“Background check,” he mutters, his head dropping as he tugs his fingers through the long side of his hair.
“And did you do one of those on our new dancer here?”
“I was going to… but then…” He glances back at me, and I see his brain ticking, trying to work out how dangerous I actually am, trying to see how much shit he’s really in right now. He didn’t think I was a threat, that’s why he didn’t bother. He got his lap dance, and that was enough to trust me. I guess I can see why his sister is so pissed.
“You were thinking with your dick again, weren’t you, Brother?” she tuts, turning toward a fridge in the back of the room. She takes a bottle of water and pops the top before chugging some.
I stare at the two of them in shock. I almost can’t believe how much of a bitch she is to him when he’s been nothing but sweet to me. Guilt seeps in, and I can’t help but interrupt. “It was my fault. I should have told him who I was. It’s just I had a shitty night, and then, he was here when I came looking for you, and I think he felt sorry forme. I did ask for you when I first got here, but they said you were out this morning,” I babble and regret it immediately when her attention comes to me instead of her brother.
“What the hell are you doing here, Daisy?”
I stand, not liking the height advantage she has over me and the shitty way she’s making me feel. “I need a job,” I reply, as if it’s not obvious when I’m standing before her in stripper heels, a tank top, and booty shorts.
She looks me over like I’m speaking in Italian, not English.
“I said I need a job,” I say again, a little bitchier this time, because screw her for giving me attitude.
Her perfectly shaped brow rises, and I think I just surprised her. “Oh, I heard you, I’m just not sure what you think I have on offer for you?”
I meet her glare head-on, my eyes narrowing. “You know I can dance.”
“What the fuck am I missing, Sloane? You two know each other?” Asher pipes up, looking confused as all hell and way too cute in a lost puppy kind of way.
She ignores him. “What kind of trouble are you in? If you’re after money, I’ll sort you out, but I can’t give you a job here.” She reaches for her purse.
My heart sinks, and I go after her, stopping her in her tracks. “I don’t want a handout; I will work for my money. Come on, Sloane, when you and Orlando arrived in Rome, you turned my life upside down. You owe me this much.”
“How did you even get here? You know your parents and brother are worried sick.”
I roll my eyes, unable to help it. I might love my parents and especially my brother, but for the last five years, I have been lockedin a gilded cage because of them, and when he, the man I was forced to marry, disappeared all of a sudden, I saw my way out. “Plane then a bus — it was simple really, but that was the last of my cash. You know I have no experience in anything but dancing. Also, I don’t have a visa to work in the States, and we both know that means it’s going to be difficult to earn money anywhere else. I’m too old to even bother applying to any American dance school. Sloane, I need a fresh start.”
“And you think I will just give you a job?” She runs a hand along the length of her ponytail, considering me in the way my mother used to. Like I’m a petulant child she doesn’t know what to do with. “The men here will eat you alive.”
Defiantly, I fold my arms over my chest and tilt my head up. “I’m tougher than you think.”
I hear Asher snicker, but that just earns him another harsh look from his sister. “I’m sure you think you’re tough. But when you get out there on the stage, it’s a whole other thing.”
“I know what it is. Don’t forget, I sat in The Voliera night after night watching the dancers in the birdcages.”
She massages her temples like I’m giving her a headache. “You know the cops are looking for you. I have a good mind to call your brother and have him come and collect you.”
Oh, shit, that’s the last thing I need. I shake my head. “I thought you, of all people, would get it. You made me question everything. And you know if I go back home, they will just marry me off again. I have no skills, no money, no friends to help me.” I lock my eyes with hers. “You owe me this much.”
Her lips form a thin line. “I don’t owe you anything after the way you treated me,” she snaps back quickly, like it’s me who did a number on her, when we both know she and her husband are the reason my piece-of-shit husband is missing.
“You owe me a chance to get my life back on track.” I lock my eyes with hers, silently praying to anyone who will listen that she can see how desperate I am. That she gets it.
“You can’t turn her out on the streets, Sloane. She might not have any experience, but the girl can move, and you and I both know the men here will like her,” her brother interrupts, offering me a half-smile filled with sympathy.
I smile back, not sure why he wants to help me but grateful someone is on my side.
She looks between Asher and me, her lips forming a thin line. “You can stay on one condition. You call your brother and tell him where you are. I’m not having the cops beating down my door searching for some missing girl again.”
A small smile works its way onto my face, and I nod. Okay, that’s good and bad. My brother is better than my parents. He’s more understanding and cares about my wellbeing a hell of a lot more than they seem to. It’s just I know he’s going to be pissed, and the last thing I want is to do anything to upset him or have him show up here to drag me back to Italy. “Thank you,” I whisper, not sure what else to say.
She moves around behind her desk and sits in the office chair, typing something into her computer. “Where are you staying?” she asks, a little more warmth in her tone.
“Still waiting over here… for one of you to enlighten me as to how you know each other?” Asher says.
