I tug at the shorts, wishing they were a little longer. “I’m not so sure about this outfit, Quinn. It’s not very me.”

She grabs her keys off the dresser. “Isn’t that the point? I thought you wanted to do the opposite of what you’d normally do.”

I frown. “It is, but it’s all a little much to get used to at one time.”

She wraps her slender arm around my shoulders as we walk toward the front door. “I promise it won’t be so bad. All the girls dress like this. Trust me. You’ll be thanking me when you’re counting your tips.”

Quinn drives us to work in her Honda, and fills me in about the job and what I can expect. I nod in all the correct places, trying to pretend I’m not a complete mess inside. My nerves are in overdrive. Who knew starting a job would make me feel like a crazy person?

We pull into the parking lot of Larry’s, and I stare at the brick building, anxious to get inside while simultaneously wishing I could run away.

Quinn must sense my unease, because she pats my arm. “Don’t worry. You’re going to do great.”

I give her a small smile. “Thanks. I’ll try not to let you down.”

The moment we walk in through the back door, clearly marked “Employees Only” my nose is assaulted with the smell of fried, greasy food. Bodies flit around the tight kitchen so quickly I’m not sure where to point my gaze first. Two guys, wearing green t-shirts with the same slogan as mine, wave to Quinn from behind the grill. I fully expect my cousin to be polite and greet our coworkers, but instead she raises her left hand as we pass and flips them the middle finger.

“Quinn, baby, don’t be like that,” the taller of the two guys whines.

She doesn’t even glance in his direction, and the cook frowns. I’m not sure who he is, but he’s cute with floppy brown hair and boyish good looks.

It appears Quinn hasn’t told me everything about this place.

The blond cook beside the one who just spoke to Quinn allows his eyes to roam over my body, spending a noticeable amount of time on my chest.

“Did you bring us fresh meat, Quinnie?”

“Fuck off, Tyler. Don’t even think about it. Anna is off-limits.” She stops dead in her tracks and directs an evil stare at the brown-haired cook. “That means you too, Brock. You come near her or me, I’ll shank you where you stand.”

Tyler holds up his hands in surrender. “Damn, Quinnie, who pissed in your Wheaties?”

She narrows her eyes at the two men. “Ask your butt-buddy.”

Tyler immediately whips his head in Brock’s direction and gives his arm a small shove. “Did you two break up? A fucking warning would’ve been nice, dude.”

Brock shrugs, like he can’t come up with a better explanation than that.

My eyes widen. She never even mentioned a boyfriend to me before, and by the sounds of things, the breakup was pretty recent. Even Tyler, who seems to know them both appears stunned, like the news is shocking.

“Unbelievable!” Quinn mutters before tearing through the kitchen.

“Quinn, wait!” Brock calls after as he chases her through the door, leaving me alone in the kitchen with Tyler.

He flips the meat sizzling on the grill and shakes his head, a strand of his shaggy blond hair falling in his eyes. “Those two are nuts. I can’t keep up.”

Curious, I ask, “Have they been together long?”

Tyler lifts one shoulder in a noncommittal answer. “On and off for the past couple of months, I guess.” He looks up at me, a flick of recognition flaring in his brown eyes. “You’re her cousin, right? The one from Seattle or something?”

“Portland,” I correct him. “I’m Anna.”

He laughs. “The name I got—right around when Quinnie was warning me to stay away from you.”

I laugh too, feeling strangely at ease with the guy. He seems harmless, and he must be pretty close to my own age. I can see Tyler and me being friends. Working here might actually be fun, and not the terrifying place I expected it to be.

Feeling the need to fill the dead air lingering between us, I attempt to make small talk. “Have you been here long?”

“Close to a year. Quinnie and Brock have been here longer. Brock’s my cousin,” he adds.

“Glad to hear I’m not the only one who had a little inside help getting a job,” I tease.

Tyler rakes his eyes over me again and then shakes his head, an amused smile on his face. “I don’t think you would’ve had a problem without your cousin’s help.”

From out of nowhere a short, balding man smacks Tyler on the back of the head. “No hitting on our new employees.”

“Ouch! Jesus, Andy, I was only being friendly,” Tyler wails.

“Flirt on your own time. You.” Andy turns his attention to me and I hold my breath ready for a word of warning as well. “You’re Quinn’s sister, Annie, right?”

“It’s Anna, and I’m her cousin,” I correct him.

“Whatever.” He points to himself. “I’m Andy, welcome aboard. We’re short-staffed today, so I’m afraid there won’t be much time for training. I’m going to give you some tables.”

He stalks toward the door to the left and when I don’t immediately follow behind him, he raises his eyebrows at me. “Well, come on.” He waves at me to follow him. “We don’t have all day. Dinner rush is in two hours, and you have a lot to learn before I toss you out there.”

I follow Andy into what appears to be his office, although I swear it feels more like a storage closet with all the supplies stacked around his tiny, metal desk.

He opens the desk drawer to the right and pulls out a couple of papers. He slaps them down on the desk, along with a pen, and then pours four antacid tablets into his hand, and popping them in his mouth. “This is an official application and a W2 form. Fill them both out, make sure you mark your tax-withholding information down correctly, and lastly, sign our accountability form.”

All of that sounds pretty standard except for the last one. “What’s the accountability form for?”

“It’s our theft policy here at Larry’s. We’re a small, family-owned business, and my father, Larry, came up with it to help protect us if we suspect an employee of stealing from us. It basically says if we suspect an employee is stealing in any manner, they will be terminated with no questions asked.”

“Sounds fair enough.”

“Good. Glad you’re on the same page. Leave the papers on the desk once you complete them, and then go find Quinn. Tell her to start you on dinner prep.”

And just as quickly as he appeared, Andy’s gone again, leaving me no time to ask any questions at all.

I sit down at the desk and make quick work of the paperwork. Seeing as I’m only twenty-one years old, with absolutely zero work history, there’s really not much for me to write down. The tax form trips me up a bit, but after reading it carefully, I figure it out.

I stack the papers neatly on Andy’s desk and head back out into the kitchen. Brock is back at the grill next to Tyler, but Quinn is nowhere to be seen.

Tyler glances up at me and smiles. I’m sure he notices the clueless expression on my face. “Hey, Anna. You lost?”

I nod. “Can you tell me where I can find Quinn? Andy told me to find her when I was through with the paperwork he gave me.”

Brock jerks his head toward the dining area. “She’s on the floor.”

“Thanks.” I turn to head that way when Brock’s voice stops me.

“Tell her I’m sorry, would you? And that I admit I’m a complete idiot and that she was right. She won’t listen to me.” His brown eyes appear pained, and he seems sincere.

“Sure thing.”

Whatever’s going on between them feels very intense, and that’s a mystery I need to get to the bottom of. I push through the swinging kitchen door, wondering why Quinn didn’t tell me about Brock before, and find myself in a dimly lit pub. Dark-green berber carpet stretches from wall to wall, while tables and booths fill the rest of the space. Behind the expansive wooden bar is a hardwood floor and a window that opens to the kitchen. A couple of plates of prepared burgers and fries sit under a heat lamp, waiting to be served.