“Any word from the agent?” she asked.
I let out a pathetic groan. I finally finished the book I’d been threatening to write and sent it off to a couple of agents. One had requested the entire manuscript, but that had been six weeks ago and still no word. I was pretty much resigned to the fact it was obviously total crap and I’d never hear from her again.
“Uh-oh, that doesn’t sound good. You probably should have let me read it before you sent it off.”
I shook my head vigorously. “And have you tease me mercilessly? No way!”
The truth was, no one but Millie had read any of it and I had sworn her to secrecy.
Pauley chuckled. “Have you yelled at Barney yet?”
I frowned. “I don’t yell.”
“Okay... have you snapped at Barney yet?”
I wrinkled my nose. “I apologized.”
Pauley giggled. “You know it’s weird that you talk to your dog like he’s a human, right?”
“You know it’s weird you think it’s weird that I talk to my human companion, right?” I poured water into my glass and smiled. “How much did you make in tips tonight?”
“Almost four-hundred.”
“Dollars?” I squeaked.
Pauley laughed. “No, pesos.”
“Ohmigod, sissy. I think I need to change careers.”
“You’re too sweet for this job, honey.”
“Suck it, Pauley,” I snapped. We’d had this conversation a hundred times over. My sister was five years older than me and took her “maturity” seriously. But I was twenty-two and paying half the rent and utilities, so I was getting a little sick of her seeing me as just her innocent baby sister.
“You know, you could always self-publish,” Pauley said. “Lots of people are doing it and if you find someone who can do a cover for you or whatever, it’d be a good way to find out what the masses think.”
“You might be onto something,” I said. I’d actually thought about self-publishing before, but I’d always wanted to do it right and that meant finding an editor. Easier said than done.
“Tell you what. If you want to do research and find out the costs to publish, I’ll put money in. Consider it an investment. You can pay me back when you make a profit.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah, why not?”
I hugged her. “You are my absolute favorite sister.”
“I know that already.” She giggled. “Anyway, subject change. You said you and Millie got turned away from Blush a few weeks ago, so I wanted to know if you want to go with me and Kim tomorrow night?”
“We didn’t just get turned away, sissy. We were humiliated.”
More accurately, I was humiliated. The bouncer had looked me up and down and laughed before shooing me away like I was a stray cat begging for scraps. My best friend, Millie, on the other hand, was told she could enter; however, she showed solidarity and left with me.
“Honey, you’re a grown-ass woman, you’re not really still mad about that, are you?”
“Oh, now you acknowledge I’m a grown-ass woman when you just told me I’m too innocent to work as a bartender?”
“They aren’t mutually exclusive.” Pauley tipped her beer toward me. “But I’m a little surprised you’re still mad.”
I sighed. “I’m not mad, just a little irked.”
“Well, get over it and come out with us tomorrow.”
“And have them kick me out again? No thank you.”
“Kim knows one of the guys who runs it. She promises you’ll get in. Call Mill and see if she wants to come too.”
My curiosity beckoned. I’d always been the girl who wanted what was forbidden, but my need for self-preservation generally warred with that curiosity and I typically did the safe thing. Truth be told, I was the biggest chicken on the planet, but I wanted to know why this club was so exclusive and why it was so hard to get into... and more importantly, why I wasn’t good enough to be admitted.
“Okay, fine,” I said.
“Awesome. Kim said she’d come over around eight-thirty or so and help you... I mean, us, get ready.”
I let out a frustrated groan. “I can dress myself, sissy.”
Pauley didn’t respond.
“Suck it, Pauley.”
She giggled again. “Eight. Be showered and ready to be pampered.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“I’m on the early shift, so I’ll be here around eight-fifteen to supervise.”
“You’re going to work for all day and then still be ready to go out?”
Pauley snorted. “Who are you talking to?”
“Right.” I smiled. “Forgive me, oh royal big sister.”
