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Post by anna on Jun 1, 2010 12:19:32 GMT -5
Annabelle moved a bottle by half an inch, before she took a step back and studied her handiwork. Every bottle and glass was now in precisely the spot she wanted it. Of course that would change soon enough, when the first customers arrived, but it was a ritual she went through every day nevertheless. There was no reason whatsoever to present her bar in any state but perfect. Surveying the room she could spot only two things she found less than perfect - the pool table and the dart board. She had moved the pool table more into a corner, but would have rather liked to get rid of it completely. But it drew some customers to the Waterin' Hole. Keeping it - and the dart board - had been a decision motivated only by Annabelle's business sense, even if it clashed with the new look she had given the bar. Some of the locals had mentioned that it now looked more like a hotel bar than the place her parents had run, but Anna could live with that very well. The Waterin' Hole was now hers by right of birth and she could do with it whatever she liked, even if cold-blooded economic reasons had stopped her short of changing the name to Annabelle's, as she had been rather tempted to do. Alienating the old timers too much wouldn't have done, despite there being not many alternatives to her bar in Brooke Haven. So far she had lost almost none of the regular customers, despite the changes she had made not being particularly popular in some quarters. "Are you ready for business?" Annabelle asked the younger woman behind the counter. She had hired Christy around the time she had renovated the place, so the blonde hardly knew the Waterin' Hole any other way. Finding someone who had experience with bar work - and lived up to the standards Annabelle expected from her employees - had been almost impossible in Brooke Haven, so she had cast her net wider and found Christy in a neighboring town. She didn't knew the Waterin' Hole any other way than it was now, had experience in the job, and worked with precision, which made her perfect in Annabelle's eyes. The offer of a nice little wage increase from her old job had done the trick and convinced her to commute to Brooke Haven for work. Christy nodded. "Yes, just about." She glanced at the cash register another time, recorded the amount of change there that she had just counted, and signed the record. She closed the cash register and put the record of the bar's finances back in its proper place under the counter. Annabelle felt something brush against her leg and squatted down to caress her Golden Retriever, allowing herself to be distracted for a moment. Not many things could do that, but Jenny was just too adorable not to draw her attention. "Just a little longer and I'll take you for a walk, darling. Okay?," she told the dog, her voice betraying a rare hint of very genuine affection. "Guess we are ready for another day, so open up, Christy," Annabelle told the blonde without taking her eyes of Jenny.
Outfit
OOC: No reason why replies can't happen a little later in the day. This post can be just scene setting.  |
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Post by Markus Martins on Jun 3, 2010 1:24:08 GMT -5
Markus had heard word that things had changed at the Waterin' Hole, but he had trouble believing it... Till now. Markus walked into the bar and looked around wide eyed. This was not the bar he and his friends used to sneak into. Most definitely not. He had to take a double take as he looked around. This was... nice. Very nice, and very very mainstream. He looked about curiously as he slipped out of his coat. Yes, he most certainly had fond memories of this place. Of course, he and his friends could never get anything by Old man Sheridan back when he ran the bar, but he did let the kids come in and play pool with their sodas and milk-shakes. Blue eyes looked about the bar thoughtfully once more, looking for the pool table and dart board. He smiled and nodded once his eyes glided over several patrons at booths and tables, enjoying a drink and some talk. Some of them were probably discussing the local gossip of the month. He couldn't help but smile though when he saw the pool table wedged into a corner and the dart board not far from it. Well.. at least she hadn't given up that much of the bar. He turned to the bar and set his sweater over the back of one of the bar stools and then climbed up and sat down. He looked to the bar tender, giving her a little flirtateous smile. "Rum and coke, please and thank you." He said gently as he hunkered down, turning to look around the bar thoughtfully, thinking of old times. He would have to see if Miss Annabelle was going to let the kids in like her dad did. She didn't have to serve shakes like he did, but she could at least serve soda. She had to have soda pop for some of the drinks she served. There wasn't much to do around in these parts. There was Ezelle's and the diner and drive in, but that was about it. He turned back to the bar when he heard his drink being set down. He gave the bar-tender another flirtatious grin before she went to take care of another customer, leaving him to his drinks and thoughts. He didn't know much about Ms. Annabelle. He wasn't even born before she went off to collage in Denver, but he knew things from whenever Old Man Sheridan would talk about her. His dad had a story or two about her, considering how close in age they were, but still didn't give much Markus could go off of. |
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Post by anna on Jun 3, 2010 1:59:48 GMT -5
Returning from her walk with Jenny, Annabelle surveyed the room briefly, before she headed to her tiny office, to provide her dog with some water, food, and some cuddles.
