Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 69371 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 277(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69371 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 277(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
My hands fist as she goes on and on about how amazing she is. Like I don't already know. "Let's get this over with so I can get home and go to sleep."
She takes another sip, not caring that I just barked at her and that I'm taking it out on her because I'm pissed. "She also brought the pub in to do birthday parties and stuff."
I look over at her. "I'm going there tomorrow," I say. "Right before we go and visit the new place you were talking about.”
"The one by the water?" she asks, and her eyes light up.
"That's the one,” I confirm. When she called me a couple of weeks ago and told me about this place right by the water that was selling, I was hesitant at first until I saw the pictures. I saw what it could be, and it was a no-brainer. Nestled right over the lake near a marina, it is going to be a great summer spot for sure. "But I want to go in fifty-fifty,” I say, and she just looks at me, shocked. "I know you don't have the capital right up front, so I'll put up the money, and you can pay me back."
"I don't know what to say," she whispers. It's no secret she's had a hard life. It's also no secret that for the past six months, she's run this place and the pub without taking one day off.
"You don't have to say anything,” I reply, getting up. "You earned this." I open the door and walk out to see staff all around the bar. The hostess girls are on their phones, and I clear my throat. They don't even bother to look up.
"Can I have everyone's attention?" I raise my voice, and the girls finally look up at me. One of them even smirks at me. "For those of you who don't know me, I'm Luke, and I'm the boss."
Mikaela clears her throat. "I'm the second boss."
"Can we speed this up?" the blonde says, leaning back in her chair.
"We sure can," I say, crossing my arms over my chest. "You're fired." They both just look at me and then at each other, unsure of what to say or what the hell just happened.
"You can't just fire me!" the blonde retorts.
"Oh, but I can," I inform her. "You know why?" I wait for her to have one of her snarky comebacks. "Let me tell you why. One, you standing at that stand." I point at the hostess stand. "Which means when someone comes into this place, you are the first face they see. Do you think they want you to be on your phone and ignoring them?" I look at them, waiting. "Because if it was me, I wouldn't even give you a second thought and be out of here. Which means you’re costing me money." They just look at me, and the other staff members avoid looking at them. "And if I'm not making money, no one is getting paid."
"It's not all the time," one of them says.
"Even one time is one time too many." I look over at Mikaela, who just nods. "If you’re bored at the front, I'd rather see you walking around helping out by filling up water glasses than on your phone. So if those rules are too much to go by, the door is right there." I look around the room at everyone. "If demanding your full attention when you are working here is too much for any of you, now is your chance to speak up." I wait to see who will get up and who will stay. Even I'm surprised when no one moves, not even the blondes. "Good," I say, and Mikaela smiles. "With that said, I think we are going to be hiring more staff for behind the bar." The bartenders just nod their heads, and one puts up their hand.
"What about hiring someone just to deal with the tables?" he asks. "Lots of times, we are slammed with our own clients, and then we have the machine going nuts for the waitstaff."
I nod at him. "We will definitely be getting you some backup,” I assure him. The rest of the meeting goes fast as I take the time to ask everyone what they like and what they are struggling with. It's something that I started in New York, and the workers just connected with you even more. If they think you’re listening to them, they will work harder for you. Once the last person walks out of the door, I turn to Mikaela.
"I got to hand it to you," she says, smirking. "I thought those two were goners."
"Must be my charm," I joke, yawning and then rubbing my hands over my face. "Let's go," I say, and we both walk out the back door. She locks it as I wait for her to get in her car before I get into my truck and head over to my house.