Page 56 of Coerced

“I know, Butch. It’s a little crazy in here, but it’s better than the alternative. Wouldn’t you agree?”

He nodded his agreement. “Absolutely. But it’s still early, so I think you’re in for a chaotic night.”

I shrugged. “I don’t mind. In fact, I prefer to be busy.”

Butch glanced at Tom and muttered, “They say hard workers are difficult to find these days, but I don’t think they’ve been to our neck of the woods.”

Soft laughter escaped just as the front door opened and two people walked in. A man had opened the door and allowed Kelly to step in ahead of him.

“Hi, Kelly,” I greeted her.

“Hey, Kel,” Sawyer added.

“Hello,” she said to us before turning to look in the opposite direction. “What’s going on Ernie?”

“Same old, same old.”

Returning her attention to me, she said, “Sorry I’m a few minutes late. I’ll be right out.”

“No worries.”

The door had opened again, another two guys walked in, and while the first made his way directly to the bar, the other moved toward a table in the corner. My eyes went to Sawyer. “One for each of us.”

“Yep. I should have this one taken care of before you’re back.”

I moved out from behind the bar and made my way to the gentleman in the corner. On the way there, the two women had stopped me and asked, “Hey, could we place an order for some nachos?”

“Sure. I’ll get those in for you in just a second.”

“Thanks.”

I stepped up to the table in the corner and said, “Hi, my name is Aria. What can I get you started with tonight?”

The man tipped his chin up at an angle, clenched his jaw repeatedly, and narrowed his eyes on me. “Just a beer. Anything you’ve got.”

“We’ve got a lot here,” I informed him. “You could pick just about anything, and we’ll likely have it.”

He shook his head, pursing his lips in disgust. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll take anything.”

Something about this man—both his demeanor and the way he was looking at me—made me wildly uncomfortable. Wanting to remain professional, I asked, “Is there anything else you’d like, or just the beer?”

“Just the beer for now.”

With a quick nod, I turned and walked back toward the bar. “I need to put in an order of nachos with Ozzie, Sawyer. Can you grab me a beer?”

“Sure. What do you need?”

I continued to move toward the kitchen and called back, “Whatever you decide.”

After returning to the bar, I took the beer Sawyer had chosen back to the man sitting at the table in the corner. “Is this okay, sir?”

“It’s fine,” he grumbled.

Deciding it was best to leave him be, I promised, “I’ll be back in a bit to check in. Enjoy.”

Without waiting for a response, I moved away from his table. On my way back to the bar, I checked in with my other tables, noting the new one that had just arrived and was being taken care of by Kelly.

“And what about you?”