After washing her hands and checking that her makeup still looked good she stepped into the bar again and gave the patrons a closer look, offering a smile or a nod to those who met her eyes, returned a greeting here and there, and discovered that almost all the faces she saw were familiar. That came as hardly a surprise, given how small Brooke Haven was.
But there was one unfamiliar face there, at the bar. A young man, but not young enough that she would have to ask him for some ID. Annabelle had no intention of getting into trouble with the law. Not in general, and especially not when it came to the Waterin' Hole. The place was, after all, supposed to have some style and that precluded rambunctious teenagers getting drunk on the premises.
As Christy was busy serving some drinks, Annabelle decided take the place behind the bar. Normally she left the day-to-day business to Christy and Karl, who would come in soon, to cover the late-night work, but she was a little curious about the stranger. New faces were a rarity in her bar.
"Good evening," Annabelle greeted him, the friendly smile plastered on her face that she had rehearsed at hundreds of parties and receptions over the last twenty years. Something about the man looked vaguely familiar, but she didn't think she had ever seen him before.
"I hope you have everything you need taken care of?"
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Post by Markus Martins on Jun 3, 2010 2:42:40 GMT -5
Markus looked about the bar thoughtfully, giving a light nod to someone when they gave a smile and gentle wave. Yes, many a good memories here. Even if they didn't involved getting wasted. Markus could pretty much do what he wanted these days, but if his dad had caught him drinking or doing anything illegal when he was still under 18 he would have killed Markus.
He turned back to his drink when he heard her voice. He gave a gentle smile as he studied the face he had seen in several year books. It had aged a little more, and not in an entirely awful or bad way either. "I am, thank you very much." He said gently as his blue pools studied her face. She was a very lovely woman. He could not deny that much. He smiled faintly, remembering the pictures of her he'd seen in his father's year books and even some of the parents of his childhood friends' yearbooks.
"You would be Miss Annabell." He said as he lifted the fizzy alcoholic beverage to his lips and sipped at it. "I'm Markus... Markus Martins." He said as he set the glass up looking to her. Most everyone knew everyone around here, and everyone knew who Jared Martins was in these parts. Mark remembered the uproar that his dad had caused when he made the announcement of Willow Brooke's construction. Loads of people had been afraid that such delinquents being brought to Brooke Haven would ruin the city. Everyone seemed to accept the inevitable though. It obviously hadn't been that awful though. People didn't seem to mind these days.
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Post by anna on Jun 3, 2010 3:02:40 GMT -5
"Miss Annabelle?" she echoed with an amused undertone. "I would prefer Miss Sheridan, but I suppose it will do." To her it sounded like a character from Gone With The Wind, or a saloon girl in some Hollywood western, but she had to compromise a little if she wanted this bar to work and make her customers happy.
"Pleasure to meet you Mister Martins." She nodded her head the fraction of an inch.
Busying herself with a few bottles and a glass for a moment to mix herself a Highball she let the name run around her head, thinking about where she might have heard it before. The young man obviously wasn't a stranger to Brooke Haven, or he would not have known her name. Chances were, his family was local, as not too many people moved in or out of the town.
Turning her full attention to Markus again something clicked when she looked into his eyes. "You are Jared Martins' son, aren't you?" His eyes weren't quite the same shade of blue as his father's, but they were similar enough.
She had heard about Willow Brooke, and she could remember Jared Martins, even if she had not seen him in decades. Every girl that was even close to his age had had a crush on him when she was at school. Annabelle couldn't recall much about him, but she still could recall his eyes very vividly. They had been a big part of what attracted so many girls to Markus's father in his teen years.
