by Ramona Gray
He nodded then shook his head. “Fuck, I don’t know.”
Their whiskeys had arrived while he was talking to Jane and he drank his in two big gulps, wincing at the burn. Julien leaned over and grinned at them. “What do you gentlemen think of getting some private dances?”
“No,” Luke and Mark said at the same time.
Pierre rolled his eyes and finished his own whiskey. “Americans, they don’t know how to have a good time.”
“You two go ahead and get your private dances,” Mark said.
Julien shrugged before downing the rest of his whiskey. He stood and ambled toward the bar. He spoke to the bartender who directed him to the dark-haired man who still leaned against the bar. They spoke briefly before Julien turned and waved at Pierre.
Pierre stood. “Gentlemen, it’s been a pleasure. We head back home tomorrow but we’ll be in touch about our new partnership.”
Luke didn’t reply. His gaze had wandered to Jane. She was standing with her back to them as she spoke to the men she was serving.
“That sounds good,” Mark said. “Enjoy your evening.”
“You as well,” Pierre said.
He joined Julien and the two of them followed Jane’s boss past the stage to an unmarked door. They disappeared into a private room as a dancer stopped in front of their table. She leaned over and Mark eyed her cleavage as she purred, “Care for a lap dance, handsome?”
“No thanks,” Mark said.
“How about you?” She turned to Luke who shook his head. He was still staring at Jane and the dancer made a low laugh.
“You don’t want her, sweetheart. Her tits are way too small and she don’t dance nearly as well as I do.”
Luke glared at her and she took a step back before glancing at the giant of a man who was standing near the stage.
“We’re not interested,” Mark said. “But thank you.”
“Whatever.” The woman shrugged and, hips swaying, walked away.
“Time to go, Luke.”
“No,” Luke said.
“It’s not a good idea to stay,” Mark said.
“Then go,” Luke said.
Mark sighed. “This is such a bad fucking idea.”
Before the words were even out of his mouth, Luke was standing and stalking across the club. One of the men had stood, grabbed Jane’s ass and squeezed it hard. She tugged his hand away but he grabbed her ass again as Luke stopped beside her. With an angry growl, he grabbed the man’s hand and twisted it. The man howled with pain and fell to his knees as Luke leaned over him and said, “Touch her again and I’ll break your arm.”
“Luke, no!” Jane said. “Stop it, right now!”
“Do you understand?” Luke said to the man on his knees. “Repeat what I just – “
He grunted with pain when one of the man’s friends jumped on his back. He hooked his arm around Luke’s neck and Luke let go of the other man and staggered back. He grabbed the man’s arms and bent over quickly. The man sailed over his head and landed on the table with a splintering crash. Glasses exploded and the other men made hoarse cries of surprise as Luke punched the man twice in the face.
“Stop it!” Jane shouted. “Tony, no! It’s okay – don’t hurt him!”
Another arm was wrapped around his neck, this one was thick as a goddamn tree trunk and Luke’s air was immediately cut off when it squeezed tightly.
“Tony! Stop!” Jane said pleadingly.
“Let him go, you asshole.”
He could hear Mark’s angry voice as Jane appeared in his rapidly diminishing vision. “Please, Tony. He’s a friend. Please.”
The vice around his throat relaxed a little and he dragged in a lungful of air as Tony half-carried him across the club. He dropped Luke into a chair and Luke stared at the giant standing in front of him. Tony had to be close to seven feet tall and he weighed at least three hundred pounds. He stared down at him as Jane put her small hand on his forearm and said softly, “He won’t cause any more trouble, Tony. I promise.”
“You sure?” Tony’s voice was a rumbling truck. “I don’t want him hurting you, Janie.”
“I’m her fucking boyfriend, you jackass,” Luke said hoarsely.
Jane made a low moan of dismay as Tony rolled his eyes. “Your boyfriend always this much of a dick?”
“He’s had too much to drink,” Jane said. “Don’t tell Jeremy, okay?”
“Don’t tell Jeremy what?”
Jane turned white as the man in the knitted cap materialized next to Tony. He stared at Luke before turning his gaze to Jane. “What’s going on, Jane?”
