10. Jareth
The door to the private luxury suite of my bar, Luminosity, flew open.
“Killian.” I gave him a brief flick of my chin in acknowledgement as I poured a glass of Macallan thirty year double cask highland single malt scotch. He was the last of our group to arrive.
“Don’t you, Killian me,” he growled the moment he entered.
“I would never,” I responded in a tone that was decidedly mocking.
Killian Hook was a fucking primadonna rockstar. He’d gotten his way too many times in his booming career to expect anything else. Not that I played that game. He ultimately worked for me and the record label I co-owned. I didn’t give two shits about who he was and the fact that we’d become friendly over the past year didn’t mean anything.
The self-entitled rockstar’s long-legged stride brought him quickly to the bar. He grabbed a glass and poured himself a drink from the bottle I’d set down. In one long swallow, he finished that drink and made himself another. We didn’t use any staff during our monthly poker game to safeguard the sensitive information discussed.
Killian was clearly bent on starting our meeting with drama instead of getting directly to the point, finding out which company had won the vote, and knowing who was about to be destroyed. He paced the room, one hand holding his glass while the other ran through his chin length curly hair. Hair that his fans screamed over, and if he was to be believed, a few had tried to cut off a piece as a souvenir.
I sat down at the table in the center of our suite. “What have I done now?”
There was no doubt in my mind that the four other men already seated knew this was going to happen. The five of them had grown up together, some in worse situations than others, meeting the year they played on their state-wide little league travel baseball team. Their friendship was tight after twenty-two years. A little over a year ago, they needed my help with a situation and afterward decided they could trust me enough to let me into their collective circle. Besides requesting my silence about our activities, I’d been required to have tattoo done that matched theirs. A crown with flames surrounding it.
The bastards sat back in their seats sipping their drinks and watching the show. “Do I get any context here?” I looked briefly at the men sitting around the table: Jack Finn, NHL Hockey Player, Archer Loxley, Olympic Archer, and the irony of his name was lost on no one, Trey Oso, the Head and Lead Designer of my Couture Fashion House, and Luke Vega, Hollywood Actor.
“I’m surprised you haven’t heard something about it yet,” Luke offered with a shrug.
“I have a fucking problem with you, Vizier,” Killian strode around to the other side of the table.
“How is that different from our usual?” I asked. I could play along because this little game was effective in taking my mind off Hazel. This week with her had been tense following the situation in her bedroom last Wednesday. My control around her was already frayed and continued to get worse each day now that I knew what her soft body looked like underneath her well-fitted clothes.
Jess had done a far better job than I’d given her credit for when she chose Hazel’s wardrobe. I hadn’t realized until now that the clothes Hazel typically wore had not done her shape justice. Today, the red silk shirt cupped her generous tits, and the black pants reminded me how much I wanted to grab onto her thick hips and let her ride my face.
I held back from telling her that she looked gorgeous. That my thoughts constantly revolved around her and that I felt like I was losing my fucking mind, but I stopped short knowing it would only encourage the feelings she had for me.
Goddamnit. I tossed back the rest of my drink. I’d just gotten word today her house was almost finished. Maybe it was time I let her go before I lost my resolve to stay away.
Killian threw himself down onto one of the padded luxury seats across the table from me. “Did you or did you not sign the Lost Boys to your record label?”
I raised an eyebrow. “Last time I checked, yes.”
“Out of all the bands, why did you have to sign Peter Fucking Young.”
I had not personally worked on this acquisition, my co-owner, Lance Scott had. Not that I saw a blatant problem with the situation. The Lost Boys were always at the top of the charts and had been looking for better representation. We fit that bill. “Clearly I’ve missed something. Anyone care to fill me in?”
Archer rubbed the back of his neck. “We grew up with Peter.”
“He fucked Killian over,” Trey finally explained. He picked off the tiny piece of lint on his tailor-made outfit lined with gold thread. The man-made killer clothes and accessories. His claim to fame was the individualized wardrobes he was commissioned to design for the elite. I’d even had him make specific pieces for me over the years.
I held back from rolling my eyes. Getting information from this group was like pulling teeth. After being friends for over twenty years, they had their own silent communication and often forgot I didn’t get most of their inside jokes.
