Story of Us

by Jody Holford

  “Yeah, I just wanted to make sure I checked the schedule one more time. I don’t want anyone mad at me right away.”

  He walked the length of the bar as she did to meet her at the end. “You don’t mind if they’re mad at you later?”

  She laughed, her arms full of binders and notebooks. “Kind of goes with the job, doesn’t it?”

  At least she knew to expect it. Already, she’d improved his organization system in his office and alleviated several of the more tedious tasks he didn’t enjoy. He had no doubt the staff would like her, but whether they did or didn’t, it was his pub, and she’d already proven herself in a dozen tiny ways.

  “You sleep okay last night?”

  She stopped before they reached the group of fifteen and looked up at him, her brow furrowed. Jesus. How was even that cute? He really needed to put some effort into finding a date. Or a few.

  “Do I look bad?”

  “What? No.”

  “Usually when someone says you look tired or did you sleep okay, it means you look like shit.”

  He smoothed a strand of her hair, resisting the urge to cup his hand around the back of her neck. “You couldn’t. Ever.” But now he couldn’t say she did look tired. Even though she did. He stared at her, hoping the conversation would magically end.

  “Except I look tired?”

  I knew magic didn’t exist. He grinned. “There’s no good way to answer this. Can we pretend I didn’t ask?”

  “Sure. And I’ll apply more makeup when we finish the meeting,” she said, her lips quirking.

  His stomach clenched. “Sophia—”

  She shook her head and laughed, drawing the attention of the staff. “I’m joking. Lighten up, Dec.”

  Right. He could do that. He followed behind her. The bar didn’t open until eleven each day, so they had a couple of hours to get the meeting out of the way, do setup, and ease into the morning.

  Declan sat down beside Sophia without thinking it through. It was hard enough inhaling the sexy scent that was uniquely her in his home. At least in the bar, there was usually a buffer. Unless he sat so his thigh was touching hers. Think of her brother. Your good friend Marcus. That made sitting next to her a lot more comfortable.

  “Thanks for coming in, guys. We don’t have staff meetings all that often, but with a big change like this, I wanted to make sure everyone is on the same page.” He smiled at Sophia, who didn’t look even the least bit nervous. This was clearly her element. “Some of you have met Sophia Strombi already. She’s joining On Dec as a manager and marketing guru. We’ve got a handful of new waitresses starting,” he said. Sophia had done three interviews yesterday and was pleased with the candidates. He glanced at her, noted the slight pinking of her cheeks. She wasn’t used to compliments. Or didn’t handle them well. “Mostly, she’s here to take some weight off my shoulders.”

  “So you have time to take a wife?” Chantelle, one of his two full-time day waitresses, called out from the end of the table.

  Declan shot her a look that did nothing to curb the laughter. She’d been working for him for eight years, knew the bar inside and out, and was happily married to a woman ten years her senior. She’d known him too long to take him seriously. She also knew him well enough that he’d openly chatted with her during quiet shifts about finding the one. More accurately, how to recognize the one. Dec had a sneaking suspicion the feelings slapping him around Sophia were similar to what Chantelle had described.

  “I won’t be in charge of the schedule anymore, Chan. Might want to watch yourself,” Dec teased.

  “I’m pretty sure there’ll be a riot in Brockton Point if you take yourself off the market, Dec,” Lisa, his other full-time server, said.

  Her smile was tight, and he wondered if she was tired from her trip. She’d gone away with her sister and nephew over the holidays, and this was her first shift back. He damn sure wasn’t asking another woman if she was tired, though.

  His eyes drifted to Sophia to find her staring at him, giving him a strange look that he couldn’t decipher. As if she was surprised and thought he would be as well. “Maybe you need more than one manager. One for the bar and one for your personal life,” she said quietly, her tone laced with amusement.

  “Tell me you haven’t missed small-town life,” he whispered back.

  She knocked her leg against his, and heat shot up his side. From a leg brush.

