by Wilde, Rhea
“So you wouldn’t be building anything without him.”
“Exactly. We’re a hell of team.”
“That’s… interesting.”
Romeo started to laugh like he had done all evening. Even through the dim lights of the club I could see that the alcohol was already beginning to have an effect on him. Landon continued to ignore our friendly conversation. I couldn’t tell if any of the girls caught his eye or he was simply bored with Romeo’s storytelling. I was beginning to understand why it was so hard to get in touch with him in the first place.
“So, what else can you tell me about Luther?” I asked.
“What would you like to know, Harley?” Romeo responded.
“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “Anything really. I barely know the man.”
“Yet you accepted his offer to go on a date.”
“I…”
I didn’t know how to respond. I searched for the appropriate response while Romeo grinned at me. The truth was that I wanted to know more about the club and all of the other patrons. I couldn’t admit what my true motives were. Now it became a question of whether or not I should tell him if it were a business arrangement or something more than that.
“That’s all right,” Romeo said. “There’s no need to explain yourself. Luther’s always been the best-looking out of all of us. Women are always more interested in him. He still takes care of himself so his youth is going to last him a long time. And he’s got the most money, too. As you know, that helps in a place like this.”
“But…”
I cut myself off. I couldn’t let them know that I knew how much money Landon was actually worth.
Is that really true? But Landon is a billionaire. Are all of them really billionaires? Maybe Landon really isn’t the man I should be trying to find out more about…
“But what?” Romeo said.
“But… that sounds like it’s too good to be true,” I giggled. “Rich, good-looking and charming. Is that what you’re telling me Luther is?”
“Don’t ask me, Harley. I mean, you’ve met the man. I’m sure you can make your own determinations.”
“Why don’t you ask him yourself, Harley?” Landon suddenly chimed in. “I’m sure Luther will be more than willing to tell you everything you want if he deems it appropriate.”
Landon looked at me with a cold and icy stare. But it was only for a moment. That’s all he needed to get his point across and let me know that maybe I was beginning to talk too much.
“You’re right,” I said. “I’m… I’m looking forward to getting a chance to get to know Luther better.”
“He feels the same way about you,” Romeo said. “One second, Harley.”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He scrolled through it. I watched as his eyes began to light up.
“Speak of the devil,” he said as he typed out a response. “Sorry about the interruption, Harley. Luther just wanted to remind you about your agreement.”
“You’ve already reminded me,” I laughed. “I haven’t moved from this spot since you brought me here.”
I looked over at Landon and saw that he hadn’t warmed up to the idea of me sitting in their booth. Romeo was getting more and more drunk by the moment. Just then, somebody joined us.
“I suppose you two boys could use a little more company.”
I looked up at the woman standing at the entrance of the booth. It was Sage. She was dressed in a sexy set of lingerie. It was like the dark outfit was designed specifically for her body. As she stepped inside of the booth, I slowly stood up.
“You don’t have to leave,” she said to me. “There’s more than enough room for all of us.”
“I know,” I said. “But I made an agreement with Luther. I don’t think there’s any point in staying here any longer. Don’t worry, Romeo. I think I’m done for the night.”
“I’m sure Luther will be happy to hear that,” Romeo smiled at me. “I’ll let him know that you’re a woman of your word.”
I nodded and smiled at him. Landon continued to ignore me. I quickly made my way out of the booth and headed back through the crowd. I let out a deep sigh of relief.
This was it. I had managed to make contact with Landon Schrader. But with the way he was acting, there was no way I would be able to have a simple conversation with him, let alone an interview. There was still another way though. As luck would have it, the three men were all acquaintances with one another. Business partners. I didn’t know if it had to do anything with the club but I was going to find out.
My meeting tomorrow night with Luther couldn’t come soon enough. This was going to be the first date I’d had since my break-up. But it was more than that. I was determined to finally get some answers and have something to write about.
Chapter 12
I was able to do some research and make the connection between all three men that Romeo initially suggested. Landon Schrader, Romeo Law and Luther Winstead were three men who owned major companies that did business on an international level. Further research suggested that their companies were indeed associated with one another. All of the photos I found of the men were nothing incriminating though. Any media I could find on them painted them as the wealthy businessmen that they were. This was the turning point. Either I was going to find something out about them and their association with an overpriced strip club or I would meet a dead end. I kept telling myself that the latter was unlikely.
It didn’t make any sense to me. They were all young, good-looking and rich. There were women who were probably throwing themselves at each one of them. Why did they feel the need to go to a place like Platinum on a regular basis? Were they really so interested in just flaunting their money around so blatantly?
