Page 22 of Obsession

“Let me talk to Ralph,” I tell him, scribbling it down on the schedule notes. “I think he wanted some days off next month, so I’ll put you in for his shifts.”

“Thanks, doll. You’re a real one.”

Billy then moves towards me and lowers his voice, “Did you hear about Steve?”

I go still. “What about him?”

“I heard the big boss called him into his office, and then, like ten minutes later, he was dragged out into the alley. Ron was on a break, and he saw the whole thing. They beat the shit out of him.”

“What?” I freeze. “Why?”

“Dunno.” Billy shrugs his shoulders. “Maybe he didn’t like that you were taking his job and said some slick shit.”

I knew there was a possibility that Steve would lose his job but then again there was always the chance that he’d be moved to the earlier shift and I work the late one. I don’t know. I guess that was wishful thinking. Maybe deep down I always knew that this was going to end badly once I accepted the job.

“I didn’t steal the job from him, Billy,” I say defensively. “They told me it was available and asked if I wanted it. I didn’t ask questions.”

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me. You know the kind of place this is. Steve must’ve stepped on some toes. Don’t have nothing to do with you.” He adds a bag of fries to the deep fryer. “But I’ll tell you one thing, doll, you’d better be careful. I know the money’s good here, but it’s not worth your neck.”

Billy makes a valid point.

“Then why are you sticking around?” I ask, filling in the schedule on the whiteboard.

It’s a rhetorical question, but Billy answers it anyway. “I want my kid to have a good life, you know. My old man was a right bastard. Treated me like shit. We never had any money, and he used to take out his anger on me with that fucking belt of his. I don’t want that for my kid, and this is the best job someone like me is ever going to get.”

I smile bitterly. “I guess both our fathers were pieces of shit then. It was hell for me, too. My dad threw me into the street when I was ten and made me beg on my knees to be let back inside. It was like a game for the asshole, and his wife was even worse. She liked making me eat scraps off the kitchen floor. Kinky bitch. I hope they both rot in hell.”

When Billy doesn’t respond to my overshare, I wonder if the little glimpse into my childhood was too explicit for him. “You okay?”

My question becomes stuck in my throat as I see Billy standing in front of me with wide eyes and a nervous face, looking behind me. As I follow his gaze in damn near slow motion, my blood turns cold when I see Mr. Middleton standing there watching us.

And he’s furious.

Chapter 8

Background Check

HUNTER

It was my lack of supervision that allowed a man like Steve to mismanage my club. I got too relaxed, which is why I won’t be making the same mistake with Megan.

The private booth on this floor has a clear view through the glass window, although it’s tinted glass meant for people inside to view the entire club, but not the other way around. On the other side, it looks like a mirror.

I make a few calls as I often do in my office, but I spend much of the evening watching Megan show the new bartender the ropes. She looks nothing short of professional, but I keep recalling what she felt like pressed against me.

There had been this confused heat in her eyes as if she didn’t quite know how to handle her own emotions. That served as my first indication that my mouthy little kitten isn’t very experienced. She’s too young for my taste. I prefer women my own age who know their way around a dick and how to please a man in bed without much instruction.

Megan would need to be taught.

I gently rub my bottom lip with my thumb as I gaze at her figure. It might not be a completely unenjoyable experience teaching her. I have to wonder what she’d be like with my cock inside of her.

Will her prickly attitude fade when I feed it to her?

Will she be demanding in bed or totally submissive?

My new manager is quite the little puzzle. It’s a pity I can’t check and see. All I’d need is one night, but romantic relationships of any kind with each other are off-limits to employees of the club. It’s my own rule, which I have no intention of breaking. What example would I be setting if I did?

I see her leave her post to go back to the kitchen, and curiosity has me following her when she doesn’t return. And that’s when I overhear the words ‘...made me beg on my knees.’

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