Chapter 12
KNOX
“You look like you want to murder young Dante over there,” Asher taunts me.
I clench my jaw so hard I think I hear my molars crack. “He can talk to whoever he wants,” I say through my teeth.
“Why don’t I believe you?” he asks, but the half smirk on his face makes me think he’s really just taunting me.
“I don’t know, asshole. I’m not a mind reader,” I snap at him.
His green eyes go flat. Asher comes across like a joker, but he’s more like Jude than Weston deep down.
“How about I tell you what I have been seeing. You were spiraling out of control, then over the last week you were able to rein yourself back in. I’m not sure how you managed to do it, but you should keep it up. ”
I laugh darkly. If he knew what I’ve done to control myself, or rather the lack of control I’ve exercised over myself I’m not sure he’d be encouraging me right now.
Turning to walk away, he reaches out and grabs my elbow.
“I can see you don’t want to say what is going on out loud.
Not that I need the words. You have been eye fucking your little publicist since we got on the bus.
Sawyer seems to have some kind of proprietary feelings for the girl though, so be on your guard.
I don’t think either she or Gerry would turn a blind eye to whatever you have going on with her.
You know how he feels about fraternization. ”
That makes me pause more than his grip on my arm.
From the moment that Sawyer turned eighteen Gerry warned us that he wouldn’t take kindly to anyone dating his daughter.
Not that we could blame him, we’re about a decade older than her.
Why he thought we’d wanted to date a barely legal girl in our late twenties is a mystery, but I guess our reputations weren’t the best back then.
That rule morphed into an anti-fraternization policy when more women joined the organization as medical staff.
It’s understandable, we hold a lot of power given our salaries and fame.
The rule has kept the team out of gossip, and more importantly, out of the court.
But, the thing is that my career is coming to a close.
Losing months of hockey isn’t the same as losing an entire career.
I just don’t think that missing out on being with Sloane is worth obeying Gerry’s rule.
Disappointing him isn’t something I want, but even that isn’t motivation enough to stay away.
Still, I don’t need to advertise my intentions. Besides that, despite what I’ve told Sloane, I know that Gerry would help her if he knew what position I’ve put her in. He’s a good man. Better than me.
I force myself to calm down when I stroll over to where Dante is still flirting with Sloane.
The look on her face isn’t the same as when she looks at me, and it calms me a little.
It doesn’t seem she has any clue he’s flirting with her.
She still is so innocent, even after all the ways I’ve debauched her.
As soon as I’m standing next to her, she gives me a shy smile. I look straight at Dante, and say, “Mind if I steal my publicist? I’ve got an idea for repairing my image I want to discuss with her.”
He most certainly does mind. I guess Gerry hasn’t given the new guys the same speech on not dating inside the organization that Weston, Asher, Jude, and I got years ago.
“C’mon man, we’re at a club. Can’t you turn off work for one night?” he whines.
I hold my arms out wide, and immediately regret it when the muscles in my shoulder spasm.
I should be icing my shoulder and resting right now instead of being out.
Like usual, I shove that feeling down and make sure it doesn’t show on my face.
“We’re in a VIP section, spending time with the same people we see almost every day.
We don’t interact with the people who are downstairs dancing and having a good time.
I don’t know if it’s hit you yet, kid, but we don’t ever get to turn it off.
Until you fade from the public eye, and they forget you, the job will always run your life. ”
Sloane takes a step closer to me, practically pushing into my side.
I’m not even sure she knows that she moved, but it manages to calm me down.
“He’s right, Dante. Besides, I’m not really out tonight to party.
I’m here because I want to be able to respond to any PR issues that may come up, and right now is the most critical time. ”
He seems to accept her explanation. I don’t actually give a shit how he feels about it. He might not know he’s stepping on any toes, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to grit my teeth and let him flirt with my woman.
As soon as the thought comes into my head, I try to shove it away. The images that my mind paired with that phrase aren’t ones of ownership like I’ve tried to insist with Sloane, but something a bit more layered and tangled.
