18 Emeric
Planning to leave Serenity at home later that day to go into work is kind of like signing my death certificate. She wakes up pretty decent for a person that relies on so much caffeine to survive, but the rage doesn’t kick in until I admit that I plan on going in alone.
“You aren’t going to abandon me here,” she all but screams. That dilated look is gone from her eyes, and the headache she kept complaining about seems to have disappeared too.
“I’m not abandoning you,” I grumble, eyeing her. “You had a bullshit night. You can do all the auction shit you want from the house. But you don’t need to be handling work today.”
She lifts her chin, ready to fight me like usual. “You didn’t answer any auction questions, did you?”
I shrug. “I can redirect questions for one more day. People can leave them with me or email you. We can get back to them.”
“Ha!” she scoffs. “There’s a lot more to it than that.”
“Oh, I know,” I reminded her. “I’ve done this before.”
She pops out a hip, glaring at me in yesterday”s outfit. She looks significantly better without the vomit in her hair. “I don’t want to work from home.”
“You won’t,” I reply, the corner of my mouth lifting. “You’re still out of your house.”
She snarls, slamming down the mug of coffee I gave her with too much aggression. “You’re missing the point!”
I shrug, leaning down to get into her space. “Would you like to come in and face Anita and Russell? They both know something serious happened, and I’m sure your doctor friend will want to check you over.”
Frowning, she looks away. “I need to remove Chad from the system.”
“Doe Eyes, that”s already done. You think I saw what he dared to do to you and left him on the list? He’s lucky some morgue isn’t adding him to the death toll for May.”
She blinks, turning her attention back to me. “You killed him?”
“Not quite. But it was pretty damn tempting after he dared to put his hands on you.”
Slowly, she nods. Mentioning Chad seems to sober her up some. There’s still some gray area on what happened, but I made sure Nate knew to delete Chad from the system, and if he couldn’t figure it out I’m positive Russell helped. When I have time, I hope to boot Skai out too for letting him in through the side door.
“One day,” she mutters. “I will do one day of work at your house if your home computer works well enough and I can get all the auction paperwork uploaded online. Then we can get the members who want to participate and split them up with new people who may want to join.”
All of that sounds like a headache to me. “Fine. It’s in the living room. I’ll get you set up. I have a little extra time today since my class is canceled-”
“It is?” she asks, stress creasing her brow. “Is it a good idea to cancel those classes?”
“It’s my class, so it’s my choice. And I’m in no mood to teach people how to strip today.” I sent out an email to anyone who signed up, and I didn’t offer an explanation. I can barely handle going in right now when I’d prefer to be here, making sure she’s safe. But I’m going to suffocate her if I keep staring her down, and it’ll be good to take a breather.
She glances away, and I know once again she probably wants to argue. I turn from her, marching into the living room to help her set up just as my phone buzzes. The caller-ID makes me want to groan. It should be Vinny, but it might be Jo, and either one of them is going to give me a horrific headache.
I silence the call. That’s something I can deal with at work, not here while I try to get her situated. For a few minutes I’d like to be around Serenity and not have stress-filled moments.
~~~
“Huh. Did you break any teeth?”
“That’s what you’re focused on?” I growl through the phone, taking to the call on my way to work. I’ve already got a message from Serenity, and I know she’s going to give me shit for asking her to relax for a day. “Not on the fact that I beat the hell out of a club member?”
“New people mess up all the time,” Vinny tells me, and I can hear the tiredness in his voice like I usually can in Jo’s. He’s better at masking it, so whatever has happened now must be getting to him. “So long as this didn’t happen during the auction or in the middle of the club, it should be fine.”
“It happened at Feel Good.”
“Even better. That place should’ve been shut down years ago.”
I agree. Emilio gave me a brief summary of how he learned about the place before Serenity burst back into SS last night and Callie sent me way too many messages detailing her experiences when she worked there. It used to be the skeevy strip club where she first encountered Nate.
So really, I don’t feel bad about leaving fresh blood on the floor. Honestly, it’s not the grossest thing there.
“Sure. You two decide when you’re coming back yet?”
“No man, your foster brother is being a dick.”
I chuckle as I pull into the lot, happy to hear something familiar that actually lifts my mood. This morning is as confusing as last night, and if I didn’t think Nate would rip my balls off for dropping the weight of the club on his shoulders for a second day I wouldn’t even be here.
But we’re in charge. If both of the bosses are absent for a couple of days people will talk and the rumors will start. I really don’t want to deal with that.
“Wayne messaged Jo,” Vinny goes on, and that’s got to be the main reason for his call. There’s a protective note in his voice that always comes out when people talk about or to his wife. “He was irate at three this morning, complaining that she got into Serenity’s head and convinced her to, and I quote, slut it up.”
