Chapter Five #2
I set the glasses down on the tray and watched her move to Table 4, hips swaying, knowing how to work a room, serving everyone with special attention.
Shontel was one of the eldest waitresses, the one who controlled the room, eyes on the girls, making sure everyone stayed in their lane.
She’d been here long before I arrived, and no doubt she’d still be here long after I finally got the hell out of this place.
She’d been the one who’d trained me and helped me figure out how to survive here without losing myself completely. Or at least, not too quickly.
I turned back to the cutting board, focusing on the lime in my hand. But not even two seconds later, a shadow loomed over me. My skin crawled before I even looked up.
“Can I help—”
My voice trailed off when my eyes met the face before me and then I froze.
Exactly like the first time I saw him. I forced myself to blink several times, making sure my mind wasn’t playing tricks.
But no matter how many times my eyes shut and reopened, he was still there, an undeniable presence making my heart leap in my chest for a few insane seconds.
Zane.
His eyes locked on mine, pulling me into the depths of the iciest oceans, slowly swallowing me like the first time we’d met.
Beautifully proportioned like an Armani ad, too good to be real, yet here he was.
And damn, he was close. So close. Under the type of lights that made everything about him sharper, clearer, more devastatingly perfect.
He wore dark clothes, similar to those I’d seen him in before, but not the same. His crisp black shirt was unbuttoned at the neck, revealing a glimpse of his strong chest and that striking tattoo wrapping around both sides of his neck like a hand.
No, not a hand.
Wings.
A gold Rolex gleamed on his right wrist, and a thick gold ring on his middle finger brought my attention to his right hand, also heavily tattooed. There were images and letters on each finger I couldn’t decipher from where I stood. I gave my head a small shake, snapping myself out of it.
Was he following me? No. There was no reason why he’d be here because of me. Besides, he couldn’t possibly recognize me behind the mask.
“Chloe...”
My breath caught. Or maybe he could.
“What—what are you doing here?” I whispered, trying to keep my voice low to avoid drawing attention.
He smirked, as if making me nervous amused him.
“Just checking on you,” he said casually, even his damn whiskey voice sounding alluring. “Making sure you aren’t getting yourself into more trouble.”
His eyes looked around the club in a way that felt far too suggestive.
“How did you even know where to find me?”
“I have my sources and—”
“—And I have no time for this!” I cut him off, not wanting to entertain whatever game he’d come here to play. “I have clients to serve. Move away.”
His head tilted slightly. “Do I make you nervous?”
He asked, all hot, dangerous and infuriating, making my pulse dance like it had a death wish. Of course he made me nervous! What kind of question is that?
“I’m working,” I said again coolly.
He didn’t even budge. Just watched me and the itch beneath my skin only deepened.
He clearly wasn’t used to rejection or being told to leave.
And I could see why. Everything about him screamed charm, the kind that made heads turn and conversations stop.
Any other girl would’ve been leaning over the counter, hanging on his every word, desperate for one more minute of his attention.
But I knew his type all too well. There was a type of darkness in this man, something I could instantly recognize and I didn’t need more of that in my life.
His piercing gaze never left mine as he reached into his tailored coat to pull out a wallet.
Those eyes. God, I’d never seen eyes so blue. So electric. Like twin daggers piercing straight through me. Beautiful, intense, and so damn dangerous.
He took out a large bill from his wallet and threw it over the balcony. My eyes widened, it was the kind of tip that would make my whole week.
“Looks like I’m your client now,” he said with that maddening calmness.
“And what exactly do you think that buys you?”
He leaned in a little. “Let’s start with a drink. Impress me.”
He was taunting me, telling me exactly what he wanted from me. A shiver ran down my spine, making my nipples harden beneath my top, and a tingling heat bloom between my thighs. He made me feel like I was staring at the devil, ready to strike a deal and how alluring that felt.
I grabbed a glass from the wall behind me, then reached for the tequila. My hands were steady, but my heart wasn’t. Once the glass was full, I slid it across the counter between us, then reached for a piece of the limes I’d cut earlier, dropping a fine slice gently on the rim.
He looked at the shot, then back at me. “You think a shot will impress me?”
“No,” I said, meeting his stare head-on. “But it’ll make you swallow it fast and get going.”
I reached for the bill, sliding it back to his side of the counter. “I know what you want, and you’re not getting it from me.”
No doubt I needed that money, but I’d learned my lesson long ago: never accept anything from monsters, because they always came back to collect.
Suddenly, amusement grew on his lips. Then he picked up the shot glass, which looked absurdly small in his outsized hand, downing it in one sip. His expression didn’t shift, not even a flinch from the burn. He grabbed the lime wedge next, and the way his lips closed around it made me feel thirsty.
I turned to leave, but his hand shot out, catching my wrist.
He yanked me toward him so fast I stumbled, bending over the counter between us, half a breath from being pulled to the other side. His lips were so close to mine that I could almost taste the lime. I heard a gasp somewhere in the room but couldn’t move to see.
“Don’t turn your back on me,” he said, his voice low and dark. “I’m not finished with you yet. When I come to see you, I expect better.”
“Let go, playboy.”
Another man’s voice boomed behind me. It was Finny, one of the bouncers, and no less than Bruce’s favorite errant boy. Zane’s eyes snapped to him, blazing with fury, ready to give him the same treatment he’d meted out to those guys at the park.
“Please, don’t,” I whispered, drawing his eyes back to mine. “Just go, please,” I begged.
I didn’t know what else to do. If a fight broke out and Bruce had any sense it started because of me, he’d make me pay for it. Or worse.
I pulled away from Zane’s grip again and he let it go this time.
I straightened up, ignoring the violent pounding of my heart and we stared at each other for a long second before he turned and walked out, pushing past anyone who dared to be his path, and somehow, watching him leave made it worse.
Whenever he was around, I felt like I was on fire.
But seeing him leave… made me feel oddly empty and I didn’t like it.
“You okay?” Finny asked. “Yeah,” I said quickly, forcing a tight smile. “No need to report it to Bruce.”
He nodded before following Zane outside. I stayed frozen behind the bar, only lifting my eyes once the exit door clicked shut.
The camera above the bar stared back at me. Its tiny red light was on, and I swallowed hard, praying Bruce hadn’t been watching. He hated when we upset his clients, and I’d just cursed one out.
Then my gaze dropped to the folded bill Zane had left behind, and all I could do was stare at it as if it might bite me. What the hell was he even doing here?