Alice (Work in progress) #

The car door closes with a reassuring thump as Max turns away from his parked car. A sunny late afternoon in the South Side of Los Santos brings a mid-summer breeze that dances through the trees and along the sidewalk as he walks, stirring his hair.

Salieri’s Bar looms ahead, people coming and going from the bustling restaurant. The faint smell of fresh pizza and Italian spices waft through the air, carried by the breeze.

Sal’s as he likes to call it, was a pretty typical Spanish colonial style two-story building in with white stucco. Wide stairs led up to the entrance, the door held open with the music of Frank Sinatra emanating from within.

Just as Mike tops the stairs, he sees his reflection in the open door, smiles slightly and pulls a comb from his shirt pocket. He gives his hair a quick pass to tamp down the stray hairs he saw and strolls inside.

As his eyes adjust to the low light, he pockets his comb and looks around. A few patrons sat at booths along the large windows, chatting away. At the bar near the back of the room, the owner of Sal’s, Tommy Falcone, stands behind the bar absentmindedly sifting through papers. Two other staff stand behind the bar chatting and joking.

Mike slides into a bar stool across from Tommy and takes off his sunglasses. Tommy looks up at the motion.

“Oh, hey there Sparks” He greets, in his pronounced Sicilian accent. “How’s it goin’?”

Mike nods, smiling. “I’m good Tommy”.

Mike looks around the room. “Busy one today, hey?” He asks.

“Not really.” Tommy replies with a shrug, “I’m training some new staff”. He gestures to the two others behind the bar. “Not sure, though. They seem kinda strange.”, he adds with a smirk.

The woman turns to Tommy, “What the hell, Tommy!” she exclaims in mock offence, “I’ll have you know me and my brother are perfectly normal!”.

“Yeah.” Her brother quips, “Even if she has man hands”

“Fuck you, nick” She retorts, glaring at her brother.

Mike laughs and shakes his head. “What’s good today?”

“Same stuff as always, Sparks” Tommy says, sliding over a menu “I don’t know why you ask. You always get the same thing.”

Mike glances at the menu. “I do not”. He replies. After a second, he adds “Give me a lasagna”.

It turns out, that Mike has gotten the lasagna six times in the last six visits. Tommy sighs. “Right… okay.”

As Mike finishes ordering, two people come out of the kitchen door at the end of the bar. Newgate Grotto the restaurant’s chef and a woman Mike has never seen before.

A stunning woman with dark brown voluminous hair and light, but slightly tanned skin. Wearing a deep V-neck cropped top in a cheetah print that exposed her very toned stomach and her voluptuous soft breasts. She wore a short skirt that accentuated her feminine figure and reached barely halfway down her toned athletic thighs, and she wore high heels that boosted her shapely figure and made her seem taller

Her natural pink lips framed a bright smile on her soft, tender face with piercing green eyes that shone with energy and confidence. Her rose cheeks and little button of a nose made for a combination that Mike couldn’t take his eyes off of.

“Heyyyy Tommy!” She exclaimed loudly as she moved behind the bar, “How are you?” She asked still smiling.

“Hi Alice” He responded with a slight eye roll, “I’m great. Why are you not in a uniform?”

Newgate laughed, “I said it was fine”. Newgate looks over and sees Mike sitting at the bar, “Oh, Hey Mike” he offers in greeting.

“Well,” Tommy started, ignoring the answer, “I need a lasagna for Sparks”.

“I’ll grab it” Newgate said before disappearing back into the kitchen.

Tommy turns back to Mike, “Oh, by the way, This is Alice. Newgate’s sister”, to Alice, “This is Sparks, he owns Hayes”

“Nice to meet you” Mike says with a welcoming smile, still staring at her, slightly in shock by her beauty.

“Hey Sparks” She responds sweetly with a slight musical tone in her voice.

“I’m the manager here!” she jokes with a huge grin exposing her perfect teeth. “Brand new!”

“No, You’re not,” Tommy says exasperated.

“I mean, she sure looks like a manager” Mike quips with a playful flirting tone.

“See!” she responds, “I told you!”