“We’d always planned to start our own band from the time we sang in his mother’s garage,” Killian answered, his brown eyes taking on a far away look. “We’d said we’d make it together or not at all. Apparently, he forgot that promise when he was approached and signed a recording contract without me.” His jaw tensed.
“While I appreciate a good vendetta as much as the next person, this was purely a business decision, Killian.”
“Don’t you wonder why his last label was ready to hand him off so fast?” Luke asked, and a faint smirk tugged at his lips, like he had a secret he was bursting to share.
I frowned. “He and his band are on track to bring in enough money this year for us to take a chance.” I had asked Lance to make sure thorough background checks were done before we signed a new band. A prickle of unease ran down my spine, telling me someone fucked up. I’d heard rumbling that Peter and Killian didn’t get along, but had assumed it was to do with industry competition or rivalry.
“I ran into his sister when I was home last month,” Luke said, drawing out his explanation.
I stayed silent, determined to wait and not play into his dramatics.
He sighed, quickly catching on. “She complained that he was becoming a problem. His behavior and attitude was putting him on thin ice with everyone. And he was drinking too much. She was worried about him.”
“So not only did I sign Killian’s mortal enemy, the man needs either rehab or a constant babysitter so he doesn’t go off the rails.” I needed another fucking drink.
“And his bandmates are getting fed up too,” Luke added.
“Good fucking luck,” Killian tilted his glass towards me in a mock salute. Dick.
I nodded. “Excellent. I’ve always loved a challenge.” Inside I was fuming that the people I hired had not disclosed any of this to me. Whoever had dropped the ball was about to be fired, holiday season or not. I did not tolerate incompetence.
“Are we here to bitch and whine all night or play poker?” Jack asked. “Some of us flew in to be here.” He was currently playing hockey in Colorado.
I appreciated Jack’s no-nonsense arrogance.
“Ohh the big shot hockey player decided to grace us with his presence. We should all bow down to him.” Archer flipped Jack the middle finger with a huge grin.
“I hate you,” Jack muttered and rolled his eyes while Archer made a kissy face at him. The two of them had lived next door to each other growing up and were more like brothers. In fact, most of this group survived on insults and hostile conversations.
“Now that we are all here we can finally call the business part of this meeting to order.” Trey stated. He was the most level-headed of the group and that wasn’t saying much.
This part of the meeting was serious.
“It’s my turn to call this meeting to order. I want to note all the Merry Men are in attendance.” We all groaned at Luke’s description of us. True, as the shell company we’d created was called Sherwood Inc., which was aptly named since we were taking from rich corrupted bastards and giving to the people they fucked over.
“No one is recording this dipshit. We go over this every month,” Jack grumbled.
Luke ignored him. “Trey, please share with us which target has been selected this month.”
Trey nodded. “It was unanimous, except for Jareth’s vote. His selection, Perennial Prose Publishing Inc., has been chosen.”
Archer’s typical grin was replaced by the hard line of his lips. He gave a curt nod to me in acknowledgment. Their selection didn’t surprise me. Sexual harassment typically jumped the queue in our voting system.
Isabelle, Archer’s sister, had been the victim of it years ago before he or any of the group had made it big. From what I gathered she’d been a big sister to all of them. She let it go and didn’t report it for as long as she had because the family counted on the money from her job to survive.
The day she died was when it all came tumbling out. Fifteen-year-old Archer had found her diary documenting everything her boss had done. They didn’t have the money to hire a lawyer that was willing to take on such a well-respected person and business, so it was all swept under the rug. It almost destroyed Archer when there was nothing he could do about it.
The company his sister had worked for was the first they destroyed once they had the money and expertise to do so.
“Do you have everything you need?” Jack’s fingers drummed against the tabletop. Typically, if our pick was chosen, we took care of the implosion of said business or person.
“I do. In addition to getting money for the victims, I’d like to put something aside for his wife and children. They are not complicit, and in fact, are victims of his abuse,” I informed them. “In addition, to the harassment, they have been involved in racketeering. I’m going to reach out to my contact in the FBI to give him the evidence I’ve pulled together to process the RICO case I know they’ve been working on.”
“Is everyone in agreement?” Trey asked.
