“Doc’s on the line. Asking when you want him.”
Right. Doc. “Tell him tomorrow at noon.”
“By the way, there’s a girl out here claiming she’s waiting on you. You want me to tell her you’re busy.” He cocks a brow, looking toward the princess tucked in my arms. For being a showgirl on the strip, she sure doesn’t like being seen. Her reaction is throwing me off. So is mine. I don’t like the fact that he’s checking out her ass.
“Tell her I’ll be there in a sec.”
I’d forgotten all about Portia. Told her I was only going to be a minute. Not sure how much time has passed. I’m also not surewhat the hell I’m doing with the princess in my arms. I need a sec to get my fucking thoughts straightened out.
The door closes behind Roller and Lauralyn quickly scurries off my lap, rushing to go get her clothes on. I sit forward, running my hands over my face, taking a deep breath. Shit just took an odd fucking turn, didn’t it? I was not expecting for the priss to show up at my club today. Nor was I expecting her to blow my mind with that body.
“So, did I get the job?”
I look up from the ground as she steps before me. Her jaw locked back in place, reminding me of the girl I went to school with. Reminding me of all the shit she said about me. But that girl never would’ve ended up here. I want to know why she’s here.
“How’d you get here, Laur?”
She looks confused by my question.
“I took the bus.”
“No.” I shake my head. “How’d you end up here? Dancing in Lola’s club? You got into some Ivy League school. Tell me what happened.”
Her body bristles, and I can see the shift in her eyes. The coldness creeping in. And her mind closing me out.
“You told me that if I got off on you, the job was mine. Are you sticking to your word?”
I run my fingers through my scruff, deciding what the fuck I’m going to do with the girl. I don’t have an answer yet.
“I’ll let Lola know what I’ve decided.”
She looks pissed by that response. Too fucking bad. I rise from my seat and step forward.
“You should’ve played nice back in school, princess.” Things could’ve been so fucking good between us.
6
Lauralyn
He tips my chin then drops his hand and walks past me, right out the door. I slump forward, bracing myself on the arms of the leather chair, trying to catch my breath. I just got off on Holt O’Rork, the boy I hated most in school. My body is still feeling the pulses. Along with the embarrassment of his friend coming in. He saw me shaking on Holt’s lap, my body being wrecked by the pleasure. I don’t even know how long the guy was standing there. He acted like he had been trying to get Holt’s attention for a while.
If I thought my life was fucked up before, I just rose to a whole new level of fucked-upness. And now, I don’t even know if I got the job or not.
I take a deep breath, then go and grab my bag. All I can do is wait until Lola lets me know one way or another. In the meantime, I have to find a way to forget the fact that I just made a complete fool of myself in front of my enemy. I gave himexactly what he wanted. Now, I need to figure out a way to patch my pride back together and carry on.
Lola was right. Money comes and goes, but memories last a lifetime. I still remember every cruel thing Holt said about me. I still remember the hatred in his eyes every time I passed him in the hall. The boos on prom night that came from him and his friends as I was announced prom queen. And now… I’ll always remember that smug look in his eyes as he exited the room.
I step out into the casino and the noise and lights are almost too much for my frayed emotions. I weave through the crowd, trying to get to the door. But as I steer to the left to dodge a guy, I see Holt and Portia over at the bar. Her fingers are trailing down his chest, and he’s got a flirtatious look in his eyes, as his fingers run through her long dark hair.
A twist of jealousy tightens in my stomach, and I pick up my pace, charging for the exit. This place… him… it’s all too much. And it’s obvious I didn’t get the job. All I got was burned by his revenge.
Now, I don’t know what I’m going to do. I don’t even want to look at my phone to see how many missed calls I have from collection agencies. First, I have to figure out how to breathe and then I can deal with the mess that is my life.
7
Deuce
“I’ll see you tomorrow at noon,” I say, kissing the top of her hand. Portia gives me a smirk and then climbs into her fancy car. One that reminds me of Lauralyn’s back in the day—even down to its red color. But the princess said she took the bus. That doesn’t fucking make sense. Did her dad take her car away too? Or maybe she wrecked it and couldn’t afford another one. There are too many fucking questions, and she wasn’t willing to give me answers to anything.