“Nothing, Jeremy,” Jane said. “Just a misunderstanding, that’s all.”
“Misunderstanding?” Jeremy said. “I’ve got a customer with a busted nose and another one screaming that his hand is broken. You call that a misunderstanding?”
Luke stood and stared at Jane’s boss. He was nearly half a foot taller than Jeremy and he studied the man’s face as Jeremy gave him a cool look.
“You know this guy, Jane?”
“Jeremy, I...”
She trailed off as Jeremy reached out and put his hand on the back of her neck. He started to tug her toward him and Luke knocked his hand away from her and pulled Jane against his body.
“Don’t fucking touch her,” he said as Mark rested his hand on his arm.
“Be cool,” Mark muttered into his ear.
He ignored his best friend and stared at Jeremy. “Don’t touch her again.”
“So you do know him,” Jeremy said to Jane.
“He’s just - ”
“I’m her boyfriend,” Luke snapped at him.
“Luke, hush,” Jane said anxiously.
He gave her a confused look as a grin crossed Jeremy’s face. “You know the rules, Jane.”
“I’m sorry,” Jane said. “I – I didn’t tell him and he - ”
“Not my problem,” Jeremy said. “You’re fired. Get the fuck out of here.”
“Jeremy!” Jane gave him a desperate look but Luke tightened his grip around her when she tried to wiggle free. “Please, let me explain.”
Jeremy shook his head. “No. Shelly, get your fat ass over here!”
“What you want?” The chunky Asian woman who ambled over from behind the bar glared at him. She was missing her front teeth and the overwhelming smell of tuna hung over her like a thick cloud.
“Get Jane’s things from her locker and bring him out. And move your fucking ass for once, would you?”
She shuffled off as Jane said, “Jeremy, please. I need this job. You know I do.”
“Then you shouldn’t have let your boyfriend come in here and start punching my paying customers,” Jeremy drawled.
Jane glanced at Luke. “Luke will apologize to the customer and buy him and his friends a round of drinks. Okay?”
“No, I won’t,” Luke said.
“Luke!” Jane gave him a desperate look that he studiously ignored. As far as he was concerned, Jane being fired from this hellhole was a good thing.
“Here’s your stuff.” Shelly had returned and she shoved Jane’s coat and her bag at her before belching loudly. The scent of tuna mixed with beer wafted over them and Mark made a low grunt of disgust.
“Jesus,” he muttered as Shelly grinned at him, revealing the gaping hole where her teeth should have been.
“You want a private dance, sexy?”
“Get lost, fat ass,” Jeremy said dismissively.
Shelly flipped him the bird before wandering away. Jeremy rolled his eyes before pointing at the door. “Get out, Jane. You can pick up your final paycheque on Friday.”
“Jeremy...”
“Get out. Tony, walk them to the door.”
“Let’s go, Jane,” Luke said. He kept his arm around Jane’s waist as they followed Tony to the door. The big man opened the door and Luke ushered Jane out into the cold.
“Janie?” Tony touched her arm and Jane pulled free of Luke and let the big man pick her up and
hug her. “I’m sorry, girl. I’m going to miss you.”
“Thanks, Tony. I’ll miss you too. I’ll see you around, okay?”
“Yeah. Candy’s having her birthday party next month. You’ll be at that, right?”
Jane nodded. “Wouldn’t miss it.”
Tony kissed her cheek and set her on her feet before staring at Luke. “Take care of my girl, dickhead.”
Luke didn’t reply and Tony grinned at him before returning to the club. Mark rubbed his hand over his forehead.
“Christ, that was a fuck up.”
Jane tugged her jacket on and picked up her bag before walking away.
“Jane!” Luke chased after her and pulled her to a stop. “Where are you going?”
“The bus stop,” Jane said.
“I’ll drive you home,” he said.
“No thank you,” she said. “I want to be alone.”
“I’m driving you home, no arguments,” Luke said angrily.
She glared at him before shrugging. “Fine, let’s go.”
