, but these businesses were all mine.
Two tall blonde women came in about twenty minutes later, introducing themselves as Caitlin and Megan, and they explained their singles night games and activities. I just waved them toward the back room, saying that they could arrange the furniture however they liked.
Matchmaking apps, singles nights, and the entire dating industry did not interest me in the slightest. It was all so forced and artificial. As if these people were planning out what they wanted like a grocery list, then simply went shopping to pick each other up.
It just didn’t feel right.
I didn’t often work the bar Thursday nights anymore, so it was actually rather nice getting back in touch with some of the regulars. Many local businesses had get-togethers on Thursdays, with businessmen drinking whiskey, working men drinking beer, and ladies ordering everything from fancy cocktails to a simple glass of wine.
From the rowdy laughter occasionally drifting over from the singles event and how often I was supplying my server Tracy with trays of drinks, it must be going well.
Running a cloth over the wooden bar top’s polished surface, I smiled as I looked around the room. So many people were having a pleasant evening in my space. It gave me a warm, fuzzy feeling in the pit of my stomach.
My reverie was cut short by a tiny voice. “Excuse me?”
I turned, and instantly the calm warmth was replaced with heat and an almost crushing pressure across the front of my chest.
Walking to the end of the bar, I couldn’t help staring at the magnificent beauty leaning shyly against the rail. Her eyes were melted chocolate. Her dark hair tumbled in sexy waves just past her shoulders. Her gorgeous pouty bottom lip inspired fantasies I couldn’t even begin to picture carrying out in public.
“Hi, welcome to Duke’s,” I said brightly, trying to pull myself together.
“You looked like you were a million miles away,” she smiled. Her fingers twitched against the wood, and her eyes couldn’t seem to meet mine for more than a few seconds before darting away.
I gave my head a dramatic shake to make her laugh. “Apparently, every ninety minutes the brain shifts into beta state, and people blank out for a moment,” I chuckled.
She blinked, still smiling softly. “Really? Interesting. Like when you forget what you were doing if you walk through a doorway. Something about being in a new space makes the brain reset.”
“Exactly.” I couldn’t believe that I was discussing random brain biology facts with this gorgeous woman. “What can I get you?”
“I’m not quite sure, which is why I came out here,” she said. Glancing over her shoulder, she leaned in to whisper, “Plus, those games are getting a bit weird.”
My elbows slid forward across the counter so my mouth was closer to her ear. “How weird?”
“I’m not staring into some strange guy’s eyes for two minutes,” she said, her nose crinkling adorably as she gave her head a shake. “That’s just too much.”
“So you need a drink to mellow you out so that you can find your dream guy?”
The second those words left my mouth, I wish they hadn’t. I was filled with a strange urge to ask her out myself. That hadn’t happened in a couple of years, at least.
Her fingers trailed along the bottom of her throat restlessly. “A drink is a good excuse to collect yourself, right?” she asked.
“Sure, I guess so. What do you like?”
“Something light and sweet, I guess.”
I wagged a finger at her. “That’s a trap.”
“What?”
I leaned in closer, unable to stop myself. “If we were in a cheesy movie, I’d have to tell you that you are light and sweet, then you would giggle, and I’d ask for your phone number.”
A faint pink highlighted the skin across her cheeks.
“So I’m going to make you a drink that suits your real personality,” I said, stepping back before I made her nervous. “Sweet and spicy, and a bit complicated. Right?”
The way her eyes lit up when she laughed did strange things through my entire body.
Usually bartending was the most relaxing part of owning three bars. Mixing drinks was a blast. But now I felt like this lovely girl was watching me, and I wanted everything to be perfect and done with flair.