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Post by Markus Martins on Jun 3, 2010 3:31:28 GMT -5
He chuckled at her and his lips drew up into a big grin when she said she prefered Miss Sheridan instead. "Miss Sheridan it is then." He said gently as he tilted his head to the side a little. His face screwed up a little when she called him Mister Martins. No one ever called him Mister Martins. Not even his students. He took a swig of his drink and cleared his throat. "I would prefer it if you called me Mark. Mister Martins is my dad." He gave a light smile and chuckle as he set the drink down on the bar, shifting a little and watching her fix herself a drink.
He smiled and nodded his head gently. "What gave it away? My killer smile?" He asked teasingly as he lifted his drink to his lips. Markus was probably the only person who ever saw Jared smile these days. Ever since his Willow's death, Jared just wasn't quite the same man. He looked down right scarey sometimes. Especially when he was mad. He figured it was the eyes though. It was always the eyes with his dad, and with Mark most of the time to. He didn't mind though. Everything else was more so similar to Willow than Jared. Even Jared used to point out that Mark favored his mother more than Jared.
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Post by anna on Jun 3, 2010 4:14:17 GMT -5
One of Annabelle's eyebrows rose slightly and one corner of her mouth followed the move. Mark did have a nice smile. A bit on the cocky side right now, but it suited him, projected what Anna thought was an air of self-confidence. She knew better than most that appearances could be deceiving, how easy it was to act one way and feel another, but she had no reason to suspect that that was Markus's game.
"Perhaps that helped a little," she replied, a bit teasingly. After a sip from her own drink she leaned against the bar and tilted her head towards Markus.
"But you almost have your father's eyes, and the only other Martins family here I know of is Emma and Edward Martins. I don't think they ever had any children or other family in these parts."
Annabelle ran her eyes around the bar again when she was briefly distracted by the distinct twang of a dart hitting the dartboard. She could only hope that the two people playing there now were skilled enough - and sober enough - not to miss their mark too widely. She liked the condition the walls and floor were in right now just fine.
"I hope you won't consider me nosey if I ask if you work with your dad at Willow Brooke." Anna turned her full attention back to Mark. "I've only been back in town for a little while, and there are still a few things I have to catch up on," she explained her interest.
As far as she could gather, the horse farm - or correctional facility - was a pretty big place, and provided some business in town with a lot of their income. Whatever Jared had built there, it was certainly a major feature of the area, so learning something about it from someone who actually worked there would beat what the townsfolk had to tell about it.
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Post by Markus Martins on Jun 3, 2010 13:44:24 GMT -5
He smiled weakly and gave a light nod of his head. "They adopted a little girl from North Korea when I was about..." He had to take a minute to think. That had been back in his troubled years when he made all his trouble. "Thirteen or fourteen, and a little boy also from North Korea about a year later." He said gently as he studied her The only other Martins around. They were of no relation to Jared and Markus, but once again. It was small town, America. Everyone was, unfortunately, all up in everybody else's business plus their own. Markus didn't much like it, but he learned to deal with it.
He smiled faintly and shook his head gently when she commented about being nosey then asked if he worked with his dad. It wasn't really private information. Everyone around knew he worked there. He nodded his head gently. "Yeah, I'm a riding instructor at the school. And when I'm not giving my lessons I'm helping with sort of repair or another." He said conversationally as he sipped at his rum and coke. He taught about four lessons a day and then he was free to help with any repair works that might be needed on the grounds. After that, it was pretty much a free for all. Which was why he was here. After he took care of Ace and went for a short ride he decided he need a drink, so here he was.
"You're welcome to come up and have a look around." He said gently as he studied her curiously. "We offer riding lessons to the public on Saturdays." He said conversationally. As muched as he loved teaching folks how to ride, he would have liked to have Saturday off instead of just Sunday, but he only did two lessons on Saturday, so it wasn't so awful. And it actually turned out to be a nice way to earn a little extra income for himself and the camp. Mark hadn't thought so many people would register for the lessons considering who all the camp homed, but a nice bunch of students were registered and showed up for the lessons on a regular basis.
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Post by anna on Jun 3, 2010 14:24:00 GMT -5
Annabelle turned her head away from Mark for a moment as she contemplated what he had just told her. Adoption was about the only way left to her if she ever wanted to have a child she could call her own. A few times she had given being a mother a thought, but only when her hormones had really flared up. All in all she had never seriously wanted to be a mother, or at least never wanted the responsibilities that went along with it.