“Better.” She sipped her beer again. “Did you eat?”
“Hmm-mm,” I mumbled.
“Cheetos?”
“Don’t talk to me like you know me,” I responded.
“I brought home your favorite.” She glanced at the counter. “Shit. Left it in the car. I’ll get it.”
“I love you!” I called, as she grabbed her keys and headed out of the apartment.
* * *
Friday evening, I arrived home and fell onto the sofa. Barney gave an excited bark and jumped onto my back, leaning down to sniff my face. I was tired and when I say tired, I mean close to death. My phone buzzed in my purse and I answered it with a muffled, “Hello.”
“You don’t sound good,” Millie said.
Millicent Magrew had been my best friend since our senior year of high school. I think we would have been friends before that, but she transferred schools one week into the year, and had attached herself to me. I adored her.
I groaned, still unmoving. “I don’t think there’s a part of my body that doesn’t hurt.”
“Bad day?”
“No, not bad, per se. One of my ladies tried to get out of bed on her own and fell. I had to help her up and wacked my leg against a nightstand.”
“Where the hell were the orderlies?”
“They were busy.”
“Translation, Darien tried not to be a bother and overdid it.”
I sighed. “Probably. I have to say, despite the fact she’s almost ninety and her mind doesn’t work very well, she’s frickin’ strong and fought me until she remembered who I was. Now I just want to lie here and die.”
“So, no Blush?”
“Oh, right. I forgot,” I admitted. I pushed myself up to a halfway seated position, pulling Barney onto my lap and giving him a gentle squeeze. “I think if I can catch a quick nap, I can rally.”
“You’re going to nap at six o’clock at night?”
“I’m going to try and nap at six o’clock at night.”
Millie giggled. “Okay. Well, I’ll be at your place at seven-thirty.”
“Sounds good.”
“See you then.”
“’Bye.” I dropped my phone in my purse and smiled down at Barney. “Potty time for you, little beast, and then sleep.”
I took Barney out and then he curled up beside me on my bed and we napped until Millie’s banging on the apartment door (and Barney’s subsequent barking) woke me.
I pulled open the door to my best friend, the incomparably gorgeous Millicent Alissa Magrew. It really wasn’t fair that I was surrounded by women who should be on some form of a catwalk, not working day jobs and slinging drinks to dirty old men. Millie also worked off and on bartending, although, she was an accountant by day and only took bartending jobs if she wanted to save for something specific.
Millie was almost six-feet tall without heels and when she walked into a room, all eyes were on her. Her father was white, her mother was black, and she had this dark mocha skin that made every woman hate her and every man want her. She’d been named after her great-grandmother and I used to joke that her parents had to give her such a weird name; otherwise the rest of us peasants couldn’t exist with such perfection in our world. We would all combust.
“You look gorgeous,” Millie quipped as she gave
me a quick hug and pushed into the apartment.
“Bite me,” I said, smiling as I locked the door.
Millie slipped off her flip-flops, and dropped her bags on the floor. “Shower.”
“No, hi, how are you? How was your nap?” I asked.
“Hi, how are you? How was your nap? Shower.”
I giggled and grabbed an apple from the bowl on the table, before heading to the bathroom.
“Don’t wash your hair,” Millie called as I closed the door.
“Gross, but okay,” I called back.
I took extra time to shave my legs and exfoliate my skin, so by the time I slid a robe on and made my way into the living room, Pauley was home and Kim wasn’t far behind.
“I’m going to do your makeup and Millie’s on hair duty,” Pauley said. “But right now, you need to choose which dress you’re going to wear.”
“I was going to wear—”
“Nope,” Pauley said, cutting me off.
“You don’t even know what I was going to say.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Millie said. “We’ve got two choices for you.”
