Chapter 1
Alexa
“Come on, Lexi. You never come out anymore,” whines my best friend, Mhairi.
“I never come out because I’m always working.”
“You own a business; you need to start taking a break. Stop acting like Cinderella every day and let your workers do their job. Let your hair down once in a while. You deserve to have some fun.”
I roll my eyes. I’ve heard this spiel many times before and it’s getting old. I built my own cleaning company from the ground up five years ago. I cleaned shitty bedsits, rundown accommodations that tenants had left in a rut, student accommodation, bars, and clubs. Now, we clean for corporate companies, hotels, and mansions. I’ve got the reputation I have because I’m bloody good at my job. I have over seventy-five staff and that number is climbing all the time. I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished. I can say that I’ve achieved everything I have on my own merit. I didn’t have a family trust fund or an inheritance to claim when I turned twenty-one. I started this business with less than one thousand pounds in my bank account. I was a struggling, single woman. Now, I can pay my bills and live a comfortable life. That’s all I ever wanted to do. It might not be a big ambition to some, but I’m a simple kind of girl who is easily pleased.
“Come on, please. Just tonight,” she pleads with puppy dog eyes.
God give me bloody strength. “I’ve got a new client meeting tomorrow. We’re taking over the contract for the new hotel chain, Loudon’s, in Glasgow city centre. This is big, Mhairi. It could set up my business for years. I can’t go in there smelling of booze with panda eyes. What will Mr Loudon think of me and my company? It isn’t very professional. I pride myself on good time keeping, a good job, and professionalism.”
“I’m asking you to come out for a couple of hours, not go dancing on tables and drink the bar dry.”
I growl out my frustration, bang my glass down on my desk, and stand up quickly. I really want to go home and have a hot bath and an early night, but that isn’t going to happen. I look down at myself and cringe. I’m covered in cleaning products, and my hair is thrown up in a messy bun. I look an absolute state. Yes, I own the company. Yes, I make a good amount. And no, I don’t need to get my hands dirty. However, I like my staff to see that I’m not work-shy. I won’t ask them to do something that I wouldn’t do myself. Besides, I like to get first-hand experience with all of my clients, and I like to clean. There is something very therapeutic about cleaning a mess.
“Is that a yes?” Mhairi asks with praying hands. “We can go to mine to get ready. I’ll have something you can wear.”
It isn’t the first time I’ve raided Mhairi’s wardrobe for something to wear. She had posh parents. Money was never a concern and she got whatever she wanted and then some. She has a wardrobe that would rival royalty. I get my fair share of hand-me-downs from Mhairi’s clear-outs because I’m not frivolous with my money. I wouldn’t dream of paying hundreds of pounds for one dress or handbag. Even though I now have that kind of money, I’m still happy to shop in high street shops or on Vinted.
“Yes! On one condition…” I hold up one finger and point it at my friend. “I’m out of whatever bar or club before eleven o’clock.”
“Cinderella shall go to the ball and Cinderella shall be home by midnight. You have my word. Scout’s honour.”
“Yeah, because you know the meaning of a Scout’s honour.” I roll my eyes at her again and can’t help but laugh at the look on her face.
She is trouble with a capital T, but I wouldn’t have her any other way. She’s one of the only people that I let take advantage of my good nature. She pushes until I cave in, but she only ever has my best interests at heart. She has held my hand, wiped away my tears, and been a shoulder to cry on over the years. She understands me, she knows everything about my family life, and she lived through my struggles to get my business off the ground. She stuck around throughout the good and the bad.
I grab my bag and phone from the desk, shut down my laptop, and leave my office with my obnoxious friend on my heels. I’m twenty-nine years old and I cannot say no to save myself. No wonder I get into endless trouble because of Mhairi. We’re opposites, but they do say that opposites attract. My life without her would be very… straightforward. Or if you ask Mhairi, without her in my life, it would be very dull.
I have a feeling that my life is going to be far from dull tonight.
***
“Woohoo!” Mhairi shouts over the music. “Here, shots time.”
I down the amber liquid and curse under my breath.Fuck my life.That was terrible, but it falls down my throat easily, making me feel all warm and fuzzy as it travels through my body.
I’ve lost count of how many drinks and shots we’ve consumed. It started with a gin and lemonade, which I can drink my body weight in and be neither up nor down, but then Mhairi gets carried away and one drink leads to another… and another. Bang goes my early night and getting out of here by eleven.
Fuck it. The damage is done now, I’m as well going the whole hog. I’ll pay the price for it tomorrow.
The music changes tempo and everyone is dancing and singing like loons. The atmosphere is electrifying. I really did need tonight, even if I won’t admit that to my best friend. I don’t let my hair down half as much as I probably should, but I’m fine with that. I made my choices. Good choices that have set my life on the right path. I just need to try and find the right balance of work and play, because right now, it’s mostly all work.
When I left school, I enrolled in college. I knew I’d never suit the university lifestyle and I wasn’t getting myself into debt for something I knew I’d hate. University wasn’t meant for me, and I was fine with that, but I was determined that wouldn’t stop me from making something of my life. I didn’t want to end up like my mother; divorced, single, and struggling to pay bills, working every hour possible just to put food on the table and make ends meet. She did her best for me and my two older brothers when our father walked out without a backwards glance. No one can take that away from her, but I just wanted more for myself. That was the push I needed to better myself.
“Look, a pole has become available on the stage. Can you remember when we tried to learn how to pole dance?” Mhairi clapped giddily.
I remember, and I can recall how terrible we were. We went for three weeks, and every week, I had to ice a different part of my anatomy. It’s not for the faint-hearted. I wince at the thought. A pole and alcohol are a recipe for disaster where we’re concerned.
“Come on. Let’s have another shot.”
“Nope. No. Not happening.” I protest. “I’ve had enough.”
“Come on. I need my wing woman.”