But when he spoke about riding lessons she tilted her head back towards him, her smile in place again. "I might take a look one day," she slowly replied.
"Also I must admit that I am not terribly much into riding. And even if I were..." she allowed her voice to trail off for a moment and took another sip of her Highball.
"Even if I were, I would - most likely - not have the time to get into it." Annabelle shook her head almost imperceptibly. "Running my own business is very much a full-time job, I am afraid, and when it comes to being outdoors I'd rather walk my dog than ride a horse."
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Post by Markus Martins on Jun 3, 2010 23:16:06 GMT -5
He thought he detected something negative in her movement at the mention of the Martins' adoption of their children. Some of the things he did know about Miss Sheridan however was that she had no children. People were really speculating about that around town. Markus usually tried not to get up in people's business though. He had never really been nosy by nature, which was part of why he hated gossip so much. If there were no such thing as gossip, then people wouldn't be so damn nosy.
He smiled and nodded gently. "We wouldn't take any offense if you didn't take the lessons. Some people are just not ment to be on top of a horse." He said as he sipped at his drink. It was true enough. He had a few students who just... didn't belong on a horse, and yet they kept trying. He had to give them credit for that much. It wasn't so much the skills, but the love of the horse that really mattered if you asked him.
He laughed and shook his head. "No, offense, Miss Sheridan, but this is Willow Brooke... surely you don't have that much work to do." He was more so teasing. He knew it was no easy feat running a buisness. Jared often came home tired and in a gruff mood after working a long day in his office, and Markus was really not looking all that forward to the day he would have to take over for his dad. He imagined this place would be pretty busy since it was the only bar in the area. Yeah, Ezelle's sold beer, but still, you wanted a drink other than sweet tea, soda, or beer you would have to come here.
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Post by anna on Jun 4, 2010 0:15:55 GMT -5
Annabelle was well aware that he was only teasing her, so her smile stayed firmly in place. Willow Brooke was a pretty big operation, and Mark's father ran the place. The young man had to be very aware that running every business involved a lot of work. She would have still smiled if she had taken his remark serious, but this way it was easier, cost her no effort at all beyond past practice.
"Oh, my life is terribly, terribly busy," she replied, matching his tone of semi-seriousness.
In a way it was true, but at least what kept her busy were things she could deal with. Bookkeeping, seeing to it that the bar was well-stocked at all times, and all the other things that happened mostly behind the scenes. Annabelle was more than happy to leave the front end of the bar to Christy and Karl, who both knew the job and were willing to earn a living from the more menial work involved in the business.
Annabelle had seen her parents work ungodly hours to keep the bar running, at some days hardly having time to grab a meal between preparing the place for business, serving customers all night, and then cleaning up in the middle of the night. It was true that Brooke Haven was a small town, but some of the work stayed the same, regardless of how many people walked in through the door on any given night. Leading that life wasn't high up on her list of priorities. Not when instead she could make some time to enjoy herself as much as this tiny community allowed.
Christy stepped behind the bar, to fix some customers a few more drinks, so Annabelle moved a little closer to Mark, to give the blonde room to do her job. She took another sip from her drink and placed her glass down on the counter, close to Mark's.
"What do you think, can I expect to see some of your students around here?" Annabelle was thinking of them more as juvenile delinquents than students from all she had heard, but as long as they behaved and brought in some business, she would be happy to have them as customers. She didn't need the income from the bar, but the less of her own money she had to spend on keeping the place running, the better.
"You do allow them to take trips into town from time to time, I assume?"
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Post by Markus Martins on Jun 4, 2010 1:24:47 GMT -5
He smiled and looked around the bar, watching people sit and enjoy their drink. There was a group of younger men enjoying themselves at the pool table by this point. He smiled and turned back to her. "You've most certainly spruced the place up. I wasn't sure I believed people when they told me how spiffed up this place was." He said conversationally. What he was sitting in now was most certainly a very far cry from the rinky-dink bar he was used to. It lacked a little personality if you asked him though. She needed to slap some old pictures of the Waterin' Hole on the walls and maybe some of the novelty items the Sheridans had on the wall, but it wasn't his bar, so he wasn't going to say anything. She would run it how she wanted to run it.
