Bad Rep

by A. Meredith Walters

  I plastered a fake smile on my face. “Yeah, maybe. See ya around.” And with that I got in the car. Riley gave me a look as she pulled out of the parking lot. “What?” I asked defensively. Riley pulled a face.

  “Why do you insist on hanging out with those losers? They look diseased.” I groaned.

  “Jeesh, judge much? They're nice, alright? And have you looked at Eli lately?” I muttered, picturing his cut abs as I turned on the radio. Riley just shook her head as she pulled out into traffic, heading toward downtown Bakersville, where Barton's Pub was located.

  “You can do so much better than that mouth breather. It's bordering on gross,” Riley quipped, turning the radio station from the pop I had chosen, to a band that sounded more like screaming than actual music.

  “Look, can we not talk about Eli? I know how you feel about him, but the last time I checked, it was my life,” I said with irritation. God, I loved her Riley, I really did. But her moral superiority was a little hard to swallow at times.

  Thankfully we pulled up to Barton's and further discussion about the matter was essentially brought to an end. I got out of the car and looked up at the building. Barton's was a favorite with the Rinard crowd. I had spent many a night procuring underage booze and getting wasted within its four walls. The establishment was more liberal than most bars in their carding system, so it was very popular with the younger college set.

  Riley and I pushed open the door and walked inside. The smell of stale beer hit me in the face as we made our way inside. During the day, Barton's was a run of the mill restaurant but it couldn't hide its seedier watering hole side.

  We approached the hostess stand and waited. “Maysie! Riley! What the hell are you doing here?” a girl squealed from behind us. I turned around to see my friend Jaz Digby, decked out in her official Barton's polo shirt and short black skirt.

  I had completely forgotten that Jaz was a part-time waitress here. Jaz had lived on the same floor as Riley and me freshman year and I had remained friends with her despite not having hung out socially in a long time. Riley thought she was obnoxious. Though, the truth was Riley found most people to be obnoxious, so her feelings about Jaz weren't surprising.

  Jaz was beautiful in an exotic way. Her mom was Japanese and her dad, American so she inherited the best parts of both heritages. “Hey, girl! We're here to fill out applications,” I said, giving her a quick hug. Jaz beamed at me.

  “That's awesome! We've been shorthanded for weeks! I'll go get Moore,” Jaz said, going toward the back of the restaurant. Riley sat down on the bench by the front door and I followed suit, crossing my legs and bouncing my foot.

  Jaz came back out a few minutes later and sat down beside us. “Moore'll be out in a minute. It would so cool if you guys worked here. The tips are fantastic.”

  “That's what I need to hear,” I said, smiling with the promise of fiscal relief.

  “I thought you were working at that shop in town,” Jaz commented, turning to me. I shrugged.

  “Needed a heavier cash flow, so a second job it is.” Riley snorted beside me and I ignored it.

  “Well, whatever, I hope you get the job. I'll put in a good word for you,” Jaz promised, squeezing my hand. Jaz suddenly started straightening her shirt, pulling the neck down so that her cleavage was more pronounced. She discreetly smoothed her straight black hair and rubbed her finger across her teeth.

  I looked at her in confusion. What was with all the preening? Then a deep voice caught my attention. It was one of those voices that you imagine hearing in a darkened bedroom. After naughty sex. The kind of voice that was a combination of the most decadent chocolate and outright sin. “Are you the ones wanting applications?” I looked up and swallowed. Damn, who the hell was this?

  A guy stood there, holding out two sheets of paper. I sat there, staring like an idiot. Because sweet lord was he cute. No, cute didn't even begin to describe what he was. The guy standing in front of us, had short cropped dark hair and beautiful blue eyes. He had a tiny dimple in his chin and his nose was slightly crooked, like it had been broken before. He was tall and lean, but I could see the muscles of his arms beneath the fitted Barton's t-shirt. He sported an eyebrow ring and I caught the glimpse of metal in his tongue when he spoke. I also noticed the upper edges of a tattoo along both sides of his neck. Holy bad boy Batman! He oozed sex appeal. And from his arrogant stance, he knew it.

  Jaz jumped to her feet and gave the boy a hug. “Jordan! I didn't know you were here!” she squealed. I looked at Riley who only rolled her eyes. Jordan hugged Jaz back before disengaging himself from her clingy arms.

  “Yeah, just walked in two seconds ago. Moore is still on the phone, so he asked me to bring out the applications.” Jordan looked at me and my stomach flipped over. I opened my mouth but no words came out. God, I must look like an idiot. But I couldn't stop staring at him. The longer I looked at him, the more I realized there was something familiar about him. I just couldn't quite place what.

  Jaz plastered herself to his side, making a point to press her ample breasts against his arm. Riley snickered and I was finally able to break the intense staring contest we seemed to be engaging in.

  “My friends here want to apply for the wait staff positions. Jordan, this is Maysie Ardin and Riley Walker. Guys, this is Jordan Levitt.”

  “Charmed.” Riley deadpanned before taking the paper from his hand. Jordan smirked then handed the other one to me.

  “Here ya go, Maysie,” he said, his eyes twinkling; as though he knew how much it turned me on to hear him say my name.