Everyone nodded, their faces stonelike. What we did was illegal. We knew that. If we were found out it would be the end of all our careers. Which is why we were discrete and had created systems to make what we did look legitimate and couldn’t be traced back to any one individual.
“I’ve found numerous off-shore accounts. I’ll drain and reallocate the funds to our foundations and set it up so we distribute the money to all the victims before I release the evidence collected to the FBI.” When no one spoke up I continued laying out each step I’d take until each detail had been ironed out to the satisfaction of the group. I was used to working and making decisions alone and the hardest part of this was giving up control and allowing the group to have opinions and feedback about the methods I’d chosen. But I’d learned that we all needed to be on the same page for this to work.
Once the business portion of our meeting concluded, and drinks were refilled, we started our first poker game. Tonight was my designated night as the dealer. Since we didn’t allow outsiders into this gathering we rotated who played and who dealt the cards.
As we finished the last hand my phone buzzed in my suit pocket. I almost let it go to voicemail until I saw it was Jess. Knowing she was hanging out with Hazel at my penthouse for their book club, I picked up only to hear muffled voices.
Fuck.Was Hazel all right?
A few of the guys groaned when I pushed away from the table..
“Come on dude. Only emergencies. And work doesn’t count,” Luke chided me.
I flipped him off.
“Oh, come on, Hazel just say yes.” Jess’s voice finally came through clearly. Had she butt dialed me? I tapped the mute button so they couldn’t hear me or the idiots behind me.
“I don’t know, Jess. Christmas Eve is in three days.” I pictured her worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. What the hell was Jess trying to get her wrapped up in now.
“He’s incredibly handsome.”
“Well, yeah,” Hazel practically whispered.
“And now that I’ve met him, I can tell he’s got that bad boy vibe you seem to love,” another voice added to the conversation. I grinned, finally placing the voice, Niki, from the bar.
A smirk hovered at my mouth. Were they talking about me? Is this why Jess called? I was starting to think it was less of an accident.
“They say to get over one man you should get under another.” What the fuck?
“I don’t know. Jareth—” The hesitation in Hazel’s voice soothed the beast within me ready to tear whoever this fucker was apart.
“Sweetie, you’ve had a thing for him for years. Don’t you think if he felt the same way, something would’ve happened by now?” another voice said softly, almost as though comforting her.
A sniff and a request for a tissue had me fisting my hand so tight around my phone I was lucky it didn’t crack.
“But the kiss at the party… ” A jagged breath followed.
“Was just that. Has anything else happened since then?” I already hated this person who spoke a twisted version of the truth to her.
I wanted to yell into the silence that followed. After what was likely seconds and not the minutes that it felt like, Hazel responded. “Not exactly. He still keeps pushing me away.”
“You know I love you Hazel,” Jess started and paused. Tact wasn’t her strong suit, so I knew she was toning down what she wanted to say. “He just isn’t interested, boo.”
“You’re right,” Hazel sniffled louder, her ensuing muffled sob cut through the phone and my heart. I hated that I kept hurting her. This was exactly why I tried to keep my distance. Why had I insisted she come stay with me?
“We don’t want to be,” Niki said, “but I think Jess is right. You haven’t been on a date in forever. You signed up for that app and still haven’t gone out with anyone after that first one.”
“You’re right, I haven’t, but I wonder how truthful they’re being about what they want and who they are. After I went on that date and the guy didn’t want another because he didn’t look at the whole body profile pic I kind of lost my confidence.” Rage curled in my belly, shooting out through my limbs. I’d have Amelia hack her account and find out who this douchebag was and find ways to hurt him.
“I get that. Why do you think I’m still single, Zelly?” The nickname surprised me.
“And Jareth… ” Hazel’s voice trailed off. I hoped to fucking God she hadn’t been about to say she feared the same was true of me.
“Is attracted to you. I have no doubt about that, but that’s not enough for him to make a move. It’s a ‘him’ problem, not a ‘you’ problem,” Jess advised. She was 100% correct, as much as I hated to admit Jess was right about anything.
“You’ve waited long enough for him,” Niki, who I was beginning to hate, commented.
