After finding public record schematics of the speakeasy, I started getting my costume ready. I had a blonde wig from a Halloween costume a few years back sitting in my closet, and a last-minute trip to a hair salon made me a tried-and-true blonde in under an hour. I didn’t wear a lot of makeup, but I was great with it. Some contouring and some bright colors that matched the outfit I’d wear would be enough to distract from my familiarity.
Hopefully.
Then, Daniel and I got into his car and set off for the speakeasy. We had the private investigator following us, ready to call in the police if things got rough. The PI didn’t like our plan one bit. In fact, he protested about it the entire way. He also gave us free reign of his hardware, like earpieces and a wire taped to my chest underneath my outfit.
One that concealed my curves and made me look a little plumper than normal.
“Testing, one, two,” Daniel said.
“Got it,” the PI said.
“Me too,” I said.
“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?” Daniel asked.
“No, she doesn’t. Which is why I’m on this radio frequency as well,” the PI said.
I looked over at Daniel. I didn’t know what I was doing. All I knew was that I was head over heels in love with Daniel, and he needed help. Immediate help. And I wanted to assist in any way I could. It scared me, the idea of falling for him. Even though he had admitted to caring about me, caring wasn’t the same as loving.
And as I gazed into his worried eyes, I knew I was in love with Daniel Levingston.
“I’ll be okay,” I said.
“You better be. I can’t lose two of you in one night,” he said.
“When you go into the speakeasy, you’re nothing but a customer. Order an inconspicuous drink, like a Bloody Mary or a martini. Nothing frilly, nothing bright, and nothing specialized. Then, listen to the conversations around you. You’ll know very quickly if Drew’s there or not,” the PI said.
“Roger that,” I said.
“We don’t actually say that,” the PI said.
Daniel chuckled as I shrugged.
“Worth a shot,” I said, grinning.
I slipped out of the car and started walking up the street. My sensible heels clicked along the ground as my yellow blouse ruffled in the air. I had on some padding to make me look chunkier. I had more highlighter on my face than I cared to admit to make my features look bigger than they were. I brushed my fingers through my wig, making sure it was in place before I approached the door and walked in.
I made my way for the bar and ordered a rum and Coke before the PI rang out in my ear.
“The wire’s working. Don’t do anything special to talk into it. We’ll catch everything,” he said.
“Stay safe, Layla. Come back to me,” Daniel said.
I grinned at his words as the bartender handed me my drink.
I sipped on it and looked around the room. My ears zoned in on conversations. Women giggling at jokes that didn’t matter. Men trying way too hard to get laid. The soft music of the live band wafted from the corner as the dim lighting put even more of a shroud of disguise over me.
Then, I caught the piece of conversation I needed. And it came from the bartender.
“Slow night. Want me to go watch him?”
“Nah. I got it. He’s fun to toy with. A crier, that one.”
“He’s here,” I murmured.
“They have Drew? How do you know?” Daniel asked.
“Act natural, Layla. Tell the bartender you’re there to negotiate for Drew. He’ll know what you’re talking about, and you’ll be taken to see the man in charge,” the PI said.
“Is that safe?” Daniel asked.
“None of this is safe, you idiot,” the PI said.
I set my drink down and swiveled around to face the bartender. I locked my eyes with him and crooked my finger. I sunk into a character all my own as he approached, a sly little smirk on his face.
“What can I get for you, beautiful?” he asked.
“I’d like to see your boss,” I said.
“Why? Not happy with the drink?”
“No. But I am here to negotiate for Drew Levingston. I hear you have him.”
The man’s face fell, and he slowly rose up. He charged out from behind the bar and gripped my arm. I stumbled on my feet as he dragged me through the main floor, tipping over chairs and drawing eyes our way. Daniel kept asking what was wrong. The PI kept urging me on, saying the police were on their way and had been notified of what was going on. They began bickering in my ear as the bartender pulled me through a door, up a flight up steps, and into an office. He tossed me into a chair as a light came on, and slowly a face was illuminated.
A cold, calculating, snarling face.
I was scared and uneasy, but I tried not to show it.
“So, Drew Levingston,” the man said.
“Is he still alive?” I asked.
“Unfortunately.”
“Thank fuck,” Daniel breathed in my ear.
“Ten minutes out,” the PI said.
“I hear you want to negotiate for his release,” the man said.
“I do. Yes,” I said.
“What are you willing to pay?”
“Other than the 1.3 million you already have?”
“That was for another debt. His presence was in response to my daughter’s broken heart,” he said.
“Holy shit,” Daniel said.
“Seven minutes out. We’re getting you out of there, Layla,” the PI said.
I felt my heart lurch into my throat.
“You’re a very beautiful woman,” the man said.
“So I’ve been told,” I said.
“I could make this negotiation worth your while, if you wanted.”
“Depends on what you mean.”
“A life for a life.”
“My life isn’t yours to take.”
“What about your body?” the man asked.
“I’m gonna kill him,” Daniel growled.
“Five minutes out,” the PI said.