* * *
“Jane, will you just talk to me for God’s sake?” Luke said as he followed her into the kitchen. She dropped her bag on the floor and glared at him.
“Keep your voice down. Amy is sleeping.”
“We need to talk about what happened,” Luke said as she yanked open the freezer door. She pulled out a bag of frozen peas and threw them at him.
“Put this on your hand.”
He sat down and rested the bag of peas on his hand as Jane paced back and forth in the kitchen.
“Are you going to apologize for getting me fired?” She asked.
“No,” he said. “You shouldn’t be working there. You’re better than them, Jane. You - ”
“No, I’m not,” she said. “I’m not better than them, Luke. The people who work there – Tony, Candy, Selena – they’re good people. Yeah, there’s some real garbage people there but that’s true at every job. Don’t look down on them because of what they do to keep their families fed.”
“I’m not,” he said.
“You are.”
He sighed. “Okay, you’re right. I am and I’m sorry. I’m being an asshole. But, Jane, why are you working there?”
“Why do you think?” She said. She yanked at the tiny pink skirt and then suddenly pulled the kitten headband off her head and tossed it into the garbage. “I need the money.”
“Not anymore,” he said. “You make more money working at Dawson Clothing now and your rent isn’t as high living with Amy.”
She sighed and rubbed at her forehead. “You can’t possibly understand.”
“Try me,” he said.
She sank into the chair across from him. “Mama J’s care is very expensive, all right? Yes, I make enough now to not need the second job but what happens if – if things don’t work out between us? You think Amy’s going to let me keep living here? I’ll have to find a new place to live and I’ll be right back where I was. I’ve been putting the money I make at the club in a nest egg.”
“You act like we’re not going to work,” Luke said. “You don’t know that.”
“We’re very different,” she said gently.
“So?” He gave her an angry look. “If you don’t want to even try in this relationship then - ”
“I’m not saying that,” she interrupted. “I want to be with you and I hope it works but I have to be realistic. I don’t have the luxury of just pretending you’re my Prince Charming and I’ll never want for anything again. I need to take care of Mama J. She’s the most important thing in my life, Luke, and I won’t do anything to jeopardize her care. Do you understand that?”
He did understand. He hated it but he knew how important taking care of Mama J was to Jane. “Yes, I understand.”
She gave him a searching look. “Do you?”
“I do,” he said. “I’m sorry I got you fired.”
“Thanks,” she said. “I’m sorry that your clients saw me working at the club.”
“They didn’t,” Luke said. “They didn’t notice you when they first got there and they were in a private room when,” he paused, “everything else happened.”
“Good, that’s good,” she said.
They sat in silence for a while before he said, “Should I go home?”
She shook her head. “No. I want you to stay with me tonight.”
Relief flooded through him and he stood and tossed the frozen peas back into the freezer as she gave him a nervous look. “Unless you don’t want to stay?”
“I want to stay,” he said.
She gave him her sweet smile and he pulled her into his arms and kissed her. “I’m sorry, I just hated seeing that guy touching you.”
“I know,” she said. “Thank you for coming to my rescue. It was very Prince Charming-ish of you.”
He held her tightly and kissed her forehead. “I’ll always take care of you, Jane. I promise.”
She didn’t reply and he kissed her again before leading her to her bedroom.
Chapter 17
Luke drummed his fingers on the steering wheel as he stared at the strip club. It was Tuesday afternoon and he was vacillating between going in to speak to Janie’s disgusting former boss or just driving back to the office.
He squeezed the steering wheel. He owed it to Jane to at least try and get her job back. He hated the idea of her working here, hated it more than he thought possible, but Jane was a grown woman. Not having the money from the club was worrying her, he could see it in her face. She’d already transferred back to Mark’s department this morning but he’d dropped by before lunch on the pretense of getting her to type a quick document for him. The pinched and worried look was still on her face even though she had smiled at him and assured him that everything was fine when he’d asked in a low voice if she was okay.
So help her get a second job somewhere else, his inner voice argued. Working here is dangerous for Jane. You’ll never fucking relax again if you know she’s here.