"Well," he said gently as he leaned over the bar a little closer to her, "that would depend on if you'll be serving those famous Sheridan Shakes your dad used to serve us." He said teasingly. He doubted she would, but he was sure she would get some students in here. If not trying to get an alcoholic beverage, then they would at least enjoy themselves a coke and a round of pool or darts. He looked around the bar thoughtfully before he turned back to her. He chuckled and nodded. "Of course. As long as they don't skip classes, take care of their assigned horse, and are back by cerfew, they're free to roam about town as much as they wish." He said as he sipped at his rum and coke. It was pretty much true. She would most definitely get some
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Post by anna on Jun 4, 2010 8:16:31 GMT -5
“I am afraid not,” Annabelle commented on the remark about milkshakes. “No one makes shakes even half as good as my dad used to, and certainly not me.” The thought brought back fond memories of her childhood, of growing up in this bar, this town. As long ago as it had been, she could still recall a lot of good things about her childhood and youth in Brooke Haven. While she had turned into quite a different person than the girl she had once been, Annabelle couldn’t deny that she had once been happy here, and her dad’s milkshakes had been a part of that.
“But,” Annabelle added, “I do make a good cappuccino, if I may say so myself.” She winked at Mark and looked around, trying to imagine the bar in the afternoon or early evening, filled with teenagers. If and when they came, they would find a few more non-alcoholic choices than just different sodas.
“We added a few choices of coffee and tea to the menu,” she explained and turned her complete attention back to Mark. “I hope you’ll give it a try, next time you are in town during an afternoon.”
Annabelle hoped the larger selection of hot drinks would help bring in some more customers during the afternoon hours, but how well that would work remained to be seen. But trying didn’t hurt, and she felt it complemented the new look of the Waterin’ Hole nicely.
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Post by Markus Martins on Jun 4, 2010 15:02:11 GMT -5
He chuckled and nodded his head. That was understandable. Old Man Sheridan had always been the one who could make the best shakes around town. Certainly gave Burger Heaven a run for their money. There was no doubt about that. He gave a light shrug at the mention of cappuccinos. He wasn't much for that sort of coffee. He just liked his cup of joe smothered in sugar and creamer. "I'm not much of a fancy coffee drinker, but some of the kids from the bigger cities might like to have a one of your cappuccinos every once in a while." He said gently as he sat back in his chair for a moment, stretching slightly before leaning on the bar once again.
He smiled at her and then looked around the bar again. "I remember the first time I ever tried to get myself a beer here. Your dad looked at me and my friend then our fake ID's. He gave use cokes instead and told us to go play pool and don't ever try to trick him like that again." He said thougtfully as he imagined himself and his gang of friends he hung out with at that time all goofin' off around the pool table. Brooke Haven was small, yes, but that didn't mean it was such an awful place to live. It couldn't have been that bad considering how well Markus grew up. Even after spending a few years in Willow Brooke as a student. He was not proud of that fact, but it was fact none the less. Everybody in town pretty much knew he'd been a trouble maker after his mother's death. He imagined most folks were pretty surprised with how he turned out in the long run.
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Post by anna on Jun 5, 2010 2:55:51 GMT -5
"If that doesn't strike your fancy, that's fine by me," Annabelle replied and looked from Markus's glass to the bottles resting close to her. Whatever he was drinking, it obviously involved coke, and the bottles standing close to each other made her guess he had some rum in the mix. Not a bad choice, as far as Annabelle was concerned.
All in all, she liked Mark. He wasn't someone she would push off her bed, but that was a thought she did not intend to pursue. If she made a pass at him - and actually scored - word would get out sooner or later, and probably rather soon. A reputation as someone who slept around was something Annabelle didn't need.
"If you know about fake IDs, perhaps I should try to hire you as a bouncer," she said, his comment about her dad mostly ignored. She had seen her father perhaps ten times in twenty years, maybe less, and while what Mark said fitted her memories of her old man, the memories were mostly those of a girl even younger than Mark was, clouded by time and sentiment, turning the memory of her father - and mother - into something that appeared not quite real, the hazy dreams of a teenage girl long left behind. "Plus you probably know all the teenagers who might try to pull a fast one on me."
Annabelle's smile turned into a smirk and she winked at Mark, before she tilted her glass to point in the direction of his own. He had only been sipping his drinks, but sips added up.
"Would you like a refill?"
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