teresa from Winnipeg!”
Teresa was a long legged Canuck with sparkling eyes and smile, but despite her beauty, she didn’t strike with me. There was something forced about her expression, as if her jaw was clenched. Perhaps she was merely tolerating this entire event. Like Travis said, maybe it was all simply for networking. I had been born into the elite culture, but everyone else was trying to get here.
I looked over at Travis. He had to struggle and fight his way to rise to the top. I started here at the top while he spent his entire life trying to get here, and now he realized it wasn’t worth it. It was hollow. How did I not see it all these years? Was I that blind?
“Gentlemen, thank you for your bids! Please welcome to the stage, Delilah from East Brunswick!”
Delilah was a beautiful blonde girl with perfect teeth and a perfect body. I could see the teeth clenching again. My God, how did I not see it before? All this time I thought people wanted to be around me, but that wasn’t true. They were merely networking to become like me. And while Travis maintained a somewhat decent air of humility, I knew that there were many more that would get to this level and never look back. They would spit upon those they considered “beneath them.”
“Gentlemen! Thank you again! Please welcome to the stage the beautiful Li from Los Angeles!”
Li was a lithe Asian goddess. She was striking, but again I saw the clench. I felt like I was waking up from a bad dream. Here I was, standing in judgment of these women, bidding on them like slaves at an auction or something. It was barbaric. How could I have been so blind?
“All right! Gentlemen, put your hands together for Sheri from Chicago!”
Sheri was a red head with enormous breasts. The bids skyrocketed, but I felt sick.
“Are you okay?” asked Kenner, concerned with a hand on my shoulder.
“I’m rethinking many things today,” I sighed. “Travis may have a point.”
“Oh, I think he’s making too big a deal,” dismissed Kenner. “At least it’s something different for the club to do. How many times can you listen to techno music and get drunk?”
“That isn’t the point,” I said as the announcer introduced more women. “These women are like Travis. They’re trying to gain entry into high society. They weren’t born into it; they’ve had to work at it.”
“Because they weren’t born with money, you’re saying.”
“Precisely. That makes us elitist.”
“So what? We’re not hurting anyone, are we?”
“Well, not a physical hurt, per se. More of a mental hurt. People are fighting and struggling just to have what we have, but this? This is an empty experience. Do you see?”
“I guess,” agreed Kenner, not truly understanding. “Does that mean you’re going to quit the club?”
“I think some changes are in order,” I proposed. “I mean, compare this room to the room at the bar. The people at that bar were having fun. I mean, really having fun. Everyone here is working.”
“Yeah, I can see what you’re saying now,” Kenner nodded his head. “I think it will be tough to change things.”
“No change is ever easy, my friend,” I smiled.
“Gentlemen! Please welcome to the stage, Claire McCoin, from right here in the city!”
My jaw dropped.
Claire had somehow managed to get ready, look absolutely gorgeous and leave the bar behind. I had to win this bid.
“Fifty thousand dollars!” I shouted with my hand shooting into the air.
The room went silent. I may have overdone it.
Chapter 17 – Jax
I don’t know what shocked me more: Claire’s white dress or my brother’s bid. I knew one thing; I didn’t like the other guys in the room leering at my girl. Screw it. It was only money.
“Seventy-five thousand dollars!” I shouted my bid.
Brax whipped a stern gaze at me. Oh, he thinks just because he’s my brother I should stand here and let him get the date? This was my one chance to get Claire alone. Don’t get me wrong; I honestly didn’t mind sharing her with the guys, but I wanted to win this. I had to have Claire first. It was only right. It was my idea to go to the Bad Penny in the first place.
“One hundred thousand dollars,” countered my brother with his eyes still fixated on me.
I can’t believe he started so high, and now look where we are. Normally, Brax had more business sense, but he lost it when it came to Claire. Claire looked at us from the stage. She smiled and turned her head to the side, trying to figure out why the hell we were bidding against each other. She may have brothers, but she didn’t understand how it was to be one.
“One hundred twenty-five thousand dollars,” I spoke sing-songy.
“A couple of more bids like this,” joked my brother. “And we might start spending some real money.”
At this point, we were almost past the entire amount the club had ever taken in for an auction. Up until now, the highest bid had been somewhere in the mid-twenty thousands. At this rate, they’d be able to burn down the club and buy a new one.
Call me competitive if you want, but I was going to win. My brother lorded over me most of my life.
He may have pulled me into a lucrative deal with Candance, but he also pulled me away from art and music. Now look at me. I’m just another rich asshole bidding on a woman. I thought I wasn’t like these people or like my brother, but I am. I’m just like them and I’m going to win this bid.
“One hundred fifty thousand!” I called out, upping my own bid and hopefully securing my win.
Travis and Kenner were looking back and forth at us. No one else in the room even had the balls to jump into this bidding war. The most impressive person in the room was, as always, Claire. She looked as if she spent all day getting ready for this auction, but I know for a fact that probably less than an hour ago she was schlepping beer across a crowded room.
Brax started to look from side to side. Was that a bead of sweat I was detecting? Maybe he was rethinking this. Maybe he finally realized I was determined to win this bid. That’s it, big brother; step back. Your time is past. Let me show you how Jax takes charge!
Chapter 18 – Travis
What the hell were these two idiots doing? We had already agreed to share Claire, and now they’re in a bidding war? I guess it was their way of handing her some extra cash so she wouldn’t call it charity, but it was an expensive way of doing things.
Damn, Claire looked hot. How did she do it? Work all day and look like that? I thought she must work out in her own way. Maybe she just worked so much she stayed in shape from walking around, serving people all day? That low cut white dress was amazing, and look at her legs.
“Never in the history of our club,” said the announcer. “Have we had such a bidding war. Gentlemen! I won’t stop you! Would anyone outside that couch in the VIP section like to bid as well? Hahaha!”
They’d better not bid. The last thing we needed was some outsider getting together with Claire. Holy shit. It’s a good thing Brax was here. No way he would get outbid, even in this room. If he or Jax won, Claire would be safe.
But wait a minute, if that’s true, then why were they in this bidding war? Did they want to do something in private the other didn’t want them to hear? Oh, shit. They wanted to make a move outside the group! That had to be it. Whoever won the bid is going to take Claire aside and make a move. What the hell?! Not on my watch.
Sold on the Beach_A Reverse Harem Romance Page 21
