Page 6 of Obsession

I immediately go still. “How do I know you’re not lying?”

He blinks, a little confused, and glances at his companion. “How do we prove that?”

“By letting me go?” I suggest, hopefully.

“Nice try, kid,” the older man holding me snorts. “This isn't my first day on the job.”

“We're here to find out why you haven’t been showing up for work,” the first one says, smiling at me. Okay, he looks less like one ofThe Sopranoswhen he smiles. Then, his statement registers with me, and I give him a stunned look.

“Say that again?”

“The boss sent us to make sure you were okay,” he replies. “Let her go, Lars. I don't think she's going to run now.”

I rub my arms from where Lars grabbed me, and I glare at him. “Why’d you have to be so rough, Lars?”

Lars just grunts.

Turning away from the rough old guy, I look towards his companion. "Steve sent you?”

"Steve?" The man looks baffled. “No, I just told you the boss sent us.”

I lift my brows. “Does the boss have a name? Who is he? You are from the club, right?” I'm growing a little confused now and just a bit wary.

The two men exchange another look and then the first one says, “Yeah, Mr. Middleton sent us. He owns the club. He’s the boss, and apparently, you haven’t shown up to work for the last three days.”

I look at the two of them. "The owner sent you to check up on a missing bartender?”

I'm pretty sure that I've never met this Mr. Middleton. Of course, I know of him. Who doesn’t? He’s the most eligible bachelor in town. At thirty-five, he’s the CEO of Middleton Financial Group and owns a multitude of businesses in the city,including additional locations of the club Blue Whiskey, which are spread out all over the country.

But once again, I’ve just heard his name. I’ve never seen a picture of him. From what I know, he dislikes public appearances, social media, and the press. I heard that he once destroyed an entire tabloid because they tried to get a hold of his pictures and sell them. He has people who speak for him at conferences, but he rarely does.

I never really thought I would ever meet him, despite working in one of his establishments. I didn’t even know he knew I existed. So it's a little odd that he sent two of his... I mean, I can only call them henchmen, even though the young one is a little cute now that I'm over my initial paranoia.

"I don't understand.” I stare at the nicer one. “I thought I was out of a job.”

He gives me a quick grin. “Is that why you've not been coming in? You should've at least come back for your salary, but you're not fired, Miss Taylor. In fact, you're supposed to show up for your shift tonight.”

Lars just grunts.

I wonder if he has a maximum amount of words he can use daily and just exhausted them, talking to me.

“So, I still have a job?” I repeat, making sure I’m not imagining this whole thing.

“Yes.”

“And he knows what happened there?”

“He does.”

“And I'm not in trouble?”

The sort of cute one bursts into laughter. “Absolutely not.”

Despite the events that have taken place in the club, it has been the only source of my livelihood. I know what it's like to have nothing and dig out of the trash to eat, so when my eyes fill up, it's Lars who now looks uncomfortable.

“Wait -“

“I’m not crying,” I sniffle. “It’s just these damn allergies.”

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