She lifted a deep blue, one shoulder, cocktail dress that would barely cover my butt and another one shoulder, black dress with a skirt that flared slightly at the hem. I chose the black since it stopped just above the knee and would look great with my cherry red, strappy four-inch heels. Plus, it covered my ample rear-end and somewhat minimized it. Now, my boobs on the other hand were going to be a problem. “What am I supposed to wear for support?”
“This,” Pauley said, and held out a weird plasticky looking bra thing.
“Um... ”
Millie giggled. “It’s self-adhesive, hon. The directions are in the box.” Which she handed to me and I took a minute to look it over.
“Make-up, then dress, then hair,” Pauley said, and the make-Darien-hot-plot was on.
Kim arrived ten minutes into my makeover and I glanced at the three women helping me get ready and wondered why they bothered. With them with me, I wouldn’t be seen anyway. Kim was tall, almost five-foot-ten, with legs that I’d kill for... or, at the very least, maim for. She had long dark hair and big brown eyes, and tonight she wore dark red lipstick that drew focus to her full lips, especially since the rest of her makeup was minimal.
“I change my mind,” I grumbled. “I’m not going out with you three.”
“What? Why?” Kim asked.
“I think it’s pretty obvious,” I ground out.
“You’re an idiot,” Millie said.
“No, I’m not! I’m right.”
“What am I missing?” Kim asked.
“She’s feeling self-conscious because she thinks she’s ugly,” Pauley provided.
“You’re a fucking nut,” Kim said.
“I don’t think I’m ugly,” I corrected. “I’m just kind of plain looking compared to you.”
They looked at each other and then laughed.
“What?”
“It’s a good thing we made you our project tonight then, ugly duckling.” Pauley grabbed my hand and pulled me to my feet, turning me to face the full-length mirror.
“Holy crap.” I gasped. “What did you do to me?” I leaned forward. “I look hot!”
Pauley giggled. “Yeah you do.”
My dark red curls fell in soft waves around my shoulders, teased away from my face and made a little bigger... okay, a lot bigger... than I had ever worn it, but it gave me a sexy look that I was really digging. I had smoky eyes and a light lip, which drew focus to my eyes. Even though the silicone bra felt weird, it did what it was supposed to do (kind of) and the dress hugged every curve. Pauley loaned me the red clutch that matched my shoes and Kim had painted my nails the same color. To say I felt a bit like slutty Cinderella was an understatement, and I loved it.
“Feel better?” Pauley asked.
“Hells yes. I feel great.”
“Let’s go before she changes her mind,” Millie demanded, and we made sure Barney was locked in my room, and headed out.
Mack
“MACK, WE GOT a problem,” Train said over the walkie.
I frowned and replied, “Can you handle it?”
“I can if you don’t care about breakin’ the rule.”
“No fuckin’ breakin’ the rule, Train.”
“Even if it’s a friend of Kim’s?”
“Shit.” I dragged a hand through my hair. I knew it wasn’t a good idea to let Kim bring unknowns with her. “Let ’em in, after you get scans. Put ’em upstairs and I’ll deal with it.”
“You got it.”
Half an hour later, Booker pushed into my office.
“What the hell are you doin’ here?” I asked. “It’s your night off.”
Booker chuckled. “Dani got wind that Kim was comin’.”
“‘Got wind’ my ass,” I countered. “I have a feelin’ you and I have been played.”
“I don’t doubt it.” He walked to the window overlooking the dance floor. “I take it the rule breakin’ is due to Kimmie?”
“Yeah, I’m headin’ up there to deal with it.”
Booker glanced at me over his shoulder. “Good luck with that.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “Nothin’. Since my wife wants some girl time, I’m gonna catch up on a few things. Call me if you need me.”
With a chin lift, I left my office and headed to the VIP section.
* * *
Darien
Kim’s best friend, Danielle, rushed into the VIP section with a squeak, hugging Kim and then each of us, even though she’d only met Pauley. “I can’t believe you got Darien past security,” she said.
“Me?” I asked. “What did I do?”
