Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Ava
W alking out of the restaurant, I can’t help but think about what just happened. I had heard Mr. Manarch has a son. Does the meeting I just had mean his son is running things? How is it I've never seen him before? Then again, why would I have? It is not like we frequent the same places.
One look tells you everything about him—he’s a criminal. A dangerous man who acts like he’s above everyone else. The kind of man you need to run away from. All I can do is hope for the best because this might not be good for me. But it doesn’t matter. There’s no other way.
It doesn’t matter that he has hazel eyes and strong arms. It doesn’t matter that everything came to a stop in his presence. It doesn’t matter that I felt attracted to him the moment I laid eyes on him. None of those things matter. What matters is finding a way to pay off Dad’s debt.
I walk home, praying he’ll agree to an arrangement. By the time I make it to my building, I’m exhausted. The apartment is quiet when I open the door, and I hope and pray it doesn’t mean Dad left and is getting into more trouble. I couldn’t deal with that, but a few steps in, I hear him snoring. Hopefully, the beating will stop him from gambling for a while or for good, but I’m not holding my breath.
The clock on the wall tells me I have less than an hour before I need to leave for the club. I am exhausted and don’t feel like working tonight, but it’s Thursday and the beginning of our weekend. With any luck, there won’t be too many assholes.
I’ve been working at Eros for a few months now, and it’s not bad. On good nights, I bring home one to two-hundred dollars in tips. On slow nights, I barely make enough to cover the Uber home. Most of the girls are nice. Everyone just wants to make money, like me. But like in any job, there are a few girls whose sole purpose is finding a rich husband. I just want to make enough money to cover Dad’s gambling debts and pay the bills. I steer clear of people. Fewer chances of getting into trouble.
Life has been hard over the last few years. I am twenty-three, but feel like I’m forty because everything falls on me. Dad’s paycheck never truly makes it home. I am more of a parent than he is. I just need a break. A timeout from the drama he brings home every day.
It would be nice to save money or buy clothes from a store with a price tag for a change. For once, it would be nice to have the luxury of buying something new, not something worn by someone else, be my age, and live life. But I must face reality. I need to live the life in front of me. Dad’s way of life has sealed my fate. I am on my own, always having to bail him out. I can handle it, but I’m tired.
“Ava, wait up.” I look up to see Brooke approaching the back door to Eros. I wait for her to catch up. “Hey, girl,” she trills as she joins me.
“Hi, Brooke.” I give her a warm smile. Brooke is usually okay to work with.
“How are you?” she asks as I open the door.
“Good…” the lie slips from my lips easily, “… and you?”
“Same shit. Dealing with Bryan as usual.” I like Brooke, but she overshares, and today, I’m not in the mood to listen to her go on and on.
“I hear you,” I reply distractedly, hoping she’ll get the message.
“Do you have a minute?” she asks seriously, pulling me to the side.
“Sure.” Obviously, my tone didn’t faze her, but I’m suddenly curious about the need for privacy. We talk some, but aren’t exactly friends.
“Um, well…” She looks around.
“Spit it out, Brooke,” I say, harsher than I should.
“I’m not sure if I should say something. It isn’t my place. Um… I saw your boyfriend with another woman.”
“Not my boyfriend. But thanks for the info.” I keep walking.
“That’s not all.”
I stop in my tracks. Can this day get any worse?
“It was Nancy.”
It doesn’t surprise me. The clothes on the floor looked cheap, and I thought I’d recognized them. The last time Nathan was at Eros, Nancy was all over him. They deserve each other. I have bigger problems than dealing with Nathan and his cheating.
“Thanks for letting me know, but as I said, he isn’t my boyfriend.”
“She’s a bitch. She’ll sleep with anyone who gives her attention and has money.”
I laugh bitterly. “She will have a rude awakening when she learns Nathan has nothing to his name. He lives a life he can’t afford. I should know.” The last part I say more to myself than Brooke.
“Shit.”
“I need to get ready. My shift starts in ten minutes,” I add, walking to the lockers.