No, he probably wouldn’t and he could have suggested that Jane get a job somewhere else but it was more than just the job thing. He’d fucked up by going off like a hothead and he didn’t want Jane thinking he was trying to control her.
That asshole Jeremy probably won’t give her the job back anyway. But you’ll have at least tried and showed Jane that you feel bad about what happened.
That thought got him moving and he reached for the door handle as someone knocked on his window. He jumped but managed not to shriek like a scared little kid as Tony bent and stared at him through the glass.
His heart thudding in his chest, Luke stepped out of the car as Tony gave him an assessing glance.
“Hey, dickhead.”
“Hello, Tony.”
“What are you doing here? Club don’t open for another hour.”
“I came to apologize to Jeremy and see if he would give Jane her job back.”
Tony frowned. “You want your woman working here?”
“No,” Luke admitted. “But I want it to be her choice.”
“Fair enough,” Tony said. “C’mon.”
Luke followed Tony into the club. The chairs were up on the tables and the stage was dark. Jeremy was sitting at the bar drinking a beer and studying a tablet.
“Janie’s guy is here to see you,” Tony said.
Jeremy stared at Luke. “What do you want?”
“To talk,” Luke said.
Jeremy glanced at Tony. “Take this back to my office.” He handed Tony his tablet, who nodded to Luke before leaving.
“What can I do for you, Mister…”
Jeremy trailed off and Luke said, “Dawson. Luke Dawson.”
Jeremy looked him up and down. “Jane got herself a real fancy boyfriend, didn’t she?”
“I’m here to apologize for starting a fight in your club and to ask you to give Jane her job back.”
“We got rules at this club. The girls know them. Always tell the customers you’re single e
ven if you ain’t, and never let your man come to the club.”
“I didn’t know Jane worked here and she didn’t know I would be there last night,” Luke said. “If I had known the rules, I would have followed them.”
Jeremy laughed. “Oh yeah? Why would I believe that? I seen the way you looked at her. You don’t like other men looking at your woman, let alone touching her.”
“It’s my fault, Jane shouldn’t be punished for that,” Luke said.
Jeremy took a swallow of beer. “How’d Jane meet someone so fancy anyway?”
“She works for my company.”
Jeremy’s eyes widened and Luke stared at him in surprise when he burst into loud laughter. “You are fucking kidding me – you’re her goddamn boss?”
“Technically yes,” Luke said. “She doesn’t work directly for me.”
Jeremy laughed again and Luke gave him a cold look. “What’s so funny?”
“You have no idea how sweet little Jane has snowed you. You with your goddamn fancy suit and your fucking Rolex. You’ve got more money than God, I bet, and yet a little golddigger like Jane can sink her claws into you.”
“It isn’t like that,” Luke said through clenched teeth. He was holding onto his self-control by a thread. It was a mistake to come here.
“Why the fuck are you with her? She ain’t that good looking and she’s a fucking cold fish in the sack so what is it?”
Cold washed over Luke as nausea rolled through his stomach. “What did you say?”
Jeremy grinned at him. “She didn’t tell you. You’re not the first boss that Jane has slept with. It’s what she does, man.”
“You’re lying,” Luke said in a low voice.
“Like fuck I am. I might be a bastard but I’m not a lying bastard,” Jeremy said cheerfully. “Jane started coming on to me not even a month after she started working here. We were fucking within two months.”
“No,” Luke said through numb lips. “No, she wouldn’t sleep with someone like you.”
“What’s wrong with me?” Jeremy gave him an indignant look before laughing. “Jane didn’t have any complaints, trust me.”
He took another drink of beer as Luke stared at him. “She start asking you for money yet?”
Luke shook his head and Jeremy tipped his beer bottle to him. “She will soon, trust me. She’ll start talking about that foster mother of hers, about how sick she is and how much it costs to take care of her. She’ll act like she ain’t got nothing. That she ain’t got no food and can’t make her rent because all her money goes to her foster mom. You start to feel sorry for her, maybe buy her a few groceries, pay her heat bill one month. Next thing you know, she’s taking all your green and living the high life just because she thinks sucking your cock on the regular gives her that right.”
