I sighed and didn't comment. Riley was right of course. My run in with Eli left me with a sick taste in my mouth. Yeah, I wasn't so sure about our pseudo relationship anymore. As good looking as he was and as much as I loved the way his tongue made me wet, I thought more of myself than that.

Refusing to think too much about my floundering love life, I focused on the night ahead of me. I was excited to be working at Barton's. I was looking forward to the tips and the increase in cash. The number $3,500 kept flashing through my mind like a neon sign and I knew I had to get my shit sorted and fast.

I had talked to a couple of my sorority sisters and knew they were planning on coming in tonight to give their support. So, I was looking forward to my evening. And though I hated to admit it, I was looking forward to seeing Jordan again.

My stomach fluttered as I thought about his blue eyes and tongue ring. I had heard that tongue rings could feel amazing. You know, when they were doing things...ah, hell. I could admit I had fantasized about his tongue underneath my panties ever since I had laid eyes on him that afternoon.

What was wrong with me? I had just got hopelessly turned on by the guy I was sort of seeing and now I'm getting even more turned on thinking about my new co-worker! My hormones were seriously out of whack!

And damn if the blush didn't start. By the time we pulled up outside of Barton's and parked in the employee area around back, my cheeks were scarlet. Riley arched an eyebrow at her. “Why are you all red? You alright?” she asked.

I rubbed at my face. “I'm fine. Let's go inside,” I replied airily, getting out the car. Barton's was pretty dead. It was only 4:30, so we had some time before the dinner rush hit and then the later drinking crowd. I followed Riley through to the kitchen toward the small manager's office. We poked our heads inside, seeing Moore sitting at a desk and Jordan in a chair, his feet propped up on the table in front of him.

Jordan looked up when we arrived and gave us a huge grin, his eyes immediately finding mine. Moore looked at us over his shoulder. “Hiya girls. Good to see you. Thanks for jumping in with both feet today. I hope you'll enjoy working here,” the manager said, swinging his chair around to face us.

I couldn't help but smile at him. He seemed like a really nice guy. Moore grabbed a stack of papers on his desk and handed them to Riley and me. “You'll need to fill these out and then Jordan will start walking you through our computer system, how to punch in at the start of your shift, give you a tour...the whole shebang. Jordan has been here for three years, so he knows about as much as I do when it comes to how this place ticks.”

I gripped the forms in my hand and felt suddenly stressed. I had never waited tables in my life. I imagined the worst case scenarios. You know, the ones where I drop someone's food in their laps or make an ass of myself by tripping with a tray loaded down with glasses.

What had I gotten myself into?

Jordan must have noticed my suddenly pale face because he got to his feet and slung an arm around my shoulders companionably. “Don't fret, my pet. You'll be golden. You've got me looking out for you.” He smiled down at me and I noticed he was quite a bit taller than I was. But instead of making me feel better, I felt like I was going to barf.

“You'll have to excuse our girl, Maysie. Stress is her middle name,” Riley commented, shooting me a smirk. I stuck my tongue out and wiggled out from underneath Jordan's arm, not feeling too comfortable being that close to him. Especially since the smell of his aftershave was doing strange things to my insides.

“You'll be fine. And if you have any questions or concerns, don't hesitate to ask me. We're one big family here at Barton's,” Moore said kindly. Jordan chuckled.

“Yeah, a big dysfunctional family,” he added. Moore ignored his comment and shooed him out of his office, saying he needed to make some phone calls.

Jordan walked us out of the office and into the kitchen. There were two older guys scrubbing dishes and I could see a few other people out back smoking. “It's a good thing I never saw the kitchen when I ate here,” Riley muttered under her breath, taking in the grease stained surfaces and wafts of cigarette smoke coming in from the open door.

I shot her a look but Jordan just laughed. “I swear, it's all perfectly hygienic. No cockroaches or pissing in people's food. We're a civilized bunch here.” One of the guys washing dishes looked over at them.

“Civilized, huh? Don't start speaking that fancy college talk. Otherwise, Pocco and I'll take you out back and kick some street into your ass,” one of the guys called out.

The man grabbed Jordan's arm and put him in a head lock. Riley and I exchanged horrified looks as Jordan slugged his captor in the stomach, forcing him to release his hold. “Watch the hair, Fed. This takes hours,” Jordan put his hands over his short hair. Fed (who the hell has a name like Fed?) swatted him with a grimy dish towel.

“Fucking pansy,” he mocked, though he said it with a smile.

“You're gonna chase them off before they even get started, man,” Jordan joked, pulling me by the arm over to the two dishwashers. Pocco and Fed were easily in their forties and the looks they gave me and Riley was more than a little skeevie.

“Pocco and Fed, this is Maysie and Riley, the new waitresses.” Pocco gave Riley the once over and actually licked his lips. Really? He licked his flipping lips! He was short and overweight with a goatee.

“Nice to meet you ladies. Welcome to Barton's,” Pocco said, his voice tinged with an accent as his eyes roamed over our bodies.