Page 15 of Midnight Heat

"Does it bother you?" He raises his eyebrows.

"Yes."

"Good. I can tell you one thing about me. I don't like liars."

"I'm not…"

"You lied to me."

"You were a stranger that I wanted to hook up with. I knew nothing about you! It was a fake name kind of situation."

"I don't know if I can trust you, Annette."

"It's Anne. My friends call me Anne."

"Are you going to be on the floor tonight, Anne?"

"Not tonight, no."

"Then I'll come by at six to take you home. I think we need to talk."

He gets up and leaves, and I'm left clueless about what he wants. I mean, we've been talking every day, what more can he want from me? I briefly think of calling in sick for the rest of the day, but that would just be another lie and he would catch me on it and lose whatever trust I have gained the past few weeks.

I pick up my phone and text my friend Julie.

Me: 911

Julie: What's going on? What do you need?

Me: He just told me he's taking me home tonight and then 'we need to talk'

Julie: That's good, isn't it?

Me: I don't think I can be alone with him at my place and not do whatever naughty thing he tells me he wants to do

Julie: Still not seeing the problem

Me: You're no help sometimes. I gotta go. Will text later with details

I turn to my computer and start working on a new strategy to attract customers to the nightclub. Around noon, there's a soft knock on my door, and in comes my new friend Cassie. She works at the restaurant next door and sometimes brings me treats when she delivers food for one of our security guys.

"Hey Cassie, come on in."

"Hi, Anne. I brought you some wonton soup."

"Oh, that sounds delicious, thanks. Sit down for a minute."

She does as I ask but looks a little nervous.

"Are you okay, Cassie? Is it Jason?"

"He caught my ex manhandling me last night, and now he's being extra protective. Now I have to wait for one of your security guys to chaperone me when I bring his food here. Tuck is waiting downstairs to take me back."

"Did your ex hurt you badly? Do you need help? Why didn't your brothers step in?" Cassie had shared with me enough that I knew several details about her life.

"It all happened too fast. Let's not talk about this. Hey, are you seeing one of the owners?"

"Wait, what? Did someone say something?"

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