Read Love on the Rocks (Bar Tenders) for Free Online

nodded. That made more sense, and confirmed his suspicions. “Does he cockblock you a lot?”
    Another look of alarm, followed by a flat laugh. “You noticed.”
    “Yeah, you could say that. Did you guys… have a thing, or…?”
    Yena took a moment to respond, and Justin found himself holding his breath. “Sure,” Yena said. “If you could call it a thing. We dated briefly, and he shagged around and didn’t tell me. I’d only just started working at Foxy’s, and I should’ve known better. Eric isn’t exclusive with anyone.”
    Justin nodded, taking it all in. Wow . “Er, right. So… when was this?”
    “Few months ago,” Yena muttered. “Last year, actually.”
    “Ah, right.” Wow, again . Part of him wanted to say something flippant like, time to get over it, then , but he kept quiet. Unexpectedly, it brought back memories of his own workplace affair. It certainly hadn’t been easygoing.
    “I, umm….” Justin cleared his throat. “If it’s any consolation, I kinda slept with my boss at my last job. That’s mostly why I moved up here, to London. Fresh start, you know?”
    “He’s not my boss,” Yena said quickly. “He’s only a supervisor. Hopefully he’ll be getting a transfer soon, moving to another bar. I can’t bloody wait. I just feel sorry for the new staff who’ll have to put up with him.”
    Justin edged back in his seat, feeling like he wanted to hide under the table after that outburst. “Er, right…. Yeah.” He grabbed his drink and gulped down some wine. Bite my head off .
    Yena sighed. “Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap. Talking about Eric just… puts me in a bad mood.”
    You don’t say . Justin braved a smile and was pleased to see a tentative one in return. “Well,” he ventured, “I’m willing to offer myself to you for a revenge shag. If you want to, that is. Get another one over on Eric.”
    His offer didn’t quite have the effect Justin had hoped. After staring at him in surprise, Yena started laughing, like he couldn’t believe it. “That’s your answer to everything, is it?” he asked, grinning wide. “You do know I’m thirty-two?”
    Now it was Justin’s turn to be surprised. “Really? No way. You don’t…”—he studied Yena’s face intently—“you totally don’t look it.”
    Yena snorted at that. “Thank you, Justin. How old are you? Twenty?”
    “Hah!” Justin laughed. “You’re kidding, right? I’m twenty-six, thank you very much.”
    “Really?”
    “Yes, really.” Justin reached for his wallet, then realized he hadn’t brought his passport out with him. Not being a driver, he had nothing else to offer. “I’m afraid I’ve forgotten my ID, though. You’ll have to take my word for it.”
    Yena smiled at him. “I believe you. I’m just surprised.”
    “Hey, thanks a lot.” Justin pretended to be offended, and Yena had the courtesy to look guilty.
    “Sorry. I didn’t mean—”
    “It’s all right, I’m teasing.” Justin winked at him, feeling more relaxed. He picked up the wine bottle. “So, anyway.” He topped up Yena’s glass, and then his own. “Now we got all that out of the way, can we talk about other things?”
    Yena watched him curiously. “Like…?”
    Justin smiled. “Tell me about you.” The wine bottle was wet with condensation, and it almost slipped from Justin’s grasp. He set it back on the table quickly, hoping Yena hadn’t noticed his slip up.
    “Why don’t you tell me about you?” Yena countered.
    “I will,” Justin said. “We could… er, take it in turns?” Justin cleared his throat, even as Yena looked at him in confusion. “I’ll start. Are you a full-time barman?”
    “Yes. Are you?”
    “No, I’m part-time. I also do cabaret, with my dancing partner.”
    “Dancing partner?”
    “Yeah, that brunet I was with in your bar?”
    “The girl, or the guy?”
    “Oh.” Justin smiled. “The guy. We’ve been friends for ages. We met in Uni.”
    “Right.” Yena seemed