Chapter Eleven
Fannin
Is he for real? I mean, seriously. I’ve never been so turned on from someone’s words before. Jasper hasn’t even really touched me yet and I’m ready for him to put his hands and body and beard and just everything all over me. Someone calls his name and he steps away, raking his fingers across my back as he goes to help the other bartender.
“Sorry, that was Charles. He finished early so he’s going to meet us up here.” Shelby settles on the chair beside me, jostling my leg. “Girl, you okay? You’re all flushed.”
“You ever feel like you’ve been fucked, in a good way, without actually being fucked?” I ask my friend, a little dazed, and a lot hot for a certain Scotsman. Taking a sip of the warm honey-kissed whisky, I watch Jasper as he moves around the bar.
“Oh, it’s like that, huh?” Shel gives a little hoot. “Yeah, he looks like the type. I bet he’s kinky as all hell. Perfect for your ass. He’ll love the vibe drawer.” I choose that moment to take a sip of my drink, and she nearly gets sprayed with it.
“Oh my God, shut up!” Between her putting me on blast and the sting of the whisky that almost came out of my nose, there are tears in my eyes.
“Mmm hmm. You just watch. I want all the details too.” She swivels on her chair, peering down the bar. “Look at him with his fine ass. You need to take a bite out of it for me.”
That time I do lose my whisky. All over the shiny bar top and poor Theo who is just walking by, his phone pressed to his ear. He stops dead in his tracks, eyes closed as whisky trickles down his cheek and drips from his chin. Oh. My. God. Kill me now. Shelby literally falls all over me laughing her ass off. The bitch. This is her fault. I’m frozen, same as Theo until Shelby nearly knocks me off my chair with her laughing. Springing into action I lean across the bar with a wad of cocktail napkins and attempt to wipe my spit and whisky from the poor man. “I am so sorry. Shit. I’m sorry. It’s her fault. She always does that. Waits till I put something in my mouth and then says something she knows will make me laugh.” I’m rambling a mile a minute and Theo just lets me, his shoulders shaking with his own laughter as I make a bigger ass of myself.
“S’alright, love. Not the first time a woman has spit all over me.” He winks at me, saying into the phone, “Lorna, we’ll chat later. He’s busy anyway.” Smiling at me, he takes the napkins I’m still trying to mop him up with. “Saved me there. I had no desire to be on the phone with that silly cow. I should thank you.”
All I can do is bury my head in my hands and groan. “I really am so sorry.”
Shelby, finally composed and sitting in her own chair, sighs happily. “My work here is done I think.”
“Bitch,” I hiss without any real heat.
“Am I missing all the fun over here?” Jasper stands next to Theo, looking him over. “What happened to you?”
“Your girl spit her whisky all over him,” Shelby offers.
“It was your fault! It was her fault. She told me to bite your ass.” If she’s going to throw me under the bus, I’m dragging her along with me.
Shelby only shrugs. “It’s a nice ass; what can I say?”
Jasper points a finger at my friend. “You. I like you.” Turning to Theo, “What are you doing out here? I thought you had office work to do?”
“I do. There was a call from Scotland. Fannin saved us both I reckon.”
“Aye. I’ll not be taking any calls tonight. From Scotland or anywhere else,” he tells Theo with a slap on the back. “How are you ladies doing over here? I’ll get you a new drink. Try to keep it in your mouth this time, my Fanny girl.” Theo gives him a funny look as Jasper turns to the cask and pulls the tap.
“Fanny?” he asks him when he comes back to us with my drink.
“Apparently it’s my new nickname. It’s growing on me. I think,” I laugh as he nods, obviously not sure about it.
Shelby gives a little squeak. “Charles is here. I’m going to bring him in to meet everyone and then we have to go,” she says as she dashes to the front door. That girl is so crazy about her man, and him even more so about her. It’s a beautiful thing to behold.
“Is Charles her husband, then?” Jaspers asks, leaning across the bar a bit to be heard.
“Not yet. They’ve been together for about three years now though. She’s hoping he pops the question soon.”
“So we like him?”