  I cleared my throat a few times before answering with a shaky, “thanks.”

  He looked at me a few more seconds and I felt my cheeks start to flush. I always seemed to blush at the most inopportune moments. My face was hot and I knew I had turned a bright red.

  “Jordan! Are you going to start tending bar tonight?” Jaz asked and I suddenly found my friend's voice grating. I finally understood why Riley found her so annoying. Jordan stopped looking at me and turned to Jaz.

  “Yeah, Moore put me on the schedule from seven until close. I'm pretty stoked.” Jaz squealed again. I had to suppress my eye roll, which took significant effort.

  Jaz turned to Riley and me as we started filling out the applications. “Jordan just got bumped up to bartender. He's going to be great!” she gushed, pressing herself close to him again.

  “Jeesh, is she going to start dry humping him next?” Riley whispered under her breath, shooting a look in their direction. I laughed quietly.

  “It's starting to feel like a low budget porno in here. Just cue the cheesy 70's background music. Bow chick-a-wow-wow,” I whispered back, trying to discreetly watch the pair as they talked.

  Okay, Jordan was hot. Like, ridiculously hot. He had a delicious edge about him that was hard to ignore. He was this weird mixture of tatted up bad boy and gorgeous guy next door. But I felt embarrassed for Jaz, watching the other girl as she flirted shamelessly. No guy was worth shredding your self-respect like that. Even if he did have an amazing smile and the most kissable lips I had ever seen. And I couldn't stop myself from fantasizing about running my tongue over his eyebrow ring.

  “Bartender, huh? I bet you'll make some serious scratch,” I commented, handing my completed application back to him. He tossed his perfect smile in my direction and I felt my panties getting wet. Dear lord, the flash of his gleaming white teeth was like a hot button to my nether regions. Down vagina! Down, girl.

  Jordan scanned my application for a minute. I frowned, not knowing why he was looking at it. Wasn't that stuff confidential or something? “You live over on Ox Hill Drive?” he asked, glancing up at me again.

  Riley shoved her application at him. “Yeah, we do. So when will we hear whether we got the job or not?” she asked, cutting him off. I had to chuckle as Jordan blinked at Riley in surprise. He seemed taken aback by her hostility. He just didn't know that Riley's hostility was her way of saying howdy.

  “
Um, well, let me take these back to Moore. Don't go anywhere.” He shot me another quick smile before disappearing into the back of the restaurant. Jaz sighed heavily and dropped back down onto the bench.

  “Fuck, what I wouldn't give to have him bend me over one of those tables and...” Riley coughed loudly, stopping her from finishing the thought.

  Jaz fanned herself with a menu. I laughed. “Got it bad?' I asked, watching as the other girl pulled her shirt back into place, effectively covering her boobs again. Jaz closed her eyes dreamily.

  “Who doesn't? Jordan Levitt is like a Rinard deity. Don't tell me you've never heard of him before?” Jaz looked at Riley and me like we had just touched down from outer space.

  I shrugged. “Nope. Who is he?” Jaz rolled her eyes.

  “Oh, he's only the hottest, most unattainable piece of ass on campus. He's a senior and lives over at one of the Pi-Sig houses. He also plays in the band Generation Rejects. He's the most amazing drummer ever.”

  Ah. That must be where I knew him from. He was a Pi Sig and I was a Chi Delta. We must have crossed paths at a mixer or something. Though, it still bothered me that I felt I should be able to place him.

  “Yeah, I'm sure he's right up there with Keith Moon,” Riley snarked. Jaz frowned at her.

  “Have you ever heard them play?” Jaz shot at her. Riley looked at me and I shrugged again.

  “Nope, can't say I've had that particular pleasure,” Riley replied, crossing her arms over her chest. I recognized the signs of my best friend's ire rearing its ugly head.

  “Well, listen to them sometime and then you can get all judgmental. They're freaking fantastic. If you guys work here, you'll see them. They play here every once in a while, though they usually play at the some of the other bars around town and the next town over. Which, I guess is why you've never heard of them, seeing as you don't do much outside of saving the planet, or whatever it is you do.” Wow, Jaz was being really bitchy. Riley looked as though she wanted to pull the other girl's hair out.

  I immediately intervened. “Well, that sounds cool. I look forward to hearing them sometime.” I was saved from playing bouncer between my two friends by the arrival of Jordan and another guy who looked to be in his late thirties, with a receding hairline.

  Mr. Baldy held our applications in his hands and gave us a genuine smile. “Hi, I'm Moore Pruitt, General Manager. Are you Maysie and Riley?” We both got to our feet and held out our hands to shake his.

  “Yep, that's us,” I responded, smiling pleasantly.

  “You're hired,” he said simply. My eyes widened in shock.

  “That's it? You don't want to interview us or anything?” I asked, feeling confused. I looked at Riley, who seemed as taken aback as I was.

  “Nope, we are seriously under staffed right now and I could use the people. Can you come in this evening for training?” he asked, going behind the hostess stand and pulling out two black polo shirts with the Barton name emblazoned on the front.

  “Um, sure,” I stuttered, taking the shirt. Riley took hers and nodded.

