The Manager and the Barmaid

Elena had been working at Buck's bar and Grill for about a year now. She was the Barmaid there. She had taken notice of the assistant manager the second they had met. His rugged good looks and charming little boy smile where just the things that she liked in a man. But sadly enough she had read in the employee's handbook the very first night that there was a zero tolerance for fraternization between management and subordinates.

The bar's atmosphere was always sexually charged. And Derek, the assistant manger was always making sexy little jokes and comments to Elena teasing her and shooting her pick up lines. She could tell that he thought she was as cute and interesting as she found him. But those darn rules got in the way. Well, there were no rules saying that they couldn't be friends both inside and outside of work. A lot of the managers and waitresses and cooks would sit around together after closing time and have a few drinks. Swapping stories about their worst customers of the day or talking about crap in their personal lives.

Elena decided to start hanging out after work with the group. Derek must have wanted to see more of her outside of work, because he joined the click as well. Before long they were going out with two or three other employees after work to the pool hall next door and getting together for pizza or a movie on their nights off. But they always made sure there was a least one other person with them so there would be no way that the bosses at headquarters could try to discipline them for dating or anything.

Although in a few stolen moments here or there, usually accompanied by a bit to drink they'd relented to a peck or too or a hug that lasted too long and was a bit to close and tight. They knew they wanted each other—even if only for one time. They wanted to know what a few hours of passionate bliss in each other's arms would be like. But they had to resist the temptation of it with all they had. Neither of them could afford to loose their jobs.

There were a few nights here and there that Elena and Derek were the only ones scheduled to close down the place. They lived for those nights. They'd sit in the downstairs office and talk, drink wine and Derek would massage Elena's tired shoulders. Lifting cases of beer and liquor every night was hard on the back. Elena could feel the electricity shooting between Derek and her every time he caressed her shoulders. Yet still they would allow nothing more than a small kiss, or a small hug to happen between them.

They were friends now and becoming a little emotionally invested in each other's lives. They called each other on the nights that they didn't go out after work and began to learn about one another. Derek began to follow her home most nights and drive buy as she unlocked her door to make sure she'd arrived safely home. Getting off of work and getting home between 3 and 4 A.M. made it a little less than a safe ride home for a woman all alone.

One night the other waitresses finished up and turned in their cash drawers and tip pool money and logged their hours before the last customers had left the bar. They'd all gone by the time that Elena finished her bar chores and brought her drawer to the small cash office downstairs that was no bigger than a janitor's closet. It was just her and the manager on duty that night—Derek.

Elena sat down on the empty chair next to Derek and he began to rub the kinks out of her neck and shoulders then she read him off her totals sheet and they entered the information into system.

Derek had to do the day's tallies for total sales and sign off on all the paper work for inventory orders. So Elena went to the bar freezer and grabbed Derek a beer and a small white zinfandel for herself.

When she returned to the coat closet of and office she hopped up on the edge of the small desk and leaned in front of the computer screen to get Derek's attention dangling the beer in his line of sight—along with her gorgeously pouted lips. He groaned at her to let her know that she was definitely getting to him.