“How about this? If you shove Drew out onto the street to find his way home, I’ll go with you. Stay the night. We can share drinks. Maybe a steak. I really am fond of meat,” I said.
The man grinned. “My kind of woman. One who eats.”
“Are you a man who eats right back?” I asked.
The lust that dripped from his eyes made my stomach turn.
“A week,” the man said.
“A weekend,” I said.
“Is Drew’s life worth only two nights of pleasure to you?”
“Three minutes out,” the PI said.
“Stop this madness,” Daniel pleaded.
“Three nights, and you can do whatever you want with me. But that deal isn’t sealed until you give me proof that Drew makes it back to his home alive, untouched, and not followed,” I said.
“Anything I want?” the man asked.
“Anything you wish.”
The man drew out a knife and ran the blade against his cheek.
“Done,” the man said, smiling.
The second that word fell from his mouth, police sirens roared. Lights flashed. Doors busted in from down below, and people ran up the steps. Gunshots were fired, and I fell to the floor. I covered my head as the man behind the desk grabbed me.
“Come here, you little bitch,” he growled.
I didn’t register what was happening. I couldn’t. It all happened so fast. One moment, I was negotiating for this man to have my body in exchange for Drew, and the next second I was in Daniel’s arms. I clung to him. I panted as I shook against him. My eyes rose and I saw Drew sitting in the back of an ambulance, being looked over by paramedics.
I looked over and saw “the man” being hauled off in handcuffs.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you,” Daniel whispered.
“What… what, um… what happened?” I asked.
“Nothing. It doesn’t matter right now. All th
at matters is that you and Drew are safe.”
I clung to him as the world around us rushed, lit up with the police lights, filled with the yelling of men being taken into custody for charges the PI rattled off beside me. But I wasn’t listening.
All I paid attention to was Daniel’s lips against my ear.
“Thank you so much, Layla,” he whispered.
And before I caught myself, I turned my lips to his and kissed him, allowing the world to fade away as he held me in his arms.
17
Daniel
I couldn’t help but be worried about Layla. Ever since the police raided that speakeasy a few days ago, she’d been keeping a pretty low profile. Granted, the PI and the police told her to do that. Until the heat died down on things. But I couldn’t help the worry that filled my gut every time I thought about her. I looked up from my desk Monday afternoon and glanced through the windows of my office. I saw her office in the corner, her room dark. Her door locked. I pulled out my phone and checked my voicemails and my texts.
Nothing.
I checked my secretary’s desk for any messages.
None from her.
I checked all my damn emails.
Not a fucking thing.
I took my lunch break early. I couldn’t stand it any longer. I picked up my things and locked up my office, then drove straight to her place. I didn’t stop for food or drink. I didn’t dare chance any more caffeine after the coffee I had chugged over the weekend. I still looked over my shoulder sometimes, wondering if someone was watching me.
I knocked on her apartment door and was filled with relief when she opened.
“Danny?”
“Thank fuck you’re here, Layla. Can I come in?” I asked.
“Is something else wrong?” she asked.
I charged through into her apartment as she closed the door behind me.
“I was just… worried about you. You haven’t shown up to work the past few days,” I said.
“Because the PI and the police told me to lay low. I’ve been working from home,” she said.
I looked at her with a blank stare as she sighed.
“But maybe I have been here freaking out a little bit,” Layla said.
“What went down was pretty scary. You know you could have called if you needed someone to sit with you,” I said.
“I’m just glad Drew’s home safe.”
I gazed into her eyes as she cleared her throat.
“He’s home safe, right?” she asked.
“Yes. Sorry. Yes, of course he is. My apartment is now brother- and mob-free,” I said.
The two of us stared at one another as the silence grew tense.
“That’s not the only thing I’ve been afraid of,” she said.
I furrowed my brow. “Is something wrong?”
“Not exactly.”
I walked to her, wrapping my arms around her waist.
“You know you can talk to me,” I said.
“This is just… personal,” Layla said.
“Maybe it’s time to let down the walls we keep putting up with each other, then.”
Her eyes danced between mine before she drew in a deep breath.
“I’ve been afraid to admit that I’m in love with you,” Layla said.
Her bluntness took me aback. I knew how she felt. I saw it in her eyes every time she looked up at me. But I didn’t expect her to jump right into it. Then again, our lives had been a whirlwind for the past six months.
“I knew it,” she murmured.
I snapped out of my trance. “Knew what?”
“I shouldn’t have said anything,” she said as she pulled away from me.
“What are you talking about?”
“I knew I shouldn’t have just blurted it out like that. Stupid, Layla. Such an idiot.”
“Wait, wait, wait. Hold on a second,” I said.
“Now I look like an idiot for blurting out feelings for my boss that aren’t reciprocated! I mean, it shouldn’t shock me. How could you actually have feelings for me? I get it, I’m just—damn it, I don’t know why I opened my mouth about it.”
“Layla, I think you’re misreading—”
“Can you leave, please?” she asked.
My jaw dropped open as she whipped around to look at me.
“Please?” she asked breathlessly.
