Chapter 21
Mina
Night Of The Vegas Badlands Grand Opening
“Dear lord. How do you breathe in this thing?” Jaz asks as I tighten the laces on the back of the cocktail dresses we got for tonight. They are matching and absolutely stunning.
“Breathing? Who said anything about breathing?” I laugh as I tighten the last one.
“Okay. My turn!” She spins me as she takes hold of the laces.
“You know…Ouch!” She tightens the top tie. “You don’t have to be so rough,” I tease.
“Aww, hunny. I thought you liked it rough?” she laughs as she kisses my cheek. She tightens up the last part of the laces and steps back.
“Do you think he will be there tonight?” I ask as I look at myself in the mirror. My dark hair is in loose curls that hang halfway down my back. I stare at my reflection. Does doing any of this even matter?
“I know he will be there tonight. Cash went to his office to invite him, and his company is the clubs private security. It’s perfect.” She hands me a pair of my black heels and slips on her matching pair. They are black ankle boots with four-inch heels.
“I don’t think it’s going to matter.”
“What’s not?” she asks as she sits down on the bed.
“Seeing him tonight isn’t going to change anything. If anything, it’ll only make things worse.”
“How could they get worse?”
I meet her eyes in the mirror's reflection as I touch up my makeup.
“Seeing him is going to make me want him even more. I haven’t stopped thinking about him since the morning he left.”
“Or…Hear me out…You have one last fuck and then be done? You can use one of the empty apartments upstairs at the club.”
“I don’t want just one last fuck. I want him! I don’t understand…”
*Ding*
“Shit,” Jaz says as she grabs her phone.
“What?”
“The limo’s out front.”
“Limo?” I ask. Since when did we get a limo?
“Yeah. Cash sent it over. By the way, I had another idea for tonight.” She grabs her handbag and walks away down the hall. Why does she keep doing this?
“What idea?” I shout as I quickly grab my stuff. She doesn’t answer as she continues toward the front door. “Jaz…What’s your idea?!” I love this woman, but she fucking frustrates me sometimes.
She glances through the peephole of the door, then turns back to me, smiling.
“This is my idea.” She opens the door to Cassius and another guy standing there.
Cassius, aka Cash. Had I stayed working for Badlands, he would’ve been my new boss.
According to Jaz, he’s an amazing boss. And honestly, not bad to look at.
He’s a little older than us. Tall, with a toned body that’s covered in tattoos from what I can see.
You can tell he has muscles hidden beneath his clothes.
His dark hair is longer on top and styled to perfection.
He honestly looks like he should be in a magazine, not running a nightclub.
The man next to him is someone I’ve seen once before, but I can’t remember his name.
He was one of Declan’s friends, that’s all I know.
He’s a little shorter than Cash with green eyes that seem to pierce straight through me.
His brown hair is short and cut neat, just like his beard.
He’s more muscular than Cash, though. He kind of reminds me of the show Peaky Blinders. His suit even reminds me of the show.
“Hey, Cash,” I say with a small wave.
“Hey, Mina. Hey, Jaz. You ladies look stunning.”
“Awe. Thanks Cash. So…Are you going to introduce your friend?” Jaz winks at me as she steps outside.
“Sorry. Quinlan, this is Mina. Mina, this is Quinlan. He’s Irish.”
“You can just call me Quin.” He takes my hand and lifts it to his lips, kissing the back of it. “You look beautiful this evening.”
“Thank you. Jaz can I speak to you for a second.” She looks back at me then at Cash.
“We’ll just meet you two in the limo,” she says as she nudges Cash toward it.
“So. You want to tell me why a guy who looks like he just stepped out of Peaky Blinders is here?”
“He’s your date for this evening,” she smirks.
“I thought the idea was me trying to talk to Myles?”
“It is, but just in case, I brought a backup plan.”
“I never like your backup plans…They never work,” I huff.
“Listen, Quin is aware that he is basically just arm candy tonight.”
“Arm candy?” I ask, raising my eyebrow.
“Yes. You need to have a date for these kinds of things. The media will be there taking photos. People will see you with him…Myles will see you with him.”
I close my eyes and tilt my face to the sky, breathing in the warm air. Why does there always have to be a plan?
“Fuck it. Let’s go. The guys are getting bored in the limo.”
She follows my gaze to see both of them poking up out of the sunroof. She laughs as they struggle to quickly duck back inside.
“Listen, just use him to make Myles jealous. That’s all. And if for some reason it doesn’t work…well…” she waggles her eyebrows at me again.
“Nope. No, thank you.”
“Oh, come on, Mina! You haven’t gotten laid in what? Two months? Three?”
“Six.”
“SIX! You mean…”
I clamp my hand over her lips.
“Yes. Now shut the fuck up, get in the limo, and lets go. Please.”
“Fine. But if you don’t go for him tonight I might.”
“I thought you were after Cash?” I whisper as we get closer to the limo. She rolls her eyes and shakes her head.
“No. He has ‘too much going on’ to do anything. He said he didn’t think it would be fair to me with how much of his attention the club has. So yeah. I’m on the prowl tonight.”
The guys go silent as soon as we slide inside the limo.
“What’s up?” I ask as the two of them glance at each other.
“Nothing,”
“Nothing?” I ask.
“Quin just didn’t know what the plan was for tonight,” Cash starts.
“You two will walk into the venue together, just like Cash and I,” Jaz says. “There will be photos and possibly some people from the media asking questions. If you don’t know the answer, just pretend you didn’t hear the question.”
Quin changes spots with Jaz so he can sit by me.
“So…I hear I’m your arm candy for tonight?” he asks quietly.
“Uhh…”
“It’s okay. Jaz kind of told Cash, who sort of told me. I just wanted to get a clear answer from you so that I don’t overstep or anything.”
“She’s going to be the death of me,” I whisper on a huff.
“What?” Quin laughs.
“Jaz will be the death of me one of these days.”
“Hey! At least you will die happy because of me!” she snaps.
“Just tell me what you need, and I can help. I’m not going to lie, though, I kind of hope that if things don’t work out with him, you and I can get to know each other better…
” He laughs as his hand rests on my knee.
Normally, if I were any other woman, the warmth of his hand would be welcomed, but not to me.
It’s annoying, and I just want to get this night over with. Nothing is going how I wanted it to go.
“We’re here!” Jaz shouts as the limo pulls up to the curb. She wasn’t lying about there being a lot of photographers tonight. “Okay. Remember what I said. If you don’t know the answer, then you didn’t hear the question. And act like you’re together.” She lets Cash step out first and takes his hand.
“Welp, I guess it’s showtime,” Quin grins.
He steps out of the limo, and I can already hear the flash of the cameras going off.
This night is going to be hell.