It had only been a few days since I finished my last piece. By this time, I would already have something in the works. But right now, I was still investigating the who and what of my next article. I could already write about my personal experiences at Platinum. Maybe if I dug deeper I would find something more interesting than women who were able to make thousands of dollars in a single night. I thought that was the easy way out though. Landon Schrader was responsible for the hunch I had in the first place. I didn’t want to write an article about me. I wanted to write something about him or someone else more interesting. I wrote as much as I could during the day, taking notes on everything I remembered Romeo telling me. There was still plenty of work ahead.
As I prepared for my night with Luther, I did more than just search my wardrobe for the appropriate outfit. I was intent on getting some answers out of him. Maybe I could even write about Luther himself. I was sure there was an audience curious to read about what made a billionaire like him tick. This was going to be a long night of work. I was planning on making it as fun as possible.
I didn’t know exactly what Luther had planned for me. Now that I knew he was a billionaire, I felt some pressure on my shoulders. It’s not every day you get to spend time with a man who could afford to buy his own country. I had to constantly remind myself that this was about getting a job done. After I did my hair and makeup, I ended up picking out a modest black blouse and a loose matching skirt that showed off my calves. I figured it would be appropriate for most of the places he could possibly take me. I stepped into a pair of red pumps and grabbed all of my things. My recorder was located in a familiar spot in my purse. I was ready.
I showed up to Platinum that night ready for my date. As I waited outside of the club, there was a part of me that was disappointed that I wouldn’t be able to work tonight. I remembered the way some of the men stared at me as I passed by them. Maybe it’s because it’s been so long since I paid attention to another man besides my now ex-boyfriend. But when I was working in the club, there was this strange feeling I had that I didn’t remember ever having before. I suppose any woman wants to know what it feels like to be desired. I was no different. I didn’t expect a part of me to crave that kind of attention in that way.
“Where is this guy? Maybe I’m too early…”
I was beginning to wonder if Luther even remembered that he asked me out. I couldn’t blame him. I still didn’t understand why he had taken any interest in me. But just when I was about to go inside to protect myself from the cold, a white stretch limo pulled up in front of me. The driver exited and hastily opened the door. Luther stepped out of the limo in a black, silver pin-striped, form-fitting suit. It was strange to see him outside of the red lights of the club. Luther’s skin was fair, his youth unquestionable. He looked no older than a man who was fresh out of college. His eyes were a light blue, striking in contrast to everything else about his face. His short brown hair was combed neatly over his head. It didn’t look like he spent the day working at all. He could certainly afford not to.
As he walked forward toward me, I looked up at him. He had a welcoming smile on his face.
“I’m sorry I’m late,” he said. “It won’t happen again.”
“Who says this is happening again?” I asked.
“Good point, Harley. Well, I suppose the rest of the evening will be spent trying to make it up to you. Shall we?”
He held his hand out to me and assisted me into the back of his limo. Luther took a seat across from me and we were quickly whisked back into the city and away from the club.
“So, where are we going?” I asked him.
“I was thinking that dinner would be appropriate. I would like to get to know you better, if that’s all right with you.”
“Only if you’ll allow me to get to know more about you.”
“I think that goes without saying. Would you like something to drink?”
“No, I… I don’t want to drink tonight.”
I needed to remain in control of all of my faculties. As charming and debonair as Luther was, this wasn’t a date as much as it was research. I couldn’t let alcohol potentially erase any mental notes I might make.
“But you do drink?” he asked me.
“On occasion. But I’d prefer not to spoil this evening by indulging myself. Your company is more than enough for me.”
“There’s no need for flattery, Harley. We’re not in Platinum.”
“True. Then I suppose you won’t mind if honesty is the theme of the evening.”
Luther stared at me for a moment. I could feel him examining my face. I was trying to be as upfront as I could without letting him know my true intentions. I wanted the truth and I told him that outright.
“Of course,” he smiled. “That’s what I like about you. There’s no pretense. You speak your mind when you need to.”
“Is that the only thing you like about me? I mean, there had to be a reason you walked up to me initially. You weren’t able to tell what kind of a woman I was from seeing me across the room on the main floor, were you?”
“On the contrary, I was able to make that determination.”
“What? How?”
He paused for a moment, looking down at my feet then slowly working his eyes up my body. I sat there, curious as to what his response would be.
“You’ll never be able to see yourself,” he said. “You can see yourself in a photo or a video. You can see your own reflection. People can tell you what you look like. But you’ll never be able to see what you look like in the eyes of other people.”
“You’re right. But what does that have to do with anything?”
“Because I can’t explain to you what I saw in you. But it’s there. You’ll never understand. Just know that I had a feeling about you. You were standing there by the bar. You looked… innocent.”