  “Fun and games and my dating life aside, I’m cutting back a bit. You guys know I’ve been working on a craft beer recipe. We’re going to do a tasting in just under two weeks, and if the response is good, Marcus and I fully plan on working on a new batch. Sophia has a background in marketing and business management. She’ll be taking over the scheduling, working with vendors, all the ordering, new staffing, and promotion. But I should let her talk now. Sorry we got sidetracked.” He gave her a small smile of encouragement, wishing he didn’t want to slide his hand onto her thigh. He curled his hand into a fist.

  “Thanks for coming in early. Those of you who are working today, and to those of you who aren’t on the schedule at all, I really appreciate it. I’m not going to take much of your time. I just wanted to meet everyone, let you know who I am. Dec’s already told you most of what I’ll be doing.” She opened one of the binders. It had colored tabs, all labeled in perfect printing.

  “I’ve put together an employee handbook with expectations, routines, and a copy of the weekly schedule. I’ve created an online sharable calendar where I’ll be posting the schedule. It’ll be up every Sunday from now on, so if I don’t have your email address, I’ll need it. If you want days off, email me. I’ll do my best to accommodate everyone, just as I’m sure Declan has, but please put the date you’re making the request as well. If there are certain days people want off and that would leave us short staffed, I’ll go first come, first serve.” She turned her head and looked at Declan. “How’d you do this before?”

  He shrugged. “They just told me. I wrote it down and juggled things around.” She gave him an indulgent smile, which made him laugh. “Hey, it worked!”

  Sophia explained a few more housekeeping items, telling them how to get a hold of her, what her hours would be, and how she saw her role.

  “I’m here to make Dec’s schedule better, but in doing that, I want to increase revenue for the bar. I have a bunch of promotional activities that I want to suggest. We don’t have to try them all, but I would love your feedback. I want you to think about what you see at other establishments that make them great places to be, so that we can bring some of the bigger city vibe into Brockton Point. As one of the most popular bars, you already have the edge, but I think there’s more we could be doing.”

  Colton, one of his chefs, raised his hand. Sophia smiled at him and nodded. “Dec’s is kind of known for the breakfast special, but it wouldn’t hurt to have another signature dish.”

  Declan nodded. Good idea. Smart kid.

  Dec didn’t have many staff meetings. If he needed to talk to someone, he did. The business had grown slowly and organically, so he’d never felt truly overwhelmed. Sure, there were nights, particularly on the weekends, when they got slammed. He’d hired unreliable staff in the past and had to cover double shifts, but mostly, things had been smooth sailing. His little pub was a hotspot for the after-work crowd, a popular stop to listen to some music—live or not—and a place to unwind. But Sophia was right. Brockton was growing, and he wanted to grow along with it.

  Sophia beamed at the kid, and Dec knew it would just make Colton’s day. He was young, around twenty, and trying his best to make it on his own.

  “That’s a great idea.” She jotted it down then pushed the binder away and pulled out some black-and-white flyers and passed them around. “It’s important in any service industry to capitalize on the holidays. Since Valentine’s is the next one, I wanted to focus our efforts there.”

  “Cupid’s Corner at On Dec?” Declan’s stomach tightened. That sounded sort of…cheesy.
He’d hired her for a reason and had to trust that she knew what she was doing. Didn’t make it easy to hand over pieces of what his life had revolved around for years.

  Sophia nudged his leg with hers again and smiled at him, her eyes happy. His eyes went to her lips, then back up to her gaze, and he got stuck there for a minute.

  “Why do we need something like this?” Lisa’s voice rang over the murmuring, and Declan looked over to see his employee frowning.

  Sophia looked down the table. “The research I’ve done on the area shows that there’s a younger crowd moving in. Brockton Point is still affordable in comparison to other areas with similar amenities. There’s a couple of colleges and a university not far from here. Cupid’s Corner is a speed dating night. If Declan approves,” she said, casting him a quick glance and a grin. “We’ll hire out to a company that specializes in this, but advertising needs to start now if we want it to be a success. Tickets are advance purchase, but only a section of the bar is closed off.”

  It didn’t sound so bad. New clientele and the regulars were welcome to join in or watch?

  “What do people get for their ticket price?” Declan asked.

