18. Insight

“Since when have you taken up Muay Thai?” Pepper sounds both curious and interested.
Kai shrugs. “A couple weeks ago. Jet said I should learn how to not get my ass kicked, and he paid Talay to be my trainer. They go to the same gym.”
He’s stayed behind the bar for almost an hour, mostly to avoid Jet but also to help Pepper. Traffic must be really bad if this Em person is still not here yet. True, he hasn’t really done much but get the glasses Pepper points to, but at least that leaves both Pepper’s hands free to mix the cocktails.
“Nail was also at the gym tonight.” Kai is almost successful in making his voice sound neutral. “Talay said he was there for some kind of demonstration.”
“Did you believe him?” When Kai doesn’t answer, Pepper decides to push. “Or do you think he went there looking for you and used the demonstration as an excuse because of what you have on your phone?”
“I’ll be careful,” Kai reassures her. “You don’t have to worry about me.”
Pepper’s tone is deliberately nonchalant. “Oh? What gave you that idea?”
“I thought Bel only hired two full time bartenders.” The new voice turns their attention to the girl who has just stepped behind the bar. She’s about Pepper’s age, but maybe a little shorter, dressed in a uniform that matches the one Pepper wears. Currently, she’s looking at the both of them with slightly raised eyebrows.
“Sorry,” Kai backs toward the opposite side of the bar, ready to duck back into the patron side. “I mean, I’m not a bartender. I was just covering.”
“You’re not in trouble,” the newcomer reassures him, her brown eyes alight with curiosity. “The traffic really was heinous. I’m Em, by the way.”
Kai nods. “I know. You’re also Talay’s girlfriend. He talks about you alot. Says he likes having a girlfriend who works at a hospital cause it’s easier for him to get his Muay Thai injuries treated.”
“That sounds exactly like the kind of sentence Talay would say.” Em’s brow furrows, but she looks more amused than annoyed.
“Kai,” Pepper interrupts them. “We need more ice. The machine’s in the back corner of the prep table down the hall. Maybe get more limes, too.”
“Right.” Kai picks up the ice bucket. “Be right back.”
Em cas ts a sidelong glance at Pepper. “He’s cute.”
“You have a boyfriend.” Pepper keeps her face neutral, but her eyes and the way she plunks the seltzer bottle down on the bar give her away.
“And I’m very happy with him, so that was purely an observational statement.” Em’s eyes twinkle at Pepper. “Relax. I’m not going to steal your crush.”
“Pepper has a new crush? Or is it the same one?” The girls turn to see Luca leaning against the bar. He raises his eyebrows at Em. “You’re late.”
“I’m an on-call employee here, and traffic is bad.” Em flicks an ice chip at him. “Did anyone ever tell you it’s not nice to break into other people’s conversations?”
“Yes,” Luca smirks. “But that never stops me.”
Pepper rolls her eyes. “Don’t you have your own ‘crush’ to pay attention to?”
“About that,” Luca slides a key fob across the bar to Pepper. “I need you to hold on to this, and then drive the car to our place when you get off tonight.”
Em and Pepper give him twin expressions of surprise, but it’s Pepper who asks the question. “Why are you leaving this early?”
“I have something to take care of.” Luca jerks his head in the direction of the shadowy corner where Jet is melting into the chair cushions. Seven empty glasses are spread across the low table in front of him. “I think he said he parked it in the garage, but he’s having a little trouble saying words with more than one syllable at the minute.”
Em raises her eyebrows. “Because you filled him up with vodka?”
“Actually,” Luca corrects her. “He drank all six Black Russians on his own.”
“There are seven empty glasses on that table.” Em points out.
“The Negroni one’s mine.” Luca turns his gaze back to Pepper, tapping the car fob for emphasis. “This is his. Pepper, will you please do me this favor? He needs somewhere to sleep it off, that’s all.”
Em leans forward over the bar. “Just ‘somewhere to sleep it off’, huh?”
“I’m not going to do anything to him.” Luca looks a little defensive.
“Uh-huh,” Pepper is smiling as she slides the key fob into her pocket, though whether it’s because she enjoys provoking Luca or because she believes him is unclear. “Kai’s getting ice, so you better get your hot mess of a ‘latest’ out of here before he comes back.”
“Fine,” Luca leans closer to her as Em rolls her eyes and turns back to her cocktail shaker. “I’m in such a good mood tonight I’m going to return your favor by giving you a little insight.”
“Nightshade’s Bad Boy is going to give me an insight?” Pepper’s words are casual, but both of them can hear the buzz of something else underneath.
“About Kai. ” Luca’s answer is blunt, and his face is the most serious it’s been all night. “He’s into you. So act on it. Or you’ll lose him.”
“Uh-uh,” Pepper’s playful expression slips just a little bit. “And what romantic drama did you get that line from?”
“I’m serious, Pepper.” Luca winks at her. “Think about it. I’ll see you at home.”
“You see?” Em sidles back over to Pepper with a triumphant grin on her face. “I’m not the only one who’s noticed certain things.”
Pepper’s response is a playful shove. “Just mix the cocktails and mind your own business.”
◼️◼️◼️◼️
As Luca predicted, Kai has no intention of leaving, so he’s put to work getting ice and fresh garnishes while Em and Pepper focus on the drinks. The garnish station and ice machine are just down the hall, so it doesn’t take Kai too long to make these trips, and the only time he pauses is when he needs to slice more fruit or shred more mint or basil leaves—which takes him less than thirty seconds to figure out how to do.
