by Ava Walsh
THE END
Bonus Book 28: The Shifting Billionaire's Mate
By: Eliza Moon
Description
A curvy bartender at a strip club PLUS a smoking hot billionaire PLUS a secret that reveals itself during the full moon!
Twenty-two-year-old Lucia James works at a strip club. She is a curvy girl who tries to do the right thing for her little sister Daisy. After their mother died, the little girl had no one else, and the job helps Lucia keep their heads above water...
Lucia sacrifices everything out of love, but sometimes life just gets her down. She assumes that she can make up for it later.
But that happens more quickly than she expected when she meets one of the richest men in Atlanta, Remy James...
Of course, she meets him at the strip club. What kind of man is he? Can she really give into him? She has to consider Daisy as well.
But their attraction is strong, and Lucia finds it harder and harder to deny him with every day. He is gorgeous and intense, not giving up on his pursuit of her and claiming her as his own...
But then Remy tells her his secret and shocks her even more.
Lucia will have to work all of that out in this tale of love and attraction, destiny and fate. Can she look past the glaring truth to the man he really is?
Chapter One
I opened the back door to the bar and walked through the hallway. I listened to the chatter in the dressing room between the girls as I rolled my eyes. I didn’t love my job at the local strip club in Georgia but it paid the bills, and that was what I needed right now. I was raising my little sister Daisy after my mom had died a year ago, since Daisy’s father had left when she was just one. Mine stepped out in the form of cancer, so we had nobody, since they were both only children.
Now she was seven and needed a lot of things for school, and bartending at this dive brought in a lot of money to rent a decent apartment for us and keep our heads above water.
Yes, I am a bartender at a strip club. I am not a size zero, and I have way too much dignity to get up on that stage and take my clothes off. I make great money selling drinks to the fools that buy them for the girls, thinking that it’ll get them somewhere with them, and we charge a lot for all of our drinks. I guess, as far as this kind of establishment goes, The Goods was a better place than most in this town. I also had a sweet old lady neighbor who watched Daisy in our place after she was asleep.
“Luci, my girl,” my boss greeted me, as I gave him a dark look. “How are you tonight?”
“I am peachy, Thomas. I am going to make you a whole lot of money.” He was a bit of a creep, but he left me alone for the most part and bothered the strippers.
“Good. Amber Rain is dancing tonight, and she should bring in a good crowd. She was just in a series of films that did very well,” Thomas told me, as I nodded and walked behind the bar. I dressed in tight black jeans and a very fitted tank top, which was white and boasted the name of the place over my generous breasts. It was low cut and almost sheer, so I chose to wear some colorful bras underneath to cover my own goods and keep something to the imagination, given the men in here bug me as much as the dancers.
I locked my purse up in my locker under the bar and hung my jacket up on a hook against the wall before I looked down the long wooden bar. I was working with Jenna tonight, who was a hardworking girl and knew her stuff. It was half full of customers now, and I pulled my black curls into a high ponytail and took a deep breath.
After I’d helped a few people and got the crowd settled, I took a good look around. Most of the men who came here were middle class and hung out around the front hoping to get lucky, but we also had tables in the back for VIPs. Those guys had a lot of cash and paid well to sit there, and there looked to be a full group gathered at the middle one. That meant a successful night all around. “Who’s over there?” I asked Jenna, as she pulled her hair up before taking a long drink of ice water.
“His name is Remy James. He’s one of those independently wealthy types that does a little of this and that and makes billions, though I couldn’t name one of his businesses right now. I just know that he is hot, and he tips very well. The man loves to drink and hold court, as you can see,” Jenna said, as she gave me a smirk. She was a bubbly little strawberry blonde with huge green eyes that knew just how to work the crowd. She also had huge tits and wore tiny camisoles under her tank top that left little to the imagination.
