by Alison Mello
“It’s clear.” Slade sticks his head out the door.
“Of course, it is. The place has been locked up since last night.” I know I’m being a bitch, but it’s frustrating.
Slade is obviously trying to fight his smile, but he’s failing miserably. “Do you want to tell your father that we didn’t follow orders?”
“Hell no, he’s a beast right now,” I say with a grin.
“Exactly. Your father scares the shit out of me.” He pretends to shiver in fear.
I shake my head, laughing as we all walk into the club. I take a seat at the bar while Shane gets busy setting stuff up.
Stone’s phone rings. “Hey, babe, you here?” He listens for a second and says, “Be right there.” He jogs off toward the back door to let Miranda in. She’s hanging here tonight as are Sadie and Sky. He and Miranda come walking in hand in hand. As they approach me, he kisses her and says, “See you a bit later.”
“You will, and my overnight bag is in my car.” Kissing her one more time, he walks away and she takes the seat next to me. Shane says hi to her and hands us each a beer.
“What’s up? Your two security guards look like they’re about to shit themselves.”
“Apparently, they fear my father, so they’re trying to learn this club inside and out so they can keep me safe tonight. I’m sure my father also told them to check everything out for Kara’s party.”
“Speaking of which, I responded to the e-vite. You know I’ll be there.”
“Sweet, she’s going to be so excited when I tell her the plans tomorrow night.”
“You haven’t told her yet?”
“Nah, I’ve been really busy planning everything and making sure that not only will she and Logan be happy, but my father too.” I shake my head. “It’s been quite difficult.”
“I’m sure it has.”
“My father wants to run background checks on all the people that will be involved, which means he needs a solid list soon.”
“Why? He knows who it is that’s threatening the family. It’s not like he has to figure it out,” she says.
“Yeah, well, it doesn’t mean that the guy’s not related to someone working in the club that night,” Shane adds as he wipes down the bar.
“I never thought of that,” Miranda says to him with a shrug.
“You wouldn’t. You’re in marketing, not security.” Shane laughs.
“Hey, ladies!” Sky and Sadie shout as they strut into the club. God, they look awesome for two women who just had babies. I hope to God I look that good after I have a kid. That’s when I realize Shane and I have never really discussed having kids. What if he doesn’t want any?
“Stop stressing, baby. You’ll be fine. Go have some fun with your friends,” Shane says, obviously misunderstanding the source of my concern. I give him a small smile. He makes the girls a couple of drinks, and we take them to our VIP section. The club will be opening pretty soon, and we want to be situated when it does.
When we take our seats, I spot Stone standing near our section, and my two security guys are in our VIP section with us, but instead of sitting with us, they’re scanning the room waiting for the club to fill up. “I thought you guys were supposed to try to fit in. You look like security, not like two guys out to have a good time.”
They both look over their shoulders at me. “We’re doing both: being security and fitting in,” Cole says.
“We’re going to look like two very jealous boyfriends who are keeping an eye on their girlfriends while they dance. See how that works,” Slade says.
We all crack up laughing. He shakes his head and starts to scan the crowd as patrons file into the club.
“Do you ladies need anything before I start greeting my other sections?” Shawna asks. We all shake our heads, telling her we’re good for now. The music is playing, and the club is quickly filling up. The more people who walk in, the more on edge Cole and Slade become.
“Logan tells me you have some fun things planned for the club?” Skyler says.
“I do, and I’m hoping you’ll come to the party.” I smile, excited to be talking about something other than this asshole.
“Of course, we’re coming. I think the idea is brilliant,” Skyler says.
“Great! I’m pretty excited for it. I’m hoping once the first party is held here and word gets out, all the snobby little twenty-one-year-olds will be begging Daddy to have their twenty-first birthday at Club Thrive.”
Skyler starts laughing. “I hope so. Logan and I have been working on the pricing. We’ve had to think about food, the cost to open the club, the DJ, and so on.”
“It’s a lot to think about, but it would be good for Logan to have something printed up. A brochure that has a price that includes the DJ and a section with add-ons like food, open bar rates depending on the number of people, etc.”
“Hey, are you two going to talk about work all night or are you here to dance?” Sadie says.
We both respond at the same time, “Dance.”
“Good, let’s get out there then.”
“Here, here!” Miranda adds, but as we’re going to leave, Shawna comes in with another round of drinks. We all thank her and take a quick sip before we head off. I can feel eyes on me as we exit our VIP booth, and I’m praying it’s my security. I’m trying not to be nervous or uptight, but it’s harder than I thought. Skyler takes my hand, and we start our own little circle near Stone.
Miranda yells in my ear, “Watch this.” She starts shaking her ass in Stone’s direction.
I laugh and smack her arm playfully, “Stop. The guys are under enough pressure.” She turns and winks at him and continues dancing with us. I look over to find Slade’s arms folded across his muscular chest as he scans the floor around us. His look is intense.