“But things have been good the last few weeks. I feel like we’re connecting. Maybe with more time.” That was my girl, not willing to back down or give up on me. I hated the satisfaction settling in my chest. I didn’t want her pining over me, but I also didn’t want her with anyone else.
“Because you, sweetie, are irresistible and any guy would be lucky to have you. Hard truth though. When you go back to your own place, do you think these tiny steps forward will continue?” I officially hated this person.
“I… Well… ” For once silence followed Hazel’s stuttered words. “No, I guess not. Okay, Lacey, set me up on a date with your friend. Do it now before I change my mind.”
I couldn’t stop the roar that left my mouth. The phone went dead. “I’ll fucking kill him.”
“Do you need us to hide a body?” A smirk crossed Jack’s face. “You know I’m only here for a few days and the ground is starting to freeze. We’ll need to work fast.”
Luke chuckled. “Seriously, what’s going on?”
I didn’t respond right away. The anger surging through me was enough to make an inactive volcano active. “Hazel’s going on a date.”
“Do we hate the guy? Is he an asshole?” Luke asked.
Trey elbowed him. “That’s not why he’s pissed, moron.”
Killian, the fucker, just sat there and laughed. “Karma’s a bitch dickhead.”
Archer crossed his arms over his chest. “Maybe now you’ll get your head out of your ass and do something about her.”
“I didn’t know you two were a thing.” Luke shook his head.
“We’re not,” I said through clenched teeth.
“And you won’t ever be if you don’t make a move now.” I wanted to tell Archer to shut up, but what if he was right?
“I can’t.” Acid coated my tongue as I said those two words. “She’s too good for me.”
“Face it, Hazel’s too good for most guys. But do you want her to end up with some asshole that can’t give her what she wants and needs or you?”
“She wants forever. I can’t give her that.” I barely recognized the raspy voice coming out of me.
“Then be honest and give her right now. Give yourselves time to see if you can be more.” When did Archer get so good at romantic advice?
“It’ll never happen. She deserves better.”
Jack shook his head and stood up. With his hands resting on top of the table, he gave me a careless shrug. “Then you won’t mind if I give it a try. Hazel’s hot. I just need to get ahead of the douche her friends are setting her up with.”
A sheet of red coated my vision and pounding started up in my ears as my fist swung connecting with Jack’s face. “She’s mine you son of a bitch!”
Immediately, the other four pulled me off him and held me back. Jack, the fucker with a death wish, laughed uproariously as blood streamed down his cheek from a cut my ring had made. “Feel better now?” he asked.
“No,” I roared. The asshole was clearly baiting me and deserved what he got.
“So you don’t want Hazel, but you also don’t want her to be with anyone else?” Jack smirked.
“Fuck. No. Yes.” Damn it. I’d tried to stay away from her, but it was too late. My vision started to clear, even as my chest heaved from how worked up I’d been. Something deep inside me had cracked wide open. I couldn’t ignore my desire to be with Hazel any longer or that my feelings for her had grown into something I didn’t recognize.
Son of a fucking bitch.
I stopped struggling in their grasp.
“Let him go,” Archer suggested to the guys. Slowly their hands released me, making sure I wouldn’t make a move for Jack once I was free.
I rolled my shoulders and held up my hand to let them know I was good. “Sorry,” I grunted at Jack. I really wasn’t all that sorry. He baited me, knowing what my reaction was going to be so really wasn’t it his own fault?
“It’s fine. I’ll get you back one day. Forgot you had that fucking ring on though.” He wiped at his cheek and winced. Blood now smeared up his cheekbone.
I looked down at the medium square obsidian stone set in a thick gold band with a tiny diamond in the upper right hand corner. It was a replica of the one my father wore. I’d had it custom created based on old photos when I couldn’t find the original after his death.
I handed Jack napkins from the side table.
He waved me away. “I’m good. I get hit far worse on the ice.”
I needed to see Hazel. “I?—”
“Gotta go. Yeah we figured,” Trey said and laughed. “Don’t let us stop you. Just know that we are going to take full advantage of the free drinks and food tonight.”
“I’d expect nothing less,” I responded as I hurried from the room. Tonight I’d stop Hazel from agreeing to that date and we’d figure the rest out later.