One of the waitresses walked over with an order from the table and, since it was for a crowd of twenty, Jenna and I split the order to make it faster and agreed to split the tips down the middle. She worked here to support her two-year-old son, since his father had taken off, so I respected that. We poured the whiskey and tequila from the top shelf bottles and arranged them on two trays so Bella could carry them in two trips.
The announcer stepped onto the stage to tell the crowd that Amber Rain would be performing in a few short dances. Until then, he was going to introduce some of the local girls to get the party started, and the beat to one of the favorite songs right now started playing.
A redhead took the stage and began to move against the pole as I cleaned up the bar for the next group of people who would come for drinks. I was just finishing when I glanced up into a pair of sapphire blue eyes and the best mouth that I had seen on a man in years. He also had a tall, muscular frame and soft dark hair that hung down to his shoulders in tousled waves.
To put it mildly, he was gorgeous. I didn’t get affected by men all that much, so that was saying a lot.
“Can I help you?” I asked, as I leaned forward just enough to flirt a little bit and batted my fake eyelashes at him. I had learned in my first year how to act for more tips, but I was also very capable of keeping it harmless.
“I would like a Tom Collins, if you would.” He spoke in a low, throaty voice that reminded me of a fine whiskey, and I blinked slowly before nodding. “Top shelf, please.”
“Of course,” I assured him, as I grabbed a glass and started to mix the alcohol in one of the clean mixers. I could feel his eyes on me the entire time as I worked, and I got nervous with the intensity of the look.
“Remy! What the fuck are you doing at the bar when we have our own waitress?” a booming voice called out, as I raised a dark eyebrow in curiosity. What was the billionaire doing at the bar?
Chapter Two
I glanced over at Jenna to see her giving me a wide-eyed look, and I expressed every ounce of what I was feeling to her in a single glance. I didn’t want to blow my cover, and I finished the drink before I turned around with a neutral expression on my face. “Your drink,” I offered, as I slid it forward to him and leaned on the bar to take him in. “That will be fifteen dollars.”
Billionaires were attractive these days. “It looks great.” Remy didn’t look at it once, as he was staring into my face with the oddest expression in his eyes. I wasn’t about to mention this and end this moment for myself, though. I was working all night and a newly single mother by day to a busy seven-year-old. The amount of sleep that I got in a solid set of hours was not even worth thinking about right now. I thanked makeup for covering the truth and making men like this seem to be captivated by me at this moment. He reached down and pulled something out of his pocket, and I looked down to see him slide a fifty-dollar bill across the bar.
“Let me get your change,” I offered, as he placed his hand over mine in a possessive manner to stop me from taking it. “Keep the change.” His eyes implored me to follow the order, and I helplessly looked back as I felt all of my tough exterior falling away and leaving me raw and vulnerable. Another friend called to Remy from the table, and his eyes darkened at the mention of him finding the one, or something along those lines. He let go of my hand with a long look and turned quickly on his feet to walk back in a way that made me tremble. “What was that?”
“Sex on a stick. I think I just came,” Jenna murmured, as I shot her a look. “It’s been a while since…well, shit. You an
d I have a similar life. I think you get it.”
I looked back at the table to see Remy looking at us with a playful expression, and I smiled. My eyes moved towards the stage where our popular platinum blonde waitress was dancing, and I didn’t think that he’d even glanced at her, unlike the rest of the table. Remy looked a little uncomfortable to me, and I went over to Jenna. “You said that he comes here a lot?”
“He’s a regular. He always gets that table,” Jenna confirmed, as I frowned and looked at him again to meet his smoldering gaze. “I don’t think he seems too concerned with the stage tonight, Lucia. I believe that he wants you.”
“No way. Here?” I brushed off her words and turned back to pour myself a cup of coffee. I needed it after getting up after just a couple of hours to get Daisy off to school and then again to grocery shop and pick her up, followed by a trip to the park with her current best friend. I reminded myself that I made enough here to keep us in a good part of Atlanta and that Daisy went to a good school, as my mind wandered to his money that I had placed in my jeans pocket. Tips like that on the regular could really help things, and I might be able to go to college and get my major in English. I was only twenty-three, but it seemed like time was slipping away. I took a long drink of the sweetened coffee and considered a fling with Remy for a fleeting moment.