“Ignore them and have some fun. You’ve been dealing with this all week,” Miranda says in my ear. I give her a smile and continue dancing to the awesome music. We’re dancing to song after song, having a great time. The club is packed, and there are people of all ages dancing around us. Though no one will admit it or discuss it, I can tell the girls are scanning the room periodically. I’m not sure how they know what to look for when I don’t even know.
“I’ve had enough. I need a drink,” I shout to the girls. They nod their agreement, and we go back to finish the drinks Shawna had delivered earlier. Unfortunately, my beer is warm and the girls’ drinks are watered down. We take a few sips while we wait for Shawna to stop back in. When she does, we order another round and she takes off with a promise to be right back. Then Slade presses his earwig to say something, but I can’t hear what. He turns to us and faces back out onto the floor as he responds again. I’m thinking Shane saw me leave the dance floor and is confirming we’re back in the VIP booth.
As we take our seats, Sadie says, “Hey, so the gallery is planning another showing for my art. Are you two in?” she asks, but before I can answer, Shawna approaches.
“Here you go, ladies,” Shawna says, placing our drinks down. “Oh, and a guy at the bar asked me to give you this note, says he knows you.” She hands me the piece of paper.
I open it and gasp. “He’s fucking here,” I shout.
Hello, Princess,
I’m glad to see I’m not stopping you from having a good time. You look absolutely delicious tonight. My cock is hard watching you and your friends shake your pretty asses all over that dance floor. It’s too bad your little sister isn’t with you because it would be the perfect opportunity for me to make my move. No worries, though. I’m a patient man and can bide my time, but know I will have you soon. I can’t wait to taste you.
Xoxo
Trenton
P.S. No point in keeping my identity a secret. Your daddy knows who I am.
Slade is on the earwig, and Cole is by my side. I’m frozen in my seat, shaking. “Fuck, I can’t even come out for a fun night without this fucker messing with me.”
Shane comes running into our section with St
one following. “Come on, I’m taking you ladies to the back office until we close the club.” Stone and Shane escort us to the back office while Slade and Cole try to figure out who handed Shawna the note.
When we all get to the back office, I start pacing. I can’t sit still. I’m pissed off that this guy is screwing with me when I had nothing to do with putting him in jail. I’ve had enough.
“Katie, will you please calm down?” Shane asks, taking the seat behind his desk to scroll through the cameras.
My brows shoot up. “Calm down? I went from not believing this situation to be more than some misinformation, to fearing for my life because this bastard pretty much wants to rape me, to angry. I’m downright pissed. I’m trying to live my life, and because some lowlife scumbag managed to get his ass out of jail on a minor technicality, I have to watch my ass every second of the day. I’m not the one who put him in jail.” I’m panting from my wild rant.
Everyone is looking at me in total shock and I don’t care. This guy is driving me crazy and now, because of this, my father’s going to want to lock me up and throw away the key. I finally take a seat, feeling defeated. I used all that energy and it got me nowhere. I place my elbows on my knees and rest my face in my hands as I try to calm down.
“I can tell you from experience I understand how you’re feeling and I’m sorry you’re going through this, but you have to give them a chance to catch this guy,” Sky rubs my back.
I sigh. “I know. I just hope they do it before the party. Then we can really celebrate.”
Miranda sits on my other side. “I can’t say I understand how you feel because I’ve never been through this, but as your friends, we’ll help you get through it together.”
“Yeah, even if it means we throw dance parties at your house,” Sadie adds.
I start to laugh. “Thanks, ladies. You’re all awesome, and I don’t know what I would do without you.”
“Probably go crazier than you already are.” Miranda makes a silly face. We burst out in another round of laughter.
That is until my father walks through the door and says, “This is not funny.”
“No, it’s not, Daddy, but my friends are trying to cheer me up.”
He hugs me and adds, “I’m sorry, baby girl.”
“Is he still here?”
“No, we’ve scanned the entire club and we can’t find him.”
“I put extra bouncers at the door to scan the crowd as they leave.”
“Thanks, Shane, but he probably snuck out the second that letter was handed off.”
“I can tell you it was definitely him. I have him on camera sitting at the bar.” Shane brings up the pictures and everyone hovers over him. “This is him here, sitting right next to where Shawna goes to collect her drinks. He somehow knew where to go.”
“He could have just been hiding out watching for a bit. He saw her going back and forth and figured out who he needed to approach.”
I’m watching the camera when he turns in his seat, giving the camera a perfect view of his face. The guy is bald with beady eyes and a nasty grin. He’s got at least a week’s worth of scruff on his grimy face. He makes me sick, but I commit this image to memory. There’s no way in hell I’m letting him anywhere near me.
“All of my staff have this picture and are watching for him.”
Logan comes through the door next. “Christ, there’s a party going on in here.” He looks at Sky. “Are you okay?”
She smiles. “I’m fine.”
“Logan, meet my dad, Detective Mark Cooper.” I point to my father.
“Nice to meet you, Logan.” He shakes Logan’s hand. “Can you fill me in on what’s going on?” he asks.
He goes into the details of what happened with Shawna. “We only showed the guy’s picture to the bouncers, trying to keep everything hush hush,” Logan informs him. He sighs. “We need to keep this quiet because we’re just starting to get our good name back from Skyler’s stalker and the fire he set in the club,” Logan adds.
