Alex Donnelly cursed as she hit the time clock one minute after her scheduled start time. She had already gotten a written reprimand earlier in the week when she lost her temper and mouthed off at her manager, Sam Rhodes. Punching in late was another violation, and she just knew that Sam would use this as the perfect opportunity to put her on probation or fire her.

"Rough day?" another waitress asked, tying an apron over the ridiculously short skirt of her uniform.

"Kelly, you have no idea," Alex sighed. "How bad is it tonight?"

Kelly Evans looked around furtively before answering. "Bad," she said, her voice low. No one ever spoke the daily "Sam's Mood Report" in a voice above a whisper. "On a scale of one to ten, he's somewhere around a negative three hundred and forty-two."

"Great. Just what I need," Alex tied her own apron. She hurriedly twisted her long blond hair up into a clip on the back of her head and was just reaching for her lip gloss when she heard Sam bellow her name.

"Run," she murmured to Kelly.

"You sure?"

She nodded. When Sam was in "a mood", he was likely to fire first, ask questions later. Kelly was a single mom who desperately needed this job, and Alex didn't want her anywhere near when Sam blew up.

"Donnelly!" Sam roared, bursting through the break room door. "Late again? Do you want to be fired?"

"No, Sam. It's not my fault. My car—"

"I don't want excuses, Donnelly. I want employees who show up on time, ready to work. Not finishing hair and make-up after punching in."

"It was one minute, Sam. One minute."

Sam sighed dramatically. His handsome face was red with anger, and Alex thought she could see a vein pulsing on his forehead.

"You know I need you here early on Saturday nights, Alex," he said. "I need your help with the Specials Board and the set up. It's our busiest night of the week, and you've got a lot to do to get things rolling."

You mean the things you're getting paid to do, Mr. Manager? She thought, but bit her tongue. She needed the job, too, just as much as Kelly did.

"I'm sorry, Boss," she said instead. "I'll try not to let it happen again."

"One more screw up and you're fired. Got it?"

"Got it."

Saturdays were always busy at Captain Joe's. Although they offered a limited menu of appetizers and snacks, the Saturday night crowd was the hard-drinking party crowd, and the staff would be working themselves ragged as the night wore on. Very little food would be sold, but the alcohol would definitely be flowing. Alex was a good waitress, but they were seriously understaffed and it didn't help matters that Sam would be spending most of the shift in his office while she did his job for him.

She busied herself with getting everything ready for opening while Sam disappeared into the office and closed the door, as expected.

"What do you suppose he does in there all night?" Kelly asked.

"Video games. Dating sites. Cartoon porn."

"What did you ever see in him, Alex?"

"Hush! We never ever mention the fact that I dated him!" Alex hissed. "Temporary insanity. Besides, he's really not all that bad as long as he never speaks or thinks for himself."

"Maybe we'll all get lucky and the new owner will fire him."

Alex didn't answer. The doors had opened, and a steady stream of customers began to trickle in. As she started taking their orders, she thought about Kelly's words, and she hoped the other girl was right.

The bar's owner had retired and moved to Chicago a few months ago, leaving Sam to manage the place. That had marked the beginning of the decline in quality of the bar, as well as the beginning of the end of their relationship. Things had quickly gone from bad to worse on both fronts, and lately the only thing keeping Alex from quitting was the rumors that the place was going to be sold to a new owner.

With any luck, a new owner would see that Sam was a slacker and would hire someone who actually knew something about restaurant management. Alex certainly hoped so.

There was one customer here tonight who didn't seem to fit in with the usual Saturday night bar crowd. Even in the dim lighting, she could tell that his fitted black shirt and jeans were an expensive brand, and she certainly approved of the way that the fit of the shirt emphasized his muscular build. He had dark hair that was just a little longer than she usually liked on a man, but he made it look good. Very good, she thought, trying not to notice the fact that he seemed to be watching her.

"Pretty busy tonight," he commented when she brought him his drink.

"We sure are," she agreed.

"You seem to be short-handed."

Because Sam changed the schedule to give his new girlfriend the night off, she thought but didn't say. Instead she smiled at the stranger and assured him that everything was fine. As the night wore on, she convinced herself that she kept looking his way because he was a good customer, not because he was so good-looking.

At one point in the evening, she found herself trying to hold onto a tray full of foaming mugs of beer, fighting down the urge to dump the entire thing on the head of a drunken idiot who sat there grinning up at her while his right hand sunk in for a firm grip on her butt.

"Sir, please let go," she said evenly.

"Let go of what, Sweetheart?" the drunk leered, giving a squeeze.

Alex tried to step back, but the bar was crowded and the man refused to let go.

