Fuck, I bet his skin felt just as cool as it did the other night. It would stave the fire beneath mine. I just knew it would cool me down and force me back to Earth.
Without fully meaning to, I had inched close enough to hear bits and pieces of their conversation as they ate their food.
Food I had helped cook.
Food from a menu I’d created myself.
A shiver ran down my spine, tingling down my body as the frustration from earlier dissipated. I could hear the woman sigh after something Pretty Boy said that I couldn’t make out.
“Crew…” She slid a palm down her face, suddenly looking as done as I had been just a few seconds ago. “I know the guy who owns this place. He’s a client of mine and we have a great business relationship. I could easily get you a job here if you’d just let me.”
Crew, huh?
Pretty Boy slumped against his seat, abandoning his plate. “How many jobs have you gotten me, now? I don’t know what it’ll take for you to understand that I can’t just do what normal people do.”
“What’ll it take for you to understand that what you do is dangerous?” The woman’s voice was laced with snark.
Pretty Boy—Crew—scoffed at her. “I made four hundred bucks from one John the other night. I like what I do, and I can make bank doing it. I hope you’re not slut-shaming me, Willow.”
His joke fell flat. Willow only shook her head. “Just think about it, okay? This place isn’t all that bad. I know Matt well enough to know that much.”
I highly doubted she knew Matt very well at all, then. He was nowhere to be seen the majority of the time, allowing Brandt to run whatever fuckery he wanted to.
Against my better judgment and despite all I knew about this place, I took a few steps toward their table with an easy smile. My mouth was moving before I could stop myself, using their conversation as an in. “My apologies for eavesdropping, but did I hear you know Matt?”
At first, Crew looked at me with nothing more than annoyance. Then, afterWillow grinned at me with sparkles in her eyes, I could see him stiffen in my peripheral vision.
Willow pushed a piece of hair behind her ear, sitting straighter in her seat while her gaze roamed over me. “Yes, I’ve been working with him for a couple of years now. My friend and I were just discussing the recent opening in your staffing.”
She seemed oblivious to the fact that she was making goo-goo eyes at a man with zero interest. She also had no idea we didn’t have staff openings, or that her friend was sweating bullets at my mere presence.
Still, I played along to hide my true agenda. What that was, exactly, I still didn’t know. “Oh? Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you…” I paused.
“Willow.”
“Willow. Are you the one looking for a job?” I turned to Crew.
If you looked up the definition of startled in the dictionary, you’d see a picture of his face front and center. “No. I’m quite happy with my current occupation, thank you.” He said it like a threat, biting his words. The sneer on his face twisted the corner of his lips. Any further, and his teeth would show.
“Oh?” Surely, I was adding fuel to a building fire. I couldn’t help myself.
Crew’s jaw ticked as he ground his molars. Willow perked up, stumbling through an explanation. “He works freelance jobs.”
That was news to me. Was sex work a side gig? “Like odd jobs here and there?”
“Yes, he’s, uh…” She glanced back at Crew. “Good with his hands.” The red strands in her hair bobbed as she nodded, congratulating herself on her answer while Crew’s mouth parted in shock.
Ah. So sex workwasthe freelance job. With a glance to the side, I hummed as I worked through shit in my head. Was I infatuated enough to give this a shot? I doubted he’d even take the offer if I gave it to him.
It was tempting, though, if only to say I tried. So tempting, I pulled my phone out from my back pocket. “Good with your hands, huh? I actually need someone to help around the place. Brandt, my direct boss, is so busy that I’m left with quite a few tasks. I’m only one guy, y’know? It’s getting difficult to keep up.”
Not a full lie, but close to it. I could use the help, and watching Crew’s nose scrunch up in irritation was just too good to pass up. Atwitch began just under his eyelid. The scar just above his eye called to me. I wondered how he got it, like the multitude of others on his body.
“I’m not looking for a job.” The stern tone in his voice caught me off guard enough to regain my full attention.
Willow scrambled straighter in her seat, waving a dismissive hand around. “He’s stubborn and refuses to believe he needs something more… stable, you could say. Is this a position with the opportunity to grow?”
The position I’d just made on the spot that I didn’t even know the name of? “Yes, absolutely.” Another white lie. Well, at least I was on a roll.