  “What time do you want us here?” she asked.

  Moore looked down at a clipboard in his hands. “Evian comes on at 5:00 and Damien is in at 5:30. What time are you done today, Jaz?” he asked.

  “My shift is over at 4:00,” Jaz said, giving her boss an apologetic smile.

  “I can train them. My shift starts at 7:00, but I'll come in early. No worries,” Jordan piped up from behind Moore. I looked at him and he gave me a toothy grin and then winked. Fucking hell, he had actually just winked at me.

  I couldn't help but notice Jaz glower at me as she watched our exchange. Moore looked relieved with Jordan's suggestion. “That would be great Jordan. Girls, come in around 4:30 and Jordan will show you the ropes. I'd like to have you shadow tonight and then we can put you on the schedule for next week. Does that work for you?”

  Riley and I nodded. “Don't we have paperwork to fill out?” Riley asked as she stuffed the shirt into her bag.

  “Jordan will have you do all of that this evening. Welcome to the Barton family,” Moore enthused, giving us a huge smile before smacking Jordan on the shoulder and heading back toward the kitchen.

  “Well, I guess we should get going. See you this evening,” I said, turning around to leave, clutching my new Barton's shirt in my hands.

  “Bye girls. See ya later,” Jaz called out, less friendly than she was before.

  “See you this evening,” Jordan called back and I had to suppress the urge to skip out of the restaurant.

  Chapter Two

  I straightened my form fitting black polo shirt and pulled down on my black short shorts. I felt a little exposed. I knew I looked good. The shorts were tiny and showed off my long legs, but I still felt a bit under-dressed. I had pulled my brown hair back in a high ponytail and toned down the makeup, opting for a more natural look. I figured I'd be covered in bar grease by the end of the night anyway, so what was the point?

  Riley came out of her room, sporting her own version of the Barton attire. Her polo shirt was less tight, making me wonder if I was given the wrong size. Riley wore black trousers instead of shorts, but they were cute with a nice little flare at the bottom. Riley wasn't one to show of her...um...assets. But she still looked pretty.

  “Ready?” Riley asked, picking up her messenger bag from the couch.

  “As I'll ever be,” I responded, locking our apartment door as we stepped outside. A commotion at the end of the hallway grabbed my attention as we walked toward the car lot.

  Randall and his girlfriend Cicely were heading out of their apartment. Eli and two other girls were behind them. A redhead with too much make up and a shirt that barely covered her ginormous tits was hanging on Eli's arm and he was laughing as she whispered something in his ear.

  I glared at him as we made our way toward the group. “Hey guys,” I said, staring at the guy who took off my underwear on a regular basis, as the skank ran her nails up Eli's arm. Riley groaned from beside me and continued out to the car.

  Eli looked up and smiled lazily, not concerned that he appeared less than innocent with some bitch snaked up against him like that. But the truth was, he probably didn't care. “Hey, babe! You coming to the party with us?” The redhead gave me a once over and then leveled a glare my way as Eli came toward me. I knew I looked good. A hell of a lot better than that crabbed out hoe. Humpf!

  “No, I'm heading into work. I got a job at Barton's,” I told him, my breath catching as he wrapped his arms around my waist and pushed me against the wall. I heard Cicely snicker behind us as Eli's hand slithered up my bare thigh. See! This is why I kept the boy around! His fingers were something akin to the touch of God!

  I couldn't help but tremble at the feel of his fingers playing with the hem of my shorts. “You look hot,” Eli breathed as his tongue tasted the side of my neck.

  “You guys going to the party?” I asked a little breathlessly as he pressed himself against me. I could feel his hard on through his jeans and I had to wonder if that was for me or bimbo Barbie back there.

  I also couldn't help but notice his group of friends were still standing in the hallway waiting for him. Um, embarrassing much? I knew Eli was already drunk. I could smell the Jack Daniels on his breath as he moved to nibble on my ear.

  “Yeah. We'll probably be down there all night. You sure you can't come? I'd like to see what you've got going on underneath here.” Eli pulled at my collar, looking down my shirt. I smacked his arm and pushed him back.

  Eli laughed and stepped away. “No can do, I've got to do the whole responsible thing.” I hated how wobbly my voice sounded, but Eli brought out the bitch-in-heat side of me like nobody else. Eli smirked.

  “Well, I'll miss you. I'll call you tomorrow,” he said lazily.

  I would have smiled at the fact that he actually said he'd miss me except that the fucking red head had a hold of his arm again and was pulling him out toward Randall's car. I put a hand to my flushed
face. It was crazy how he could make me go from zero to sex starved in point two seconds.

  “Um, okay. Have fun,” I called out, but Eli didn't hear me, having already gotten in the back of the car, with slut one and slut two.

  I got into Riley's car. “Don't say a word,” I warned, shooting her a look. Riley lifted her hands.

  “What? I wouldn't dream of telling you he's a douche bag. Considering that you actually allow him to stick that filthy tongue down your throat. And I definitely wouldn't tell you that he clearly has a standing appointment with gonorrhea. That would be just too mean. I just really hope you guys are safe. I would double wrap it, to be on the safe side.”