  “Two drinks and an hour and a half of organized meet and greets with screened applicants.”

  “People come here all the time and have no trouble hooking up or meeting others,” Lisa said.

  “But some people don’t reach out to anyone because they’re nervous,” Chantelle said. “I’d totally do something like this if I were single. Especially at my age. I’d be nervous to just meet someone online. At least this way, you get to see and talk to the other person. You hit it off, great. You don’t, no harm, no foul.”

  “How do we spread the word on something like that, and what if it’s a bust?” Tyrell leaned back in his bar chair, tipping it onto only the back legs.

  Sophia smiled at him, seemingly unfazed by the questions and comments. She definitely knew what she was doing. “We should know by the end of the month if we have enough to make it work. Assuming we go ahead. We’ll hit up social media with ads, hand out flyers. And of course, word of mouth. The company will take care of advertising at the campuses.”

  “Uh, I don’t really have social media,” Declan told her. What did he need it for? He chatted with customers in person. Good old-fashioned social media.

  “Oh, but you will. Trust me, I’m all over it,” she replied, winking at him.

  I’d like to have you all over me. The thought stopped his breath in his lungs. Shut them down completely. Fuck. Nope. Not professional. But seriously, if just a wink turned him on, maybe he was at the point that he needed to join this dating thing rather than just host it.

  Declan gave her a curt nod because he couldn’t get his tongue to work properly.

  Sophia talked a bit more about that event and plans for other ones. Most of the staff engaged easily, but Dec noticed Lisa remained stiff in tone and posture. That wasn’t typical. She was one of his longest employees, good at her job, always on time. They’d gone to school together, and though she’d flitted around after graduating, when Dec had opened up, she took a full-time job with him and never looked back.

  “I have one more thing I’d like to talk about that I hope you’ll all be open to,” Sophia said. Declan heard the slight hitch in her voice and focused on her again.

  “Oh, they’ll be open to it. These guys are vultures and competitive ones at that,” Dec said, knowing what she was going to tell them.

  “Says the guy who stayed up for twenty-four hours to win a bet,” Tyrell said.

  Declan laughed. Yeah. He’d done that.

  “I’d like to get ready to open so the sooner we can wrap this up, the better,” Lisa said. Again, Declan glanced her way, but she wouldn’t meet his gaze. He’d have to talk with her after the meeting.

  “Declan and I were thinking that, with several new staff members, it might be fun to do a team-building activity. We’ll take a look at some dates, but we’d like to have a cooking challenge. It’ll be sort of like Master Chef meets Chopped.”

  Her enthusiasm sparkled. Sort of like her eyes. Declan rolled his own eyes at his own cheesy, errant thought. Rubbing his hands together, he added, “We’ll even have celebrity judges to weigh in on our creations. Many of you know my friend Parker—he and his husband are both chefs at upscale restaurants. They’ve been in here before, and they’ve agreed to offer their opinions. And maybe a few pointers.”

  His staff turned and started talking to each other animatedly, some asking questions, others talking about their lack of cooking skills. He turned to chat with Sophia, but found her watching Lisa, who had her head bent toward Chantelle’s.

  “They like the idea. You okay?”

  Sophia turned her head to face him, and he quickly noticed how close they were. He swallowed thickly.

  She tilted her head. “Why do you keep asking me that? I’m fine. I don’t need you worrying about me.”

  He knew that and hated that he couldn’t help himself.

  She fielded a few questions, and then Declan dismissed the group to get on with their day. He wanted to brainstorm some ideas for his beer to run by Sophia. They needed a name, but he and Marcus couldn’t settle on one. There were a few rolling around in his head, but nothing seemed like the one.

  When it was time to open, Dec went behind the bar. Sophia pulled Lisa aside, and he watched as they spoke. Lisa’s posture was stiff and unapproachable. It created quite the contrast to Sophia’s open and friendly body language. He should have pulled Lisa aside before he went behind the bar, but maybe it was better for his new manager to deal with whatever was up.

  His gaze roamed over Sophia, admiring the way her dress pants hugged her perfect curves when the first of the regulars wandered in.

