“You bring guests in all the time,” I return.
She curls her lips. “I’m not an employee. I’m the employer. Ergo, what I say goes.”
“Seems pretty hypocritical to me,” I say.
She unfurls her fan with a loud clack, wielding it toward me like a weapon. “Sister, you are welcome to start your own club anytime you wish. And when you do so, your rule will be law within its walls. Until then, you’re under my jurisdiction.”
I’m about to clap back with another smart remark when I realize that I need this job. I’m working in my chosen field—or at least one adjacent to what I dreamed I’d be doing—and I make good money doing it. I have a beautiful apartment in a safe part of the city, eat at expensive restaurants, and wear some of the finest fashions available. And it’s all because of my sister. Because she reached out to me at my lowest point and offered me a steady gig.
So I instead close my mouth.
Rouge grins, walking a slow circle around the three of us. “Because of Dr. O’Rourke’s heroic actions, we are choosing not to involve the police. We absolutely could have him arrested because he is technically trespassing on Aces Underground property.”
“I came in because your bouncer allowed me,” Harrison snaps.
Rouge holds up a finger. “And the rules have since been clarified to Chet. They’ve been clarified to you as well, Doctor. You’ve been asked to discreetly see yourself out, yet here you still are.”
“But he deserves to stay,” I chime in.
Rouge turns her eyes to me, her eyes almost red as they sear into me. “I wonder, Bianca, how Dr. O’Rourke even knew that you were in distress in the first place.”
I open my mouth, but the words are stuck in my throat.
Why was Harrison there?
Was he spying on me?
Did he see me walk into the grand suite with Mr. Calloway? Was he jealous?
He wouldn’t have heard anything. I couldn’t make any noise after the body collapsed onto me.
I’m grateful he was there…but my sister makes a good point.
“Furthermore,” Rouge continues, “I’ve had a chance to examine the body. It’s already begun to exhibit signs of decay. His skin has become waxy, his eyes have clouded over, and his temperature has lowered significantly.” She folds her fan back up and claps it into her other hand. “He’s been deceased for an hour, perhaps longer.” Her eyes glint with a roguish shine. “So what, dear sister, were you doing in that hour before his death was reported to me?”
Harrison and I lock our gazes on one another.
We know exactly what we were doing.
And I’m pretty sure Chet knows as well.
“I was… I was in shock,” I say after an endless pause. “I think we both were.”
Harrison nods. “We were comforting one another.”
I almost laugh at that. It’s not technically a lie. I’m much more at ease after letting Harrison’s huge cock rip through me.
Rouge purses her lips. “I see.” She runs her fingers along the ridges of her fan as she turns to Harrison. “Nonetheless, policy is policy, Doctor. It’s nothing personal, but if I make exceptions for you, I will be expected to make exceptions for everyone else. Aces Underground is not a charity, and people are not entitled to membership, no matter how ruggedly handsome they may be.” She traces her free hand up and down his arm, which makes me want to smack her. “But you’re an important man in the city. It would not be surprising for you to one day receive an invitation to become a member in your own right.”
I have to stifle another laugh. People are members of Aces Underground at Rouge’s pleasure, and many remarkable people in Chicago have never received an invite. Most members have some sort of exceptional power or influence that Rouge can weaponize for her own means.
While Harrison is undoubtedly a decent physician in a good hospital, he doesn’t quite fit that bill.
So unless his friend Maddox reappears out of thin air and starts bringing him to the club, this will be the last time he sees the interior of Aces Underground.
But I’ll be damned if it’s the last time I see Harrison.
I bow my head in mock submission and step out of the Green Door’s path. “Fine. Rules are rules.”