“Innocent?”
“You sound insulted.”
“N-no, it’s not that… I just never heard it put that way before. But I’m glad you’re being honest with me. To know that you were drawn to me because of my innocence. I just want you to know that I won’t allow you to take advantage of me.”
“Nothing without your consent, Harley.”
He winked at me and I began to blush. He didn’t say a single word after that. I had this strange feeling inside of me from just sitting next to him. Luther had this indescribable but alluring presence about him. He was good-looking, obviously. But he managed to exude a sort of charm that made seem like he was more than just some guy trying to get in my good graces. I felt this natural attraction to him. I was regularly shaking the sensual thoughts about him out of my head.
We ended up in downtown. The limo pulled-up to one of the fanciest restaurants in the city. I knew it was special because I had never been there before. But it was more than just the fancy setting and all of the aristocrats who were suddenly surrounding me. It was as if the entire staff was waiting on him. Luther had them at his whim. We were brought to a table secluded from everybody else in the restaurant. The waiter began to pour a glass of wine for Luther when he stopped him.
“We won’t be drinking tonight,” he said to the waiter. “Just bring us some water and whatever specials you have available tonight. All of them.”
“Yes, sir.”
The waiter timidly left us alone and I once again found myself alone with a billionaire.
“Tell me something,” he said to me.
“Tell you what?”
“You can start with your name.”
“It’s Harley.”
“Okay. I’m Luther. But I suspect you know that I have a last name as well.”
“Why would you suspect that?”
“Romeo felt it was necessary to apprise me of your conversation last night. Now that you know what I do, I suspect you looked into it. Go ahead, Harley. What is my name?”
He was fighting the smile on his face. I didn’t understand how he was able to read me so well. I swallowed as I suddenly found it difficult to respond to him.
“I thought honesty was the theme of the evening,” he said.
“Winstead. Your name is Luther Winstead. You own a company responsible for revolutionary ideas in the field of mechanics.”
“There you go, Harley. Was that so difficult? Tell me something else. Now that you know who and what I am, what do you really think about me?”
“I… I still don’t know who you are.”
“Would you like to get to know me better, Harley?”
“Yes. Yes, I would.”
“Good. Because I enjoy your company and I think it’s only appropriate we be open with one another. This date isn’t just about my own obvious desires. Let me put you at ease. I can assure you that nothing of that particular nature will be happening tonight.”
“What if I want it to?”
“There’s no need to answer that hypothetical because you don’t.”
He winked at me. Before I could respond, the waiter returned with a plate of appetizers for us. I looked down at the expensive food and thought about everything he had just said to me.
Who is this guy? What kind of game is he playing with me? What is he up to?
“Can I be honest with you?” he asked me.
“Why are you asking me? I thought that was assumed.”
“I just wanted to make sure before I tell you this. I don’t want to offend you.”
“If you’re trying to pique my curiosity, it isn’t needed. Just say what you want to say.”
“Very well… Harley, it’s obvious that I’m attracted to you. Do you have someone special in your life? A man? A woman, perhaps?”
“No,” I shook my head. “Not a man or a woman. I’m done with that, to be honest with you.”
“Done with what?”
“Being in a relationship. It’s… It’s just not for me.”
“Why would you say something like that, Harley?”
“Maybe you just haven’t met the right—”
“Man. Yes, yes. I’ve heard that all before. I don’t believe in that any longer. Some people just weren’t meant to be with someone.”
“That’s disappointing to hear, Harley.”
“Really? I’m surprise considering you just said that ‘nothing of that particular nature’ will be happening tonight.”
Luther started to laugh at me. He nodded as he took a sip of his glass of water.
“Well played,” he said to me. “I’m having fun already. You manage to keep me on my toes unlike most women.”
“Really? Tell me something, Luther. What are most women like? Are we talking about the women in Platinum specifically?”
I slowly reached into my purse and turned on my recorder. I nonchalantly took some of the food in front of me and eagerly awaited his response.
“The women in Platinum are the only kind of women I deal with,” he said.
“Why is that? What’s so special about Platinum? What’s so special about the women in there? Why am I special?”
“Well, I can’t speak for you specifically. I mean, you’re a lovely young woman Harley. But you’re wondering why my fellow businessmen frequent a place like Platinum, right? You’re wondering why we’re willing spend an exorbitant amount of money for the company of women we can find somewhere else.”
“…Yes. I want to know why.”
“Come here.”
He leaned himself over the table. He motioned for me to come closer to him with his index finger. Was this the moment he would finally give me the answer? Would he finally tell me the secret I hoped I would find? He shifted his eyes to the side to make sure that nobody was listening then slowly started to whisper.