“I heard about that. I’m friends with John. I’m sorry to hear you guys had to deal with all of that.” My dad knows everyone in emergency services.
“Thanks,” Logan says.
“I can promise you, we want this as quiet as possible and we’re doing everything we can to catch this guy. I want him put away for good, and this note is just one more piece of evidence to help me.”
“Good. We really thought there was no way he would get past the bouncers, and I’m sorry he did. If there’s anything we can do to help, you let us know,” Logan offers.
Shane adds, “I’ve now sent the picture from the camera to everyone in the club and it’s now empty, so we can head back out front.”
As soon as I’m back out on the floor, Shawna comes running up to me, “Oh my God, Katie, I’m so sorry. I had no idea that guy was a creeper. I thought he was someone you knew.”
“I know you didn’t. Don’t worry about it.”
“Shawna, if you ever see him again, you need to get security,” Logan says, “Act like you have no idea who he is, but keep your eye on him as you walk away and then call someone through your earwig.”
Logan raises his voice. “That goes for everyone on staff. You all have this guy’s picture now. It was distributed to the bouncers before we opened. I want to know how this guy got into my fucking club.” Logan is pissed.
“I’m sorry, Logan. I have no idea how he slipped by my team. It was slammed in here tonight, but that’s no excuse. I’ll be meeting with them to discuss this,” Jonah adds, looking at his team in disappointment.
“I may not have given you the details as to why he wasn’t allowed in, but that shouldn’t have mattered,” Logan shouts and looks to my father.
“If you spot him, call nine-one-one and tell them what is going on and that this is the guy Detective Cooper has been looking for. His name is Trenton, but he goes by Blade. He was convicted and put away on multiple counts of rape. Unfortunately, he was put away at a time when technology wasn’t what it is now, and he was released.” My father looks down, obviously pained. “Now he wants revenge,” he says in a much lower tone.
“Sir, we found this in the men’s room,” one of the bouncers says, holding up a man’s long-haired wig and a pair of glasses.
“Are you fucking kidding me? The guy got in with a wig and some glasses.” I’ve never seen Logan so mad.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this is his way of being cocky. The image Shane sent you is from him sitting at the bar. He probably ditched this as soon as he got through the door. He wanted us to know he was here and that he was able to get close,” Mark adds.
“Bouncers, you have to pay more attention to faces, and going forward, you are to make sure everyone from my staff gets to their cars safely. I don’t want any female walking out of this club without a bouncer by her side. Am I clear?”
Everyone mumbles a yes. “Good, now get out of here so we can all go home.” The bouncers start walking the remainder of the staff out of the club, and once it’s empty, the rest of us lock up. My father walks Shane and I to the car while Cole and Slade ensure that Sky and Logan get to their car safely.
“Take care of my girl,” my father says, shaking Shane’s hand.
“Yes, sir, we’ll see you tomorrow night for dinner.” I hug my dad good-bye before climbing into the truck. I can see him from the rearview mirror, watching us drive away. That’s when I see the fear in his eyes.
Chapter 17
Shane
We are both exhausted after what happened at the club last night. Neither of us slept well, and now we’re getting ready to go to Katie’s parents’ house for dinner. She’s spent the entire afternoon preparing her plans for the party at the club so she can present them to both her father and Logan.
“Shane, I need you to take me to the office on Monday for a quick meeting with my boss,” she tells me as she blow-dries her hair.
“Okay, what made you think of that?”
�
�I don’t know. It just dawned on me that I got an email from her earlier and forgot to tell you. Will that be a problem?”
“No, but we need to let the security team know so they can follow us there and back. Do you know how long you’ll be there?”
“Probably about an hour?” she says, plugging in her flatiron.
I grin, leaning against the door watching her put on her makeup.
“You look nervous. Are you?”
“I am,” she says, making eye contact with me in the mirror. “You don’t understand. My entire marketing plan for Logan’s club is riding on this party. If my father says the party is a no go, my plan goes up in smoke and I have to figure out a new way to promote the club being available for parties. That will be much harder if there isn’t a party already happening.”
“Do you really think your father will say no?”
“I hope not. I don’t want to have to start over or explain to my boss how I spent all this time working on this plan for it to flop.” She has a total look of panic on her face.
“I think your father knows that this is more than a party for your sister. You’ve covered a lot of bases. Pretend your father is a client and sell it.” I shrug. “It’s what you do.”
She takes a deep breath. “I guess you’re right,” she says, running her flatiron through her hair. I can tell she’s still thinking about it, but I don’t want to push her.
I kiss the side of her head. “I’ll be out in the living room waiting for you.” I don’t even wait for a response. I walk out of the room, in search of my phone. I’m contemplating texting her father, but I don’t want her to get mad that I interfered and didn’t let her deal with this on her own, but this affects the club, and I manage said club. I jump when my phone buzzes in my hand. I look down to see a text from Logan.
Logan: How’s Katie?
Shane: She’s tired and nervous that her father is going to shoot down her idea.