I’m starting to develop feelings for her, whether I want to or not. That doesn’t mean I have to let her know how much of a hold she has on me though.
I nod while I reassure myself I am still in control of how this will play out. As long as I keep my feelings to myself, I can maintain my hold on her. Of course now I want to take care of her instead of just fucking her, but there will be quite a bit of that as well.
“Where did you want to talk?” Sloane asks me, and I can tell by the way her cheeks are heating that she has been waiting for me to drag her into the dark corner I threatened earlier.
I look around the space, and find that it doesn’t really offer much in the way of dark corners.
There’s a big booth, but it’s pretty visible to the entire section.
There’s some privacy in the bathrooms, but if we walk away right now then anyone might see us leaving together.
Too conspicuous if I want to keep Sawyer in the dark about what is going on with us.
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I have to figure out a way to get you out of sharing a room with Sawyer on the next stop.”
She giggles. “Good luck. When she found out that my mom passed away when I was younger she seems to have bonded to me.”
I take in a deep breath. How had I not figured that out?
Here I am, acting all paranoid like she’s seen through me and knows how depraved my thoughts toward Sloane are, and in reality it’s because she sees a kinship between them.
Sawyer’s mom also passed away when she was a teenager.
It was during her senior year, and part of the reason she was around all the time when her dad was working.
Neither of them could stand to be away from each other then.
I clear my throat, because it feels clogged with my rising shame. “She’s a good friend to have. I can see why you two would have a lot in common.”
I almost say, “despite your age difference,” but manage to stop myself before I shove my foot all the way in my mouth. And really, they’re only like seven years apart. Definitely not the thing to make a big deal about considering I’m seventeen years older than Sloane.
“I guess your shoulder isn’t going to be the only thing you’re icing tonight,” she whispers.
A growl escapes me. All I want is to give into my inner caveman, throw her over my shoulder, and drag her back to the hotel. Even now Sawyer is swiveling her head looking for her new friend.
All I need is a bathroom with a lock and five minutes. Well, maybe ten. I might be ready to blow, but I’m always thorough and she will get hers first.
I lean down to whisper in her ear. “Follow me.”
There’s a hallway outside of the curtained off alcove that the VIP section is in. I haven’t been to this particular club before, but there’s usually multiple sections in these kinds of clubs that cater to the rich and famous that move through the city.
There’s a group to the right of us in another section tucked away behind a sheer red curtain. Once we’re far enough past our group I grab her hand and pull her farther down the hallway. I find a section on the farthest end of the hallway. Since it’s empty there’s no bouncer in front of it.
I pull her inside with me and close the curtain.
Not that it offers much in the way of privacy since they are a sheer red fabric.
The best it does is blur images, so while shapes are clearly identifiable, our faces will be blurred enough to give us some anonymity if anyone happens to venture this far down.
I’ll just have to make sure to keep her as quiet as possible.
Like the other one there’s a large U-shaped booth that has a full view of the private dance floor.
The table in front of it has lighting underneath to give the room a soft glow.
The music from the club is piped in, but it’s softer so that conversation can still go on.
That might actually be a negative in our case since, again, I’ll have to work to keep her moans down.
Sloane chews on her bottom lip while she fidgets in the empty space. “Did you really want to talk to me about our PR plan?”
I level her with a look. “No, but you can pick a couple of local charities and tell me how big of a check to write.”
She huffs. “If donating money was going to be enough to get out of this then I wouldn’t have been hired.”
I shrug. I don’t give a shit how she does her job. I was prepared to let the fans continue hating me. I’m not going to lie and say that I loved how things had turned, but that doesn’t mean that I had grand plans to change their minds either.
“We’ve got a few hours in the morning. Why don’t we make an appearance somewhere?
We can swing by a vocational school and make a donation to create a scholarship for low-income students, or maybe people who are unemployed and need a skill to improve their lives.
My dad will eat that shit up if I make it on behalf of myself and the company,” I throw out ideas.
She nods. “Okay, I’ll send some emails and set something up for the morning.”