He's the Boss (Dance with Me #1): Boss-Employee Romance

Chapter 6: The New Staff

Brooke

I'm breathing fast and my stomach is churning when I arrive at work on Wednesday night. Kane looks up the moment I walk up to the bar. His relief is obvious.

"I'm so sorry I'm late, Kane."

"I was beginning to worry you weren't going to make it."

"I wouldn't do that to you. There was an accident on the freeway and everyone was rubbernecking."

"I'm just glad you're here."

"Miss me?"

He grins. "You have no idea. You're a great addition to this place, Brooke."

His eyes are earnest and I can see he's happy to have me here. I'm just as happy to be here. The stress of being stuck in rain and traffic for the past forty minutes might have muted my excitement about coming into work, but now that I'm here I'm already starting to relax and look forward to the doors opening.

"We've got two new bartenders, right? Does that mean we've got five behind the bar tonight?"

"Cat was scheduled to work, but she can't make it because her boy is sick. Which means we've got four. Layla and Saxon are suiting up as we speak. We'll have to see how fast they are when put to the test. You'd better go change, we've only got twenty minutes till we open."

"What's the code tonight?" I ask, making a mental note to get Cat's number from Kane so I can check in with her later.

"Twenty-four-twenty-three."

"I'll be right out."

"Hey, Brooke," Kane calls out when I start for the large metal door that will let me backstage.

I look over my shoulder at him. "Yeah?"

"I'm really glad you came back. I know last week was insane, but it won't be as bad this week."

"I had fun," I tell him. "Besides, I'm not afraid of hard work."

The smile he rewards me with has me grinning the whole way to my locker.

Fifteen minutes later, I enter the bar area and nearly collide with who I assume is the new guy. With his styled light brown hair and pretty-boy features, he's clearly more token eye-candy for the ladies in the club.

He whistles as his light blue eyes leisurely travel down my body. Heat climbs up my neck and face at his obvious interest. The way he's staring at me...it's like he's picturing me naked and I have to fight the instinct to cover myself up and hide from his eyes.

"Well, who do we have here?"

Kane snaps the new guy in the back of the head with a tea towel. "Hey, knock it off. We don't ogle our co-workers."

"I'm sorry." The new guy offers me a sheepish smile. "It might take me a while to get used to the way the women dress here."

The uniforms we wear and the type of dancing that happens on the stage makes the club a very sexually charged environment. I was aware of it the moment I first stepped foot in the club, and it's something I accepted along with the job. It hardly phases me anymore when customers leer at me, but I'm not used to it from my co-workers. Then again, unlike New Guy, everyone who works here is used to the uniforms.

"I'm still getting used to it myself."

Kane puts his arm loosely around my shoulders, something he's never done before. "Brooke, this is Saxon. Saxon, meet Brooke."

"Brooke." Saxon says my name like it's the sexiest word he's ever tasted. "Call me Sax."

I smile politely. "Hi."