“Wayne does know his daughter’s in her twenties, right?”
“You know the whole family is fucked up, right,” Vinny replies, his voice lacking any emotion. It doesn’t surprise me, not if we’re talking about the Zimmermans. He might love Jo, but that’s where his cares end. Maybe Serenity is on the list now too, which messes with my head.
“So Wayne’s always been this way?” I press. Talking to Vinny about this feels surreal, but if anyone has information on Serenity’s family it’s going to be him and Jo.
“Can’t say for sure. Wayne condemned his sister when she got pregnant with Jo.”
“Oh, so he’s always hated premarital sex then.”
Vinny just grunts in response. “He’s a doctor so he’s smart but he lacks people skills. Very cold and calculated towards the girls if I remember right.”
“Serenity and Vienna?”
“Oh, so you met the sister,” Vinny says with a chuckle. “The younger one’s a klepto. She’s going to get in some major trouble soon if she isn’t careful.”
“And Serenity?”
“She’s more reserved,” Vinny replies. “Good at listening, used to like attention. She was shallow, but I haven’t talked to her in a long time. Jo wanted her to be part of the club so she must”ve changed. She’s the one that fought to have Serenity join as a manager. Her father always kept her in a perfect, protected little shell.” He grunts. “Things change when you grow up. Serenity needed to learn to think for herself, so Jo requested we call her when she learned we had to go back to Florida.”
I frown. Serenity doesn’t hold her tongue a whole lot, unless it’s sex related and even that is changing. Protected and sheltered? Sure. But she isn’t ignorant either, despite the mind games her father seems to like to play.
As far as I’m concerned Serenity is the closest thing to perfect I’m ever going to get. And I’ve only scratched the surface when it comes to her.
Hopping out of my car, I try to focus on what we were talking about. “Her dad’s a freak. He kept asking about her virginity.”
“Oh yeah, Jo said he’s really paranoid about that. He thinks since her cousin had sex for fun that’s what got her, and I quote, ‘damned by the devil.’”
I snort, opening the door. Security is just checking in and I nod to the guy setting up. “Jesus. He really doesn’t know shit about Alastair, does he?”
“He never tried. That would mean he’s involved with the family, and as soon as Porsha got pregnant he alienated them. Why do you think Jo never went for visits up north?”
I never thought about it. It wasn’t really relevant when I met them, and even less so now. “Wayne’s a piece of work. I guess his patients don’t need to know about his personal life, but I might mention it to Emilio all the same. He words for Zimmerman.”
Vinny groans. “Yeah. He’s a mess. I doubt Milo’s going to like what he hears if Wayne’s spiraling again. He’ll tell his dad to drop Wayne as a client if he becomes an issue. Gianno is picky like that.” He coughs, and I can’t tell what he’s doing on the other side of the call. “Serenity turned out alright so though. Not sure what to say about her sister.”
She seems helpful, but I don’t mention that to Vinny. I don’t know enough about her, just that she cared about her sister’s wellbeing last night. Klepto or not, she’s more compassionate than her Dad is. “Nice enough kid.”
“Troubled kid is more like it. But she’s got a good heart, so there’s that.”
I roll my eyes, switching topics. There’s a reason I took the call, and it wasn’t to listen to Vinny badger me about Serenity. I’d rather hear about Florida, but they aren’t saying much. “I banned Chad. the guy causing issues. If I can swing it I’d rather ban this other guy too, Skai.”
“Jo’s got a novel out to Serenity about that,” he agrees. “He absolutely can’t be allowed back. I don’t give a fuck where things happened. We don’t allow anyone who dodges consent to stay.” He hesitates. “That Skai kid is an idiot, but we don’t ban people for opening doors.”
“So you want him to have the opportunity to do something else dumb?”
“No, I want you to not ban people because you’re pissed about Serenity being hurt.”
My jaw clenches. I don’t need the reminder about what a piece of shit he is. I’m just moving to the stairs when I hear security call out behind me, and I glance over to find the guy waving. What the hell was his name? “Hey, I’ll call you back.”
“Na, don’t worry about it. I can’t bring my phone back in. Just message if something else goes down.”
I shrug, hanging up when the guard beckons me to come back to the door. We open late and close early on Sundays, and most of the staff isn’t even in yet to set up. Jogging back, I catch the name on his badge. Drake.
Damn, I didn’t recognize him outside of Feel Good, but Emilio did mention offhand that he occasionally works a shift or two here to fill the gaps. “What?”
He taps the screen, pointing to the monitors upfront. The security room is different from the check-in area and only select staff can enter. For safety the exterior cameras and all entrance points are constantly monitored. Drake peers up at me from his seat, lifting a brow. “David’s here.”
I frown. I didn’t call him. I’m betting that friend loop talked to Serenity and through the grapevine he found out I’m here. “Buzz him in.”