"Hey!" she heard a woman shout. Alex let out a sigh of relief. The moron's girlfriend or wife was going to give him hell and let Alex get back to work. But -

"Stop flirting with my boyfriend!" the other woman shrieked. She was short and skinny, skinny enough to make Alex wonder if she had eaten anything in the past decade, and she was furious. She shoved herself in between Mr. Grabby and his captive with such force that Alex stumbled and fell backwards, losing her grip on the tray and dumping its contents all over the surprised couple.

"Donnelly!"

Alex sighed. Things had just gone from bad to worse.

"It wasn't my fault, Sam," she tried, but her voice went unheard amidst the commotion. Skinny Screamer seemed to be on the brink of a nuclear meltdown, while her boyfriend made the near-fatal error of laughing at her. Bar patrons surged closer to see what was going on, and several of them whooped and cheered. Sam was pushing his way through the throng, bellowing her name and several choice words along the way.

Alex felt a strong hand under her elbow as someone gently helped her to her feet. A deep voice asked her if she was all right, but before she could answer him, she was face-to-face with Sam.

"That's it, Donnelly! You're fired!"

"And you're a –" Alex stopped. She needed this job. She needed the money and whatever security that money might give her. This was not a good time for her to be unemployed. It was not a good time for her to lose her temper. She took a deep breath and turned to the couple who had started all the trouble.

"I'm very sorry," she said. Her words sounded stiff and forced and she spoke through a clench-jawed, fake smile. "Please, let me get you new drinks and a couple of appetizers, on me."

It took several minutes of apologies and the promise of copious amounts of food to mollify the couple, but they finally seemed willing to accept her offer. She groaned inwardly as she realized that it was going to cost her all of tonight's tips, plus a good chunk of her paycheck to pay for the food and broken dishes, but at least she still had her job.

She hoped.

Alex picked up the tray and most of its contents, and wound her way through the crowd with Sam on her heels, berating her all the way. She wanted to whirl around and shout right back in his face that she had done nothing wrong, that he should be sending someone out to mop up the spilled beer, that he was seriously invading her personal space and getting on her every last nerve. But she bit her tongue and told herself to watch her temper.

She was very nearly calm by the time they reached the kitchen. She took a deep breath and turned to face her boss.

"Sam, I'm sorry for being so clumsy," she told him. "I promise to be more careful, but please don't fire me. I need this job. Please."

"Those broken glasses come out of your paycheck."

"Of course."

"And you're gonna get the mop and clean up that mess."

"Sure."

"And you're off the floor for the rest of the night. You're washing dishes."

"But Sam, I need my tips! That's not –" Alex took yet another deep breath and nodded slowly, not trusting herself to speak any further.

"Excuse me." It was the man she had noticed earlier, and she realized with a jolt that it was he who had helped her to her feet.

"What do you want?" Sam demanded.

"I don't believe the young lady was at fault," the man told him. He stepped forward, and Alex caught her breath. It was not a good idea to argue with Sam, not when he was already so angry. If this guy insisted on defending her, there was no way she was going to convince Sam to let her keep her job.

"Please, sir, don't—" she began, but Sam's roar drowned out her quiet voice.

"What did you say?"

"I said that I don't believe the young lady was at fault," the stranger replied calmly. "The customer was out of line, and his girlfriend pushed your waitress. You're wrong to penalize her for a situation that a good manager would have been able to prevent."

Alex closed her eyes and instinctively took a step back. She wondered if she had time to run to the break room for her cell phone, or if she should use the business phone to call 9-1-1.

Because Sam was going to kill the guy.

But Sam seemed to see something in the stranger that Alex didn't. The bar manager stared at him for a very long moment and then scowled. "Get out of my bar," he ordered. "Donnelly, you leave with him. Give me your apron and get out."

"But—"

"But nothing. You're trouble, and I want you gone. If this guy thinks you're so perfect, let him give you a job."

Alex knew when she was defeated. She turned and stalked out, stopping only when she got to the alley behind the bar, where she and Kelly had stashed an old folding chair for their breaks. With a sigh, she sank into the chair and buried her face in her hands.

She needed this job. Unemployment was simply not an option. Not now. But so many local businesses were closing as the tourist season ended, and Captain Joe's was one of the few places that stayed busy all winter long. There just weren't enough options for her to look into as far as finding another job.

She fought back a sudden rush of nausea. Not now, she pleaded. She placed a hand on her belly and fought back tears.

"Are you all right?"

Alex jerked upright. The stranger had followed her out into the alley and was leaning over her with a look of concern on his face.

"Get away from me," she told him. "Haven't you done enough?"

"That guy was a jerk. You don't need to work for someone like that."

"Really? And I suppose you have a better offer?"

He leaned even closer. "As a matter of fact," he said, "I do."

Slapping him, she decided, was the high point of her night.