Before Em arrived, it had been easy to ignore the dark corner where he had seen his brother retreat, as he needed to keep his back turned to the nightclub while grabbing the correct glasses and ingredients for Pepper. Now that he’s constantly running back and forth between the garnish station and the bar, Kai’s eyes are able to wander, and they keep straying to that corner.
The corner that is now empty.
Maybe he really should have just stayed at the gym and let Nail kick his ass.
Kai carries a bin of dirty glasses to the kitchen and starts scrubbing, careful to keep his grip tight enough so that the expensive glassware doesn’t slip from his fingers and shatter. It’s highly doubtful he can afford to replace one, even as an adoptive Manirat.
“You don’t have to wash those if you don’t want to,” Pepper is standing in the kitchen doorway. She’s taken the clip out of her hair, and now it frames her face and cascades in dark waves almost to her waist. “We have kitchen staff for that.”
“I don’t mind.” Kai puts the newly washed glass down and picks up another one, forcing himself not to stare. He’s seen Pepper with her hair down before, but tonight she looks particularly sexy, and he’s not exactly sure why that is. “I didn’t know Nightshade had kitchen staff.”
Pepper nods. “How else do you think we feed our VIPs?”
“We didn’t get anything.” At least, Kai doesn’t remember anything other than ice buckets and bottles on their table, but he’s been too distracted to notice much of anything.
“They have to request it when they make a reservation.” Pepper explains. “If Bel likes them enough, he’ll even give the VIP access to our secret menu.”
“‘Secret menu’?” Kai raises his eyebrows. “Like what?”
“Dragonfruit, rambutan, durian, mangosteen, things like that. For some reason VIPs like dining on the king and queen of the fruits, so that’s what they’re served.” Pepper’s voice is a little muffled as she goes into the fridge. “Full meals are for certain VIP parties, and they make snacks for the night owls who come in here for more than a drink. You’re not usually either of those, so why would you know about it?”
“I’m a night owl.” Kai puts down the final clean glass, turning on the water spigot one last time to push the remaining soap suds down the drain.
“You sit at the bar by yourself with your virgin Thaijito and talk to me or Luca all night. That’s not the kind of ‘night owl’ I mean.” Pepper reappears, carrying a couple of sealed containers. “Hungry?”
Curious to see what’s in the containers, Kai leans forward as Pepper lifts one of the lids. A pungent smell assaults his nostrils, awakening his gag reflex. “What the hell?”
“Open your eyes,” the amusement is clear in Pepper’s voice. “It’s not that bad.”
Kai does as he’s told, squinting against the odor. There is a spoon in Pepper’s hand, held centimeters away from his face. The smell is coming from the white fleshy substance in the cradle of the spoon.
“Now open your mouth.” Pepper moves the spoon closer to Kai’s lips. “Trust me.”
Rather than argue, Kai raises a brow at her and parts his lips enough for the cradle of the spoon to go inside his mouth.
Pepper watches him. “So?”
“It still smells like feet.” Kai looks down in disbelief at the now empty spoon. “But it tastes like…almond custard. Why are you laughing?”
“It’s an interesting combination,” Pepper bites her lips in an effort to suppress another giggle. “Feet and custard, I mean. Have you never tried a durian before?”
Kai gives her a Look. “One, I can’t afford the ‘king of fruits’ on a student budget. Two, I don’t voluntarily eat things that smell like that. But I guess you do?”
“Yep.” Pepper answers around her fourth bite. She swallows before continuing. “Bel and Kam know how much I love it, so they save all the leftovers for me. Provided I take it with me when I leave. You want to try the mangosteen?”
Kai shakes his head. “Mali’s boyfriend buys her mangosteen all the time, so I eat it about once a week. It’s her favorite.”
“I know ‘Mali’ is for ‘jasmine’, and you told me once that ‘Kai’ is short for ‘Kaineng’.” Pepper cocks her head. “But why do you call your brother ‘Jet’?”
Kai shrugs. “Probably because ‘Lian-Jie’ is his full name, and neither Mali or I could say it growing up. It kept coming out ‘Hia Jet’, so that name stuck.”
“You call him ‘Hia’.” Pepper smiles. “That’s cute.”
“Only Mali does. Kam and Bel seem to take really good care of you.” Kai takes another bite of the durian. The smell isn’t so bad anymore. “Are you an adoptive Manirat too?”
“I’m happy with my Friend of the Family status.” Pepper shrugs. “It feels a little weird to be an employee and an adoptive family member, not with all the work I do for them.”
“You do more than just bartending?” For the second time in as many minutes words come out of Kai’s mouth before he can stop them.
“Actually,” Pepper looks more amused than offended at Kai’s question. “I balance Nightshade’s book's. I studied Accounting at university, then did a corporate accounting internship and Kam hired me as soon as he and Bel bought this place.”
“Oh,” Kai isn’t really sure what to say to that. He’s starting to realize that for all the months he’s come to Nightshade, and all the conversations he’s had with Pepper, he really knows nothing about her. Which is something he’s going to fix starting tonight.
Pepper eyebrows shoot toward her hairline. “You thought I was just a pretty bartender?”
“No!” The word comes out louder than Kai wanted it to. “I mean, you’re pretty, but—”
“Kai,” Pepper is smiling. “I’m kidding. You’re really adorable when you flounder around like that. You want to help me check if the VIP rooms are empty of drunken stragglers before you go home?”
“There are VIP rooms?” Kai isn’t exactly sure why he’s surprised. If Nightshade has a kitchen, then it makes sense that there would be VIP rooms. “Where?”
Pepper winks at him, snapping the airtight lid back over the durian container. . “You want to see them?”




"19. Resonance" 

Read from beginning "1. Ignored"