Rainbow Central Volume 2

4. Olivia

That little... I should fire her right here and now, but if I got rid of anyone that said a bad thing about me, Rainbow Central would be staffless.

Still, I couldn’t just let it slide.

“Quinn… A word.” I motioned to the staff room and strode away, not even checking whether she was following. From the footsteps behind me, I could tell she was. Good.

As soon as I closed the door, the apologies streamed from her mouth.

“Ma’am, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”

“Don’t lie. You did mean it. You just didn’t intend for me to hear it.”

Guiltily, she looked away. “I’m sorry.”

With a sigh, I ran a hand along my head. While I wasn’t unfamiliar with unkind words, it was never nice to hear. “I can’t have the people working for me talking behind my back.”

“I understand.” Quinn’s face fell, the disappointment written on her features.

And while I knew better, something within me softened as I looked at the young woman. I didn’t know what it was, but I felt compelled to give her a second chance. If only to get rid of her big puppy eyes.

Maybe that made me soft, but there was something about her. For whichever reason, I had a weird feeling in my gut that she was going to play an important role.

“I’m going to give you a second chance,” I said, glaring at her intensely. “Don’t disappoint me.”

Relief washed over Quinn’s face and brightened her eyes. “I won’t. Thank you.”

“Off you go.” I gestured to the front of the house, where Caspian was probably still sweeping and washing the floor. If she was staying, she was going to earn her keep. At least, for as long as I could afford the staff…

I looked around the room, appalled with the state of things. God, what a dump. The wallpaper was absolutely ghastly, and that had nothing to do with the terrible rose print Rebecca picked out way back in the day. I’d replace it, but it was foolish to waste money on sprucing up a room the customers would never see. Besides, it wasn’t like the staff spent much time in here anyway. Most breaks were taken in the back alley, where they smoked their fancy little cigarettes.

Ah. Youth…

I could barely remember the last time I had a smoke or a relaxing drink, just for the fun of it. Back then, it was all good times and laughter till the morning. Now I just poured the gin back at the end of the night, waiting for it to knock me out.

Not as glorious as the good old days. Ah well.

With a last look at the depressing room, I returned to the main area where Caspian was showing Quinn around the bar and fridges.

“Caspian, I’ll have a gin on the rocks.” I sat down at the bar, already exhausted from the week. But in my line of work, the weekend didn’t bring any rest. On the contrary, really.

“Certainly. Here, Quinn, I’ll show you how we do the gin. If it’s a mixed gin and tonic, we use these balloon glasses, they’re in this cupboard. But when it’s just gin, take a whisky glass. Always do the ice and lime wedge first.” He placed the crystal glass on the bar, the ice cubes rattling invitingly. “One confident pour will give you the perfect amount. Just like that. But for the boss, we always do a little extra.”

He gave the glass a little push and it slid along the bar, right into my hand. I took a little sip and instant relief washed through me. A good glass of gin always did that for me.

I lifted the glass in appreciation. “Thanks, Caspian. Perfect.”

“Not a problem.” The young man gave the bar a quick wipe and turned back to my newest employee. “Let me show you some of our stock.”

Good lad. He’d been working for me a long time and it showed. If he wasn’t here, I’d have to do all the heavy lifting myself and while that was fine when I was younger, I could feel the age in my back. Running around with heavy crates was no longer something I could do without paying the price.

Instead, I took another nip from my drink and relished in the freshness of the elderflower. Both smooth and sharp at the same time, it was a little marvel. And I could tip a few back without losing my clarity, which was ideal.

I had intended for Caspian to give me the report on Quinn, but now that I didn’t have Tilly, I could watch her myself. After all, there was no real reason to go home. There was no longer anyone waiting for me and I’d just hang in front of the tv with my gin anyway. At least here someone poured it for me.