Men like him didn’t want girls like me who were raising their younger sister. They wanted women who could live impulsively and give them time. Besides, he was gorgeous. Remy had to have girls lining up at the door to be with him. I scoffed at any chance I might think that I had and turned as Jenna greeted a new customer.
The main attraction took to the stage in an hour, before which the bar became packed with new arrivals, as well as Bella ordering several more shots for Remy’s table. I made drink after drink and took the money with a smile as I tried to ignore the pull that was Remy James. He still came back once to order another drink, and I just stared at him when he gave me another fifty-dollar bill. It was safe to assume that he was footing the bill for his rowdy friends, as well, who weren’t getting any less obnoxious with the alcohol flowing freely. “They’re like brothers to me,” Remy told me, as I gave him a questioning look. "Are they bothering you?" The way that he said the words implied that he might get rid of them at the drop of a hat if I asked him to.
“I didn’t say anything,” I defended myself, before I blinked. “I work here, so I see a lot of bad sides of people. I can handle a few catcalls across the room when a porn star is taking the stage.” He raised an eyebrow at me, and I covered my red lips with my hand in horror. I was never rude to customers. Ever. I flirted for that extra five-dollar tip and joked around with them. I made the best of things. “I am so fucking sorry.”
I practically felt Jenna wince beside me, and I dropped my eyes to the bar. “Is that what the woman on stage is? I have never seen her nor heard her name. I am too hung up on you, Lucia,“ he said, while glancing at my name tag. „I can’t stop looking at you. I would like to take you for coffee after work, if at all possible.” I watched as his eyes flicked across the bar to my third cup, and felt the disappointment surge through my body.
“I don’t date customers.” That was the truth in most cases, but not in this one. I knew that Mrs. MacKenzie would want to get home and that Daisy would be getting up a mere three hours later to get ready for school. I was focusing on my responsibilities, so I didn’t want to give into this man and crawl home just in time to get my sister to school.
“I can sense that about you, but I am not looking just to fuck you. It’s a lot more than that.” His eyes made promises that my body didn’t want to resist, and I casually shrugged as my heart kept racing.
“That rule still applies,” I assured him, as he nodded simply and took his drink to walk away.
“Are you serious right now?” Jenna hissed at me, before she went to help a customer. Sadly, I was. I needed to get through the next few years before I would even consider dating anyone, at which point Remy would be long gone.
At that moment, I despised the reality of my life. I would never voice these feelings to Daisy or anybody else, but I longed for freedom sometimes, and now was one of those times. Just one night with Remy would be incredible, but I wasn’t in any place to seek that right now.
The crowd seemed to keep finding the bar, and Jenna and I laughed at the amount of guys who thought that they would get a shot with Amber. She got free drinks at the bar, and I was surprised to find out that she didn’t even drink at all. We talked for a few minutes while she sipped some water and fended off the fans with their pathetic lines and glasses in hand.
Amber was investing her earnings and making a life for herself. She was quite smart, and I wished that I had the chance to do what she was doing to make things work for her future. Not that I could ever strip or do porn, since I already worried about Daisy hearing that I didn’t work at an all-night coffee shop that sold books.
Amber was also gorgeous, with a perfect, natural body and honey highlights in her red hair to bring out her bright green eyes. I am sure that didn’t hurt her success at all.
The night ended with Remy’s friends and the other customers trickling out in a drunken line before Jenna and I went out to help with cleaning up the room. I approached the VIP area to see him sitting there with a drink as he quietly surveyed me. “We’re closed,” I reminded him, as he smiled.