  “Morning, Chuck. What’ll it be?” Declan asked, already grabbing a highball glass to mix up a Caesar. Chuck Stern worked through the night driving a truck. He stopped by Monday through Friday, had one drink and breakfast before heading home to bed.

  Sliding onto his usual stool, he rubbed a hand over his mustache and beard as he chuckled. “Surprise me.”

  Declan fixed his drink and set it in front of him before ordering his breakfast.

  “How was your week off?” Declan leaned on the bar.

  “Nice to be home. Driving through the night is starting to take its toll. Mary hates it. Gotta say, I’m growing weary of it, too. Might be time for a change,” Chuck said.

  Declan liked almost all of his regulars. Chuck had been coming in since day one and was a good guy. He’d been married for twenty years and joked that he’d once been a ‘free bird’ like Dec until his wings got clipped. The way he smiled when he said it, though, made it clear he was a happy man.

  When Sophia started walking behind the bar and stopped to get a glass of water, Chuck’s gaze wandered over her. “New hire?”

  “Sophia Strombi. She’s my new manager.”

  Chuck looked back at him, and Declan could see the smile through his facial hair. It was sly, and before he said a word, Dec was already shaking his head.

  “Yup. Might be time for things to change all around,” Chuck said.

  “She’s my manager.”

  “Mary’s mine. I’m not judging, boy.”

  Declan barked out a laugh, and Sophia looked over at them, giving them both a sweet smile and a wave before she turned and went down the hallway. She still wanted to do some time on the floor, but Declan disliked the idea. Oddly enough, he didn’t mind arguing with her about it, though. She got a cute little indent between her eyebrows when she was riled up.

  “Mary’s your wife. This is different. I don’t date employees.” Or little sisters of good friends. Or a woman whose dark, expressive eyes look troubled when she thinks no one is looking. He couldn’t shake the feeling there was something she wasn’t telling him.

  Chuck took a drink and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Most people around here would just say you don’t date. Like
I said, time for a change. You’re not getting any younger.”

  He wasn’t wrong, but Declan still rolled his eyes. “I’m thirty-two. I’ve got some time until I’m old and gray like you.”

  Folding his arms across the bar, Chuck sighed. “That’s what you think. You think you’ve got all the time in the world, and then you’re considering retirement and places to go in the winter that won’t make your bones hurt.”

  When another customer walked in, Declan went to pour him a pint. He spent a lot of hours in this bar and knew his patrons well. In return, they’d gotten to know him. Chuck was friends with Declan’s dad and knew he’d never really wanted the whole home and hearth deal growing up. Long past growing up, really. It had only been in recent months that when Declan did consider being old and gray, he didn’t want to picture being alone.

  When Adam had been looking for a wife, he’d tried a few dating sites, and though Declan considered it, it wasn’t what he wanted. You can’t have what you want. That might be true where Sophia was concerned, but once he found someone, once he felt that spark with someone else, he’d stop feeling like there was an anvil on his chest.

  “How come you didn’t ask me or Chantelle if we wanted to be managers?” Lisa appeared in front of the bar, setting her tray down at the waitress station.

  Declan’s jaw dropped in surprise, but he quickly shut it. He’d known Lisa since high school. He had no complaints about her as an employee, but it hadn’t occurred to him to promote one of his current staff to manager. He didn’t want someone to just cover hours. He wanted someone who was invested in the position, had the background Sophia did so his business could grow to the next level.

  “Sophia has one hell of a resume,” Declan said.

  Lisa pushed a cloth around her tray, not meeting his gaze. “Still. Not like we don’t know what we’re doing.”

  Declan stepped closer and waited until she was looking at him. She was acting weird today, and he wondered if there was something else going on. Not once during the conversations he’d had with his staff about bringing someone on had Lisa mentioned an interest. Not that he’d ever planned to hire from within. “You guys are both great. You know I think that. But I was always going to hire out of house. I made that clear. Sophia has the educational backing to bring something different to the table. Plus, not that it matters, but she’s got running businesses in the blood, whether she wants to admit it or not.”