Tears formed in her eyes, and I had no idea what the hell had just happened. I didn’t want to upset her any longer, but for some reason my lips wouldn’t move. She came charging for me, pressing her hands against my stomach. She pushed me to the door before she opened it, and I went stumbling into the hallway.
“I’ll be back to work soon, okay?” she asked.
Then she closed the door in my face. Leaving me stunned as to why the hell she had reacted so negatively after professing a love for me that was very much reciprocated.
18
Layla
I couldn’t sleep. I barely ate. Fucking hell, that pause. The way his face dropped. I was a damn idiot. And now, the idea of going into work and having to face him every day just hurt. My heart broke. I cried myself in and out of sleep more times than I could count over the last couple of nights. I knew what I had to do, too. I couldn’t keep working for Living Sun. I couldn’t look Danny in his face after knowing I loved him, but he didn’t love me.
Damn it, the way he’d gawked at me. Like a deer in headlights.
“You idiot,” I whispered to myself.
I finished the handwritten resignation letter and pieced myself together for the day. For my last two weeks at Living Sun. I had no idea what I would do to keep my business afloat, but I figured working for them for the past eight years gave me some sort of decent reference. Maybe Danny would write me a shining letter of recommendation, so I wouldn’t miss a beat.
Or… maybe he wouldn’t.
“What’s this?” Daniel asked.
I released the note as he looked at it, flabbergasted.
“It’s my two-week notice,” I said.
His eyes slowly panned up to me as I stood there, in front of his desk.
“Your what?” he asked.
“It’s my two-week notice, Daniel.”
“What are you doing, Layla?”
“I’m resigning.”
“I know that, but—but why?” he asked.
“I can’t work for you any longer. I need to focus on my career. On my small business I’m trying to build myself. And I can’t do that here,” I said.
“I don’t believe you,” he said as he tossed the letter down.
“Well, it’s true.”
I watched him stand, his eyes leveling with mine.
“Tell me the real reason, otherwise I won’t accept it,” Daniel said.
“Then you’ll be out of luck in a couple of weeks,” I said.
“I won’t accept it until you’re honest with me, Layla.”
“I made a fool of myself, Danny.”
I kept my voice as level as possible while choking back tears.
“I made a fool of myself, and I will no longer be able to look at you and see just my boss,” I said.
“Layla, you’re really misreading things. Whatever happened Monday, it isn’t—”
“You have my final word. In two weeks, I won’t be here any longer,” I said.
“Layla, if you would just listen to me—”
“It’s Miss Hale, please,” I said as I turned around.
“Layla—Miss Ha—Layla, get back here!”
I felt the tears falling without my ability to stop them. I charged out of his office, listening to his voice call my name out for the last time. It hurt. More than I could comprehend. And as I made my way for the elevator, I found myself moving as quickly as I could. I heard Daniel’s footsteps behind me. Following me, like he sometimes did.
I slammed my hand into the elevator button and breathed a sigh of relief when it closed before he could get to me.
I drove with tears in my eyes. I f
ound myself standing on the porch of Tasha’s townhome, sobbing into her shoulder. She rocked me side to side, wrapping her arms around me as I choked out the story of my embarrassment. Of how Daniel’s face had fallen, and his skin had gone pale when I’d told him I loved him.
“So, he didn’t answer you?” Tasha asked.
I sniffled. “No. H-he just… just stood there. Like a deer in headlights. Like I’d—wrecked his world, Tash.”
“And you didn’t really let him talk to you while you were in his office?” she asked.
“It was too painful,” I whispered.
“Have you given him a chance to talk at all?”
I pulled away from her as I wiped at my ears.
“What's there to say?” I asked.
“Look, the two of you just went through a hell of a debacle together. Drew and this police mess. You being an idiot and coming up with some half-cocked plan to save some guy’s brother you fell in love with. Dangling yourself as bait, essentially. Have you even processed your emotions from all that?”
“What does that have to do with anything?” I asked.
“Have either of you sat down and talked about the crap the two of you just went through?”
Her questions smacked me across the face, and my sorrow turned to anger. I was filled with so many emotions I didn’t know how to sift through, and I was rampaging through my life. Tasha ushered me into her place and sat me down, getting me a glass of lemonade. We sat in silence as I unpacked the last week—the sting operation, Drew being taken.
Danny and that kiss after we were all okay.
“What’s on your mind?” Tasha asked.
“Just… I never should have fucked my boss,” I said breathlessly.
Tasha giggled. “Yeah. Maybe not the wisest choice.”
“Even if I wanted to make things work, it wouldn’t at Living Sun. Eventually, people will catch wind of our relationship. Or whatever it is we attempted to have. Or had. Fuck, I don’t know. I’m so confused it’s sickening.”
“Then drink your lemonade and calm yourself down,” she said.
The only thing I could do, however, was brace myself for the impact of the pain. It was still the end. I still couldn’t work there, even if things did work out with us. It would be too weird. Too close. Too much. What I needed to do was brace myself to move on with my life. And that started with crunching numbers regarding my small business.
Professionals with Benefits Page 6
