“Can I help you?” she asked boredly, not even looking at me.
Sucking in a deep breath, I moved toward her, halting once I reached the wooden desk. “Is there a manager or someone I can talk to about working here?” I questioned.
Slowly, she brought her brown eyes to my green ones, and they drifted down my body assessing, me. Pursing her lips, she nodded and reached for the phone. After a few moments of silence, she began, “There’s a young woman in the lobby wanting information about a job here.”
While she spoke to the person on the other end of the line, my gaze wandered around the room. In front of what I assumed to be the entrance into the club was a big, burly looking man with his impressive arms folded across his torso. Sunglasses rested on the bridge of his nose as he stared straight ahead, unmoving. Hell, it didn’t even look like he was breathing from where I stood.
Tearing my gaze from him, I directed my attention back to the receptionist who was in the process of hanging up the phone.
“Someone will be here shortly to escort you to Talissa’s office,” she said, dismissing me.
Blowing out a nervous breath, I nodded and stepped off to the side. There was a couch on my far left, but I wasn’t sure I could sit still even if I tried. So instead, my body swayed slightlyto the distant beat in the background while I tried to gather the courage I’d need for this.
After what felt like forever, a large, bulky man stepped into the lobby. He was huge with light brown skin and dark hair. His piercing brown eyes landed on me, taking me in from head to toe.
“You here to see Talissa?” he demanded in a gruff voice.
Slowly, I nodded. The dude looked like your average criminal. He inclined his head toward the opened door, the music spilling out into the lobby—much louder than it had been before.
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I obliged and made my way past the security guard and into the club. My eyes widened as they roamed around the massive room. Women were practically naked everywhere. Even the cocktail servers were wearing outfits that left little to the imagination. Girls practically fucked the pole as they danced, and in lounging areas, girls were grinding and riding dudes. Of course, their G-strings were in between them, but still.
“This way,” the man instructed, stepping in front of me.
I followed him to a random door on the same floor, not too far from where we entered. He motioned toward it, allowing me to walk in first. Hesitantly, I twisted the handle and stepped inside. But I wasn’t at all prepared for what I was walking into.
CHAPTER TEN
Foster
“Collin’s a goddamn idiot,” Hunter growled, shoveling a mouthful of vegetable soup into his mouth. His face was set tight, every muscle around his jaw clenched. Something was obviously weighing him down.
“That was random.” Myles snorted with an eyeroll.
Finally, Hunter released a sigh and slouched back into his seat. “Why would he just go get himself beat up like that?” he demanded in exasperation. “Over what, some chick that wentmissing?”
My eyes widened at his little slip up and I did a sweep around the cafeteria, making sure no one was eavesdropping. This wasn’t the time or place to have a meltdown. Baring my teeth, I planted my palms against the flat surface of the table and leaned forward.
“Watch yourself,” I growled.
A scoff fluttered past his lips. “Relax, master. Everyone knows that there are two missing girls, and almost everyone knows that Aspen and Collin had a fling. You’re too fucking paranoid.”
“He’s right,” Myles chimed in unhelpfully.
I knew he was right, but I didn’t want to take any chances. It was my life on the line.Allof our lives were on the line. The last thing I needed was for him to say something else in his fit of rage and then we’d all be hauled off to prison.
None of this shit was okay. I did what needed to be done in order to save our asses. We were all involved in what happened to those two girls, and we’d all suffer the consequences for it if we were ever found out. Standing by while Aspen was sexually assaulted, might not have been the best thing for me to do. Especially since I’d endured something similar as a child. Maybe not to the full extent, but it was still scarring.
Hunter’s phone started ringing, slicing through my thoughts and pulled me back to reality. My gaze drifted to the cellular device on the table.
“Speaking of the devil,” Hunter murmured, glancing at the screen before placing it to his ear.
“Is it Collin?” Myles inquired, stealing the words from my own lips.
Collin had a broken nose and two fractured ribs. He was also severely dehydrated, so they wanted to keep him in the hospital for observation and to get some fluids back in him. He would be released any day now.
Hunter’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Wait, slow down, man. What the fuck are you talking about?” There was a pause as he listened, and then he rolled his eyes. “Yeah. We’re almost done with dinner anyways. We’ll be there soon.” He hung up and stuffed the phone in his pocket.
“What’s going on?” I asked, a frown tugging at my mouth. “Is he okay?”