Dani grinned. “There’s one rule here at Blush and that’s that no one “innocent” is allowed in.”
“I’m not innocent!”
Pauley let out a rather rude snort.
“I’m not,” I continued. “Plus, how would they know who’s innocent and who isn’t? That’s the lamest thing I’ve ever heard.”
“It’s an argument I’ve had with Mack more times than you can count,” Kim said.
“Austin says they just know,” Dani provided.
“Oh, so they’re all psychics,” I said. “What a load of crap.”
“Don’t feel bad,” Kim said. “Dani got rejected as well. Well, until she married Booker. Now she’s allowed in, but only when he’s here.”
Dani squeezed my hand. “You’ll meet Austin at some point tonight, but don’t let the suit fool you; he rides a Harley and thinks because he’s an officer in a motorcycle club he can boss me around. It’s kind of cute, really.”
“Is he going to kick me out?”
“No way, but we’re probably being watched.” Dani nodded to a couple of discreet cameras. “Don’t worry, Kimmie and I’ll deal with Mack.”
“Who’s Mack?”
“I’m Mack.”
My eyes flew to the man walking towards us, and I’m pretty sure my heart stopped in my chest. Literally stopped. Ohmigod, he was gorgeous. Tall with dark blond hair, he was clean shaven with a hint of stubble beginning to form, and deep-blue eyes that studied me with an odd expression. And he was built. And I mean built. Channing Tatum built, but wearing a dark gray suit that looked like it had been made for him. Like he stood in front of a three-way mirror while a tailor measured his inseam kind of made.
I stared at his full lips and couldn’t stop myself from licking mine. God, he was delicious.
“Hey, honey.” Kim distracted him by wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him in for a sensual hug. Mack lifted her off her feet a little, and I found myself suddenly pissed at the gorgeous brunette. So pissed, I wanted to scratch her eyes out.
I took a deep breath and glanced at Millie who regarded me with an annoyingly knowing grin. “Bite me,” I mouthed, and tried to find something to do with my hands.
Mack lowered Kim to the floor, but kept an arm around
her. “Introduce me to your friends, Kimmie, and then you and I need to have a little chat.”
Kim rolled her eyes and went through the introductions, ending with me. “And this is Darien.”
I reached my hand out and Mack took it, lifting it to his lips. “Nice to meet you, Darien.”
“Nice to meet you too,” I breathed out, then groaned internally. Good God, the man was sexy and he smelled incredible, but that meant Dork Darien wouldn’t be able to function.
He kept hold of my hand as he studied me again and then, without a word, gave it a gentle squeeze and released me, turning to pull Kim aside.
“What the hell was that?” Pauley asked, as she, Millie, and Dani moved closer to me.
“Ohmigod, I’m so lame,” I complained.
“Not you, doofus,” she said.
Dani giggled. “You, my dear, appear to be the first person to put Mack on edge.”
“I’m sorry?”
“That’s the least he’s ever said,” Pauley admitted. “Granted, I’ve only talked to him a few times, but he’s never acted like that before.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked, and peeked around Pauley to find him. “He seemed perfectly at ease.”
“Well, he looks pissed now,” Dani said.
“How do you know he’s mad?” I asked.
“I just do.” Dani smiled. “But don’t worry about it. He and Kim have a weird brother-sister thing goin’ on, and they fight like that weekly. Nothin’ to worry about.”
I frowned as I watched Mack and Kim as they spoke in the corner. How Dani could possibly know he was angry was a mystery to me. His back was to us, his jacket stretched across his wide back as he crossed his arms. Kim waved her hands in animation while scowling and shaking her head, but he didn’t move a muscle. Just stood there, his arms crossed, saying nothing that I could make out. She was animated, though, so I figured she didn’t really like what he was saying.
“Is she in trouble because she brought me?”
Dani shook her head. “No, pretty sure that’s not why she’s in trouble.”
Ropes Page 21