I am currently wearing leggings and ballerina flats. I hate wearing the “uniform”, as they call it here, to work. It is a too-tight red corset with leather pants that look painted on. It makes me look like I work the streets, standing on a corner waiting for johns. Something about sex appeal. Makeup is expected to be over the top. Again, cheap. Eros is about the illusion of seduction. Sex on a platter. I don’t like to be seen outside dressed like that. I don’t need people getting the wrong impression. It’s not who I am. But at Eros, I have a role to play if I want good tips.
Three hours later, Eros is crowded. I always wonder how the fire department isn’t called to shut down the place every time I work. The place is definitely over capacity. There must be six hundred people here, and you can hardly walk around. If it weren’t for the money, I’d call the fire department myself.
I wish I could call it a night and go home to my pajamas. I could totally use a night in with a bucket of ice cream and the television, but the night is just getting started. Hopefully, I can make good tips tonight. My head is pounding since I skipped dinner, yet another sign of how broke I am. But in a few hours, I’ll be home resting. I need to power through this, and I know I can. I have been in worse situations.
The assistant manager approaches me. “Ava, Brooke needs your help in VIP.”
“Let me take these drinks to table five, then I’ll head up there.”
“Okay. You’ll have to take VIP three’s order. She’s stuck in one.”
“Got it.”
Another thing about Eros, there are multiple floors with VIP areas. The club was designed as an open concept, like a concert venue. There are places where people can sit on the sides and look at the main floor but still have the privacy they desire.
After dropping off the drinks, I take the stairs to VIP three. The room is filled with guys and women wearing skimpy clothes. Which is probably why I don’t notice him at first, but then I’m never in VIP. Has he been here before?
“Good evening. Welcome to Eros. Can I get you started with something to drink?” I ask, peering at him in confusion.
Why is he here? Is he following me? I need to get a grip. The whole city is here, so why wouldn’t he be?
“A full service for Manarch.” A man beside him says. It is the same man who sat beside him earlier, and I see a trace of resemblance. I don’t dare ask what a Manarch full service is. I am sure this must not be their first time here.
“Right away.” I flash my most professional smile and leave before anyone can add anything. I’m nervous just breathing the same air as Viktor. His eyes never stopped looking at me as I took their order. I swear he was gawking, but I couldn’t stop staring, either. I felt like we were the only two people in the club, like nothing else mattered. Not the people surrounding him or the music. Complete silence, just him and me.
I walk downstairs, endeavoring to get it together. I need to get over myself.
“VIP three wants the full service for Manarch,” I repeat at the bar.
“Shit,” the bartender says.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, confused and a little worried. If I don’t get this right, it might affect Viktor’s decision about Dad’s debt.
“I don’t know if we have everything. Since Brooke is still stuck, I’ll put some of the stuff together for you to take. I’ll be right back. Have to go out the back.” The bartender looks nervous.
“Okay.”
A few minutes later, he returns with a bucket filled with a few bottles on ice and a basket with cups, fruit, cheese, meats, and plates. There’s also a bouncer and a busboy, and I stare at them, confused. What the hell is this about?
“He’s carrying the bucket…” the bartender points at the busboy, “… and the bouncer is clearing the way.” He laughs.
“Right.” I smile.
Walking with the bouncer in front of me is nice as everyone moves out of my way. Entering the VIP, I see a woman whispering in Viktor’s ear. I don’t know why it bothers me, but it does. I am acting like he’s mine even though I don’t know him or have any claim on him. I look away but not before seeing a smirk on his face. How annoying that he caught me looking. I set everything down on the table then go to the basket and start taking things out.
“Does anyone need me to pour a drink?” No one speaks or moves for what feels like the longest thirty seconds of my life. A few people look to Viktor.
“Scotch, neat,” Viktor finally says, looking at me.
I open the bottle and pour generously—he’s Viktor Manarch, after all. As I walk to him, I notice the woman is no longer standing beside him. I didn’t even realize she’d moved. Another indicator I need to stay away from him. He takes all my attention, and I lose focus of my surroundings.
Our fingers touch when I hand him his drink. I feel the heat and quickly pull my hand back.
“Thank you, Ms. O'Brien.” His voice is deep, pure seduction. This man is trouble with a capital T.
As he takes the glass, everything spins, and I’m pretty sure I’m seconds from passing out. Without thinking, I put my hand on his shoulder to steady myself.