Chapter Eight
Stay
Crystal
“You really should consider waiting until tomorrow,” Zandie encouraged me, while huddling in the hallway with me.
“He is in a foul fucking mood after last night. Those bikers tore shit up in the parking lot. They knocked the window out of an SUV and dented a Challenger worth a quarter million dollars. That man ain’t gonna smile on nobody for at least a few days. You understand?”
I bit my lip and inwardly groaned. She was right, but I didn’t have a choice.
If I didn’t have the rent by the end of the week, I was fucked.
The only way I had a chance of making it was more night shifts.
My roommate who held the original lease on the apartment was being petty and pitting the other two against me.
It sucked, the other two girls were usually more sympathetic, but not this time.
“No. I have enough flat ass, no act girls. Get,” Jay grumbled when the door to his office opened.
A girl my size sniffled on her way past but didn’t manage to meet our gaze.
Jay was full of venom; I could see it in his eyes when they locked on Zandie. She sucked in a startled breath and bolted back to the hostess desk.
“Jesus, they’re all worthless,” he scoffed, before lazily turning his attention back to me. “You’re not on the schedule today.”
“No.” I confirmed, before adding, “But I need to be. I– I could do the night shift again. I could even just get the drinks if you have–”
His beady eyes narrowed on the mark Anthony had left on my neck, and he snorted, shaking his head, “No. Matter of fact, don’t come back until that’s gone.”
The floor sucked out from under me.
No? No extra hours and he was stripping me of the ones I had?
“Wait, Jay–” I blurted his name out, past the growing lump of desperation that was developing in my throat.
He slammed the door in my face and though he didn’t lay a finger on me, it still ripped the air right from my lungs.
I hadn’t even made it into the office, and I was left holding back tears as I numbly returned to the lobby.
Dan, the goofball doorman let out a laugh that normally would have provoked a smile even before I knew the reason, but today, I didn’t have it in me.
“I can’t help you, bro. I’m sorry.” Dan chuckled.
“Man, two bills. Act like you’re gonna say no?
Who the fuck else is offering you two hundred dollars for a seven-digit number?
That’s all I need. Just a number? No? Fine.
Give me a Post office box to write? The name of her mama’s church?
For fuck’s sake, do you hear me? I’ll be a goddamn choir boy for this one, I don’t think you understa–” Anthony trailed off when he noticed me staring at him.
It was the most pitiful thing I’d ever seen, and as piss-poor of a day as I had, I couldn’t help but laugh.
Anthony stood up a bit straighter, and I figured I probably bruised his ego a little without meaning to, but then he smiled and looked away, shaking his head a little before he quietly teased Dan, “You should have taken the two bills… Bro.”
I snorted at his confidence and rolled my eyes. He was cute and funny, but I hadn’t forgotten the way he acted, or the cost of his encounter.
“Boy, move. I just lost work because of you.”
That cocky smile of his didn’t waver, until it became clear I was moving past him.
“This place?” he blurted out, with so much disdain, I was sure I’d be fired if Jay heard him.
I didn’t slow my pace a bit, I kept right on marching out the door and into the parking lot. I saw him stuff money into Dan’s hand from my peripheral before he scrambled after me.
“Wait. Wait. Listen.” His long legs carried him faster than I could get away, and he placed himself in front of me effortlessly. “Girl, calm down. Alright? Listen, I’m trying to make it so you never have to work again, hear me? Fuck this place.”
I laughed, having heard similar from a dozen men twice his age in the last week alone. The way his eyes lit up at my laughter, though, now that was different.
It made everything in me clench, even if my mind knew better.
He stopped marching backwards and planted his feet, causing me to briefly brush into him before I could sidestep.
“Hey, you want me to call someone?” Dan’s concerned tone came from behind us.
The air between us instantly tensed, as Anthony bristled and glared past me.
“There is a waffle spot across the street. I have to finish my shift. If you want my time that bad, wait for me,” I whispered, knowing damn good and well, that Jay would blame any confrontation on me anyhow.
His shoulders relaxed and he studied my face, his eyes softening until they met his smile, “For real?”
“For real.” I shrugged.
He glanced from me to Dan and nodded, before turning to trail off for the Waffle House.
What the fuck was I thinking? I didn’t have any shift to get to, and going home wasn’t going to solve anything.
I went back inside the club and hid in the dressing room for a while. I refreshed my makeup and curled my hair.
I wasn’t sure if I wanted him to be there or hoped he would grow impatient and leave.
The only thing I was certain about was that hiding wasn’t an option much longer. I’d wasted fifty-nine minutes already.
Dan smiled when I left the second time, and called after me, “Have a good evening, Miss Jade.”
“You, too, Dan.” I winked.
The waffle spot wasn’t that full when I entered, but I noticed Sydney sitting at the counter. She smiled big when she spotted me and murmured when I drew near, “Girl… What did you do to that man? He already sent one waitress away in tears.”
I glanced in the direction she indicated and spotted Anthony in the back booth. His eyes were more brown than green, and I thought I detected a spark of jealousy in them as I lingered near Sydney.
“Thanks for the heads up.” I smiled and braved my way toward his table.
“You know her?” he blurted out, causing me to pause with my ass halfway to the bench.
“Excuse me?”
He blinked and sat back, “Sorry, guess the doorman had me a little flustered.”
I let out a heavy breath and smiled, “Seems to be the day for flustering, I guess.”
“It was, but it’s better now that I’m sitting down with you.”
His tender words caused me to fix my gaze on him rather than the menu I’d picked up. His ability to go from hot to cold was a little overwhelming.
“You said you lost work because of me?” He pressed.
I clicked my tongue and pointed to the mark he left on my throat. “My boss wasn’t amused.”
“Your boss is your pimp?”
“What? No?” I spat, my face contorting.
“You fucking him?” his tone sharpened a bit.
I dropped the menu on the table and debated throwing his own drink in his face.
“Gross. What…the…fuck?”
“I’m saying,” He laughed, rolling his neck slowly, “Why does he care?”
I stared at him, unsure of when the last time I’d been so offended in a five-minute span.
“Yeah… This is a bad idea. I should go.” I scooted along my bench.
His boot planted in front of my foot’s path beneath the table and his hand blanketed mine, “Stay.”
“Yeah, I don’t–” I shook my head, even as the placatory smile, my greatest defense mechanism began to grimace its way across my face as we both awkwardly found our feet in a hurry.