Smiling, I answer honestly, “He’s perfect for her.”
Before he can answer, Shelby and Charles are there and she’s making introductions.
“Nice to meet you, man. Thanks for stepping up for our girl,” Charles says, hooking a thumb in my direction making me grin. He’s so damn sweet.
The men shake hands. “I’m looking forward to it.”
Charles turns to me and gives me a hug. “Fannin. Looking good rocking a fro,” he teases.
I stick my tongue out at him like a child. “So what’s good here? Shel said this is the spot right now.”
Just as he says that, a server comes over and places a cheese and meat board like we had the other night and a glass of whisky for Charles on the bar then slips silently away. She was like a ninja. Charles looks at me with a cocked brow and a grin.
“You guys have to excuse me; I have to go help out for just a little while longer. Charles, it was great to meet you. I hope you enjoy your whisky.” Jasper gives me a pointed, smoldering, light-my-ass-on-fire look. It’s full of promise for what’s to come.
***
It’s midnight, Charles and Shelby just left, and for the first time tonight I’m able to sit and really take in my surroundings. The place is still incredibly busy, the tables all full as well as all the seats at the bar. Jasper has been non-stop for the last hour, sending me apologetic looks every so often which I wave off. I love watching him work. He’s amazing with the people and they all love him. Especially the women. He’s been hit on tonight so many times I’ve lost count and with each one he allows them to flirt, but he doesn’t encourage it by flirting back. A couple of times he’s even pointed in my direction. Though I wasn’t able to hear what was being said, I could tell through the women’s body language alone. Oddly enough I wasn’t bothered by it in the least. Not that we’re together or that I have any right to be jealous. Jasper isn’t mine for them to take. But it’s nice to feel like I wouldn’t have to worry if he were.
Switching to work mode, I look around the bar with the account in mind. The Iron Flask is about to become a franchise, and it’s owned by one of the largest whisky distilleries in the world, Iron Thistle. Not only will I be handling the marketing for the bars, but also the distillery. This could be huge. Not only for me but for Tate and Cane too. Noah and Olivia have worked their asses off to bring the company out of the red over the last couple years, and this account will put us on a whole other level. I’m still a little shocked that Noah is trusting me with it to be honest. Not that I don’t think I can handle it—I know I can. But him believing in me enough is a different story.
The Iron Flask doesn’t have your typical bar set up. They have whisky that they distill right here on site which is either bottled and put on the shelf or brought out in the barrel and tapped right in the bar. On one side of the long roughened wood bar, there are shelves filled with cordials and bottles of Iron Thistle whisky, and the other side has medium-sized whisky barrels with the names of the whisky they hold branded into the wood. Every drink they serve is brought out on a stave from old whisky casks, divots punched into them for the glasses to settle into. It adds a fantastic touch to the whole ambiance of the place. There’s wood everywhere. Beams, high top tables, chairs, floors. Softened by pretty white lighting and candles strategically placed. It really is gorgeous and well thought out. The ideas I’ve had about the place and how to make it a huge success are exciting, and I can’t wait to share my newest ideas with Theo on our next call. Lost in thought, I’m startled when I feel a hand on my back. Glancing up, I smile when I see it’s Jasper.
“You okay, love?”
“Yeah, sorry, I was just thinking about how fantastically designed this place is and how I can use that in the marketing.” I can’t hide the excitement in my voice, and Jasper must hear it.
“I’m finished here for the night. Would you like a tour? I can show you the cellar—it’s really quite fascinating.” Now it’s his turn to sound excited.
“The cellar? Alone with you? Is this the whisky part of the seduction?” I tease, unable to help myself.
“I told you, I don’t need whisky to seduce you. The more you mention it though, the more I envision sipping it from your skin. Licking the sweetness from your . . . sweetness.” His voice is pitched low. Husky. Sexy. Only for me.
Swallowing, I watch his lips form the words in a lust-filled daze. Unable to remember what we had been talking about as the vision of him dripping whisky over my naked body flits through my mind. Not using whisky to seduce me, my ass. That’s exactly what he’s doing. Without even using any whisky. Damn. He’s good.