Page 26 of Sensuous

“Is it going to give you a leg up when it comes time for your yearly evaluation?” I ask, my mind flashing back to my last evaluation when Deidre chastised me for not working overtime when Raymond had to leave that one day. Literally one time I couldn’t stay to cover someone else’s shift and that’s all she can focus on.

I guess she needs some justification for why she refuses to give me a promotion.

“Who’s to say? My boss already likes me, so I’m not sure traveling to the center of the country when I don’t want to is going to be a big deal. What if you come too?”

Sadly, I have to turn down her offer. “There’s no way my boss is going to let me take time off after this show. The only reason she agreed to let me do it is I promised to cover her shifts for an entire week when she goes away.”

“You won’t have to worry about that,” Sadie says with excitement in her eyes. “You’ll have a million bucks, so you’ll be able to tell Deidre to piss off and come to Kansas City with me.”

“From your lips to God’s ears. Seriously.”

Some guy stands up at the end of the bar and announces he’s getting married tomorrow, so the entire place erupts in cheers. Good for him. I hope he’s happy. At the rate he’s consuming that giant glass of blue drink, he’s going to be hungover for his big day, though.

Near him, another man sees someone he knows walk in and throws his arms wide open. “Cade March!”

Recognizing the last name, I turn to look toward the door of the bar to see if it’s that guy from Club X, and to my horror, I see none other than Alex March walking right next to him. Jesus! Can I never escape being around this person?

Sadie’s already focused on Cade, even though he clearly said he was taken the other night. Elbowing me to get my attention, she leans over and says in my ear, “It’s those guys from Club X. Damn, I really like the way they look.”

“The one is with someone, and the other one is insufferable. Trust me. Looks aren’t everything.”

I watch as the group of men welcome Cade and Alex like they’re some kind of rockstars, each one shaking their hands or slapping them on the back. With every second that ticks by, I loathe that man more than I thought possible. How the hell does everyone think he’s so wonderful?

The bartender comes over to refill Sadie’s drink, and I turn away from the action at the end of the bar, disgusted again and wishing I had just stayed home. The last thing I need is to see my nemesis when I’m out trying to forget how bad my day was.

“You know what your problem is with him, Kat? I think you like him.”

I level my gaze on Sadie’s face and glare at her. “Trust me. I hate him. There’s not a single bone in my body that likes him. And do you know why? Because he’s a spoiled man who gets everything he wants based on his looks and the fact that his family owns a restaurant. He’s never had to work for a damn thing. You can see it written all over his smug face.”

Sadie’s face twists into a look of horror, but if she thinks that’s bad, she’s heard nothing yet.

“On top of that, he’s the type of guy who would actually tell another human being that he didn’t have to audition when everyone else had to. Talk about being a dick. Maybe if he didn’t get everything delivered to him on a silver platter, he might realize he should be at least fucking pleasant to others who haven’t had it so lucky. God, I hate that! Too bad we all can’t be handed a head chef job because Daddy owns the business. I bet he’s not even that good. Why would he have to be? Nepotism. I hate it. It’s the reason Deidre gets to lord her shit over me, and it’s the reason I bet every person who works in that kitchen with the almighty Alex March hates him as much as I do.”

By the time I finish, Sadie’s practically sucked her lips inside her mouth. I don’t know why she’s surprised at anything I said. It’s not like I’ve ever been a fan of people getting things they don’t deserve. I’ve been