“I want to make sure that you get to your car safely,” Remy replied, as I shook my head. “I won’t bother you at all.”
“What about your ride?”
“Marty is paid very well to be at my beck and call,” Remy assured me, as I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Of course he had a driver, while I walked over to my mom’s old car every night and prayed that it would keep going for another few months. It was twenty years old now, and if it weren't a Toyota then I would be apprehensive.
Chapter Three
The other girls just smiled as they worked around him and left it up to me to keep him entertained. They even did most of the work while I felt his eyes on me for the entire time that I cleaned what little was left. It was both unnerving as well as arousing. My body just had a pull towards him that I couldn't explain and was struggling to deny.
I checked the bar one last time before I grabbed my purse and watched him stand up to join me. “You don’t give up,” I observed, as he looked me over slowly.
“Not when I see something that I want.” Remy walked me to the back door with an ease that I didn’t usually see in men. He walked right out into the back lot without even looking around like our sketchy bouncers did. I raised my brow and smiled as I joined him and walked to the faded green SUV.
“Why me?” I pressed, since he wasn’t hiding his intentions at all.
“It’s a bit hard to explain,” Remy vaguely replied, as his thick brows furrowed together and he looked over at me. “That’s something I need to discuss over dinner or coffee.”
“It’s complicated.” I chose to be vague myself as he seemed to look right through me.
“So am I.”
We got to my car, and I looked into his face. Remy was about three inches taller than my five foot ten frame and it was perfect. Everything was perfect, apart from the fact that I couldn’t pursue this. “Thank you for walking me out here. It can be a little scary sometimes.”
“You have nothing to worry about,” Remy assured me, before he leaned down to brush his lips against mine gently. It was barely a kiss, but every nerve ending in my body responded and I felt myself leaning up for more as he chuckled and pulled away. “I will see you soon.”
I knew that he was serious, and I unlocked my car door to slide in before looking at him again. It was refreshing not to have a man taking everything with one kiss, even though it was more frustrating right now as my thighs heated up and my body told me what I was missing out on. I sighed and started the car as I watched a black Bentley pull forward next to us. Holy shit. This guy had so much money.
/> I drove home with a lot of tips even after I had split some of them with Jenna and the others. She insisted that I keep Remy’s money because I did all of the work and he apparently meant it to be mine.
I hugged my neighbor before I watched her walk to her apartment, smiling as I thought about the money I was going to leave her tomorrow night. I could finally do something nice for Mrs. McKenzie, after all she’d done for us. I showered to get off my war paint and clean the bar off of my skin, before dropping into bed for a few hours of sleep.
Daisy was happy the next morning, and I regretted my thoughts from the night before. With her toffee colored eyes and freckles, this little girl melted my heart, and she was always worth the work. I walked out of the apartment to drive her to school as she told me about the game she’d played the night before and the cake that Mrs. Mac had made for her for a treat before bed. That cake ended up being my breakfast before I got a little more sleep in my small full-size bed.
Since I had some money, I impulsively treated Daisy to an early dinner at her favorite high-end pizza place, The Crust, and listened to her tell me all about her day. It wasn’t that I was wide awake—I still needed more sleep, like I did every day—but I was happy today. I was riding some high from the night before, and I watched as the waitress boxed up the leftovers and gave me a broad smile. “This is on the house, ladies. You have a secret admirer.”
“What?” I looked around to see who could’ve paid the bill, which was well over fifty dollars with the leftovers. I didn’t see anyone that I knew, and I shrugged at Daisy. “I wonder who took care of that. Do you think it was the Tooth Fairy?”
“It was Santa Clause. I heard from Allison that he does kind things all year,” Daisy told me, with a certainty that made me laugh. I still left a generous tip before we headed home. We did some homework, and then I got Daisy involved in a movie before Mrs. Mac came over. It was the routine we used to distract her from my leaving. Even though she loved the neighbor, Daisy was scared of me disappearing like our mother had.
