I’m unsure what his underlying meaning is. Perhaps it’s a cryptic way of saying he does more than just keep customers happy with drinks and dancing.
He finishes his whiskey, setting it down on his cherry oak desk beside him. “That woman down there—the one in the green dress.”
I scan the crowded floor below, wondering why it is he wants us interested. To be honest, I can give a shit less what kind of business he built for himself but when my eyes lock on the woman in the green dress—the only green dress, my heart stutters.
“Perfection and beauty. Am I right?”
I give no sign. My face wears the same stony expression it has the entire time. But deep down, my mind is racing becausewhat the fuckis she doing here? Danika stands by the bar, her short emerald dress complimenting her long brown copper locks. When she turns, leaning against the bar, elbows tucked protectively into her side, the female next to her laughs. I recognize her friend from the diner.
If Bullet notices, he doesn’t let on. For good reason. If Alexander finds out she’s affiliated with us in any way it can make her a possible target or leverage for anyone becoming our enemy with a drop of a hat. Men like Alexander are unpredictable and you never know where their head is. We don’t know this guy from Adam, so we can’t begin to trust him now.
“Are we done?” My outburst of a question catches him off guard as he slowly turns my way.
“So, he does speak.” He grins, heading for the door, and I allow him to pass. “If you’ll excuse me… I do look forward to hearing from your President.” With that, he nods, leaving us behind with two of his men waiting to escort us out.
Bullet and I exchange a look.
I need to get Danika out of here.
SEVENTEEN
Danika
Lydia parks her two thousand eighteen Cadillac in the side parking lot of the club. Snow still blankets the pavement and sidewalks left over from the storm as we walk up to the front entrance, red velvet ropes standing on either side of us. With the music beating loudly, you can hear it thumping from the walls where we stand.
Inside, the same huge walls scale the crowds who dance and drink with sloppy joy on their faces. Some look to be enjoying themselves a little too well with possible drugs affecting their systems, I’m sure.
Tonight, I want to be numb, not to feel, and when following Lydia to the bar to order a drink, my body hums with excitement. A thrill I haven’t felt in a long while. The memory of what exactly a thrill feels like differs from the present. But this will do.
Lydia moves her hips waiting for the bartender as the thump of heavy techno music beats through the speakers and vibrates the walls. My short green dress wasn’t what I planned on wearing tonight, but Lydia talked me into it. Besides, it’s part of my plan on not giving a fuck. This is who I am after all so I might as well flaunt it. Apparently, my only appealing quality is people thinking of me as a sex object.
I remember earlier and how Eric’s hand felt on me. The feeling of shrieking back inside myself, floating outside my body.
Lydia hands me my drink, and I take it back a little too fast because the burning in my throat creates a coughing spell.
“Damn. Slow down, girl.”
I wipe the access liquor from my lips. “I’m doing it up tonight. Go big or go home.” But at my words, my stomach twists.
Lydia’s brows furrow, concern written over her face. “Are you sure everything’s okay?”
She knows this isn’t me. Well, the new me, she never got to meet the old Danika because the old Danika would have been pounding shots and telling men to fuck off. Her worry for me is insignificant right now. “I’m Fine! I just want to have fun. That’s all.”
With a smile she says, “Good. But I really have to pee. When I come back, we’re dancing!”
I nod and take her drink, placing it down in front of me while I subtly move my hips in place. A warm feeling soaks its way through my veins, and I close my eyes, moving a bit more to the music. It’s like I’m being transported somewhere else, like floating on air.
I pop my eyes open to the bartender nodding at someone over my shoulder. I jerk in reaction when a heavy hand lands on the lower part of my exposed back where the material is cut out. A reaction I swear will haunt me forever. Luckily, my scar is covered.
“I didn’t mean to startle you. Are you enjoying yourself?” A tall, dark-haired man in a grey suit eyes me from where he now stands at my side. His hand still lingers on my skin. He’s handsome and confident as he eyes me from top to bottom.
It’s a tad unsettling but…
My body isn’t screaming alarm bells.
“I am.” I take a sip from my drink, eyeing him over the rim of my glass. “I’m just waiting for my friend.” Good to tell him I’m not alone.
He nods with a grin, moving in before he says, “You are stunning. Is your friend perhaps your partner?”