Drake nods without question, turning back to work as the door clicks open. The locks are automated once the deadbolt is disengaged, and I turn to head back to the front. He’s already through the doors, tugging at the collar of his shirt and looking like he hasn’t slept.
“It’s pretty damn early.”
He smirks, nodding. Without Myla walking beside him he carries himself like a different man. Still very commanding when he walks in, but he’s usually focused on his partner and less attuned to what’s going on around him. Half the time I doubt he’s paying that much attention to me.
Now? He looks pissed and his eyes don’t leave mine.
“Your house is going to smell like a perfume store when you get home,” he grunts, and I lift my eyebrows. “Anita went to see Serenity, and apparently that means Myla and Laci have to go along. Whenever they invade my house, it smells like a store for a few days.”
“Charming.”
He taps something in his breast pocket, nodding to the stairs. “We need to talk.”
I nod, picturing Chad on the ground, and turn to the office steps. I doubt David showed up this early for anything other than him. It’s going to be a long ass morning.
~~~
When David leaves, I’m left staring at the envelope in my hand. He told me all about Liam and how he got rid of the problem. It’s different circumstances than Serenity, but after his recap I’m almost sure the culprit is the same.
I’m not familiar with date rape drugs, but from what David told me Serenity acted a lot like Myla once did when she was under the influence. I’m just not sure how to tell Serenity that. She’s in denial about enough things, and even if she admits Chad slipped her something at Feel Good, it’s different actually knowing what the name is and what it could’ve done to her.
Dragging a hand across my face, I wonder what I’m supposed to do next. I have hours before the club closes, and the staff is just starting to trickle in. Serenity keeps messaging me, and apparently the impromptu girls day freaked her out.
I don’t blame her. She seems to like Anita well enough, but I’m not sure she’s spent time with the other two. I still don’t believe that she has an inner circle of friends she relies on.
So when Callie stomps up the stairs, it”s just another problem to add to the day.
She holds up her hands before I can say a word. “Listen, Nate and Milo are taking care of it.”
I stare at her, wondering what weird things happened now. “What?”
She cringes, crossing her arms as she studies me. “Chad’s here.”
I stand and that fury from last night returns. Of all the goddamn things that could happen this morning -
“Stop,” Callie scolds, poking me in the chest. “They saw him by the doors when they went to talk to Drake, and none of them will let him in the club. We can call the cops if you’d like, but Milo said I should come chat with you.”
“I’m surprised he managed to come all this way,” I grumble. Yesterday he looked pretty dead to the world when I was finished with him, and now he’s standing outside the club?
As if I’d just sit back and let him get near her again.
“Oh yes,” Callie agrees, and there’s a tiny bit of glee on her face as she speaks. “He’s in a bad mood because of the severance email the club sent terminating his membership.”
“I didn’t send a-”
I cut myself off. I didn’t send one, but Serenity sure as hell did. I told her I’d take care of things, but she’s gone ahead and resolved the problem herself. He’s no longer in the main system, but his information is saved just in case. She had to dig around to find it I’m sure, so she didn’t trust me when I told her he’s out of the system and went snooping. I saw the BCC email pop up but I haven’t really checked to see what she’s been doing with everything going on this morning. I should’ve known she’d want to have her say and formally revoke his membership. “Serenity sent it.”
“Yes,” she replies, bobbing her head. “And he’s pretty sure he needs to speak directly to her about it.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose, wondering what else can go wrong today.
“But for the record,” Callie continues, pressing her hands to my desk. There’s a sparkle in her eyes. “I highly approve of the way you dealt with him.”
My jaw ticks, and I can’t imagine who told her that. “I just needed him to understand Serenity is off limits.”
She cackles, standing up to press a hand to her stomach as she laughs. “I’ll say! Milo just told us about the way you defended her. You could’ve stopped after the first swing instead of turning him into a bloody mess.”
I flex my hand, the dull ache in my knuckles reminding me why that isn’t true. “No, I couldn’t.”
“Oh, you’re smitten,” she coos, playfully poking me when I stand. “You’ve got it bad.”
“Shut up, Callie.”
“Let’s go talk to him,” she continues, bouncing towards the door. How she manages that in her work heels I’ll never understand. “He’s fucking mad. Absolutely livid with Serenity. Keeps saying how he hates her.”
I scoff. “It’s not his place to hate her.”
She frowns, turning back as she waits for me to catch up. “Come again?”
“I’m the only one that gets to hate her,” I snap, thinking of the whispered words from last night. “He doesn’t even deserve that.”
If Callie finds that strange, she doesn’t comment. Instead I catch her smirking, and I already know I’ve said too much.
But Chad? If he doesn’t get the hell out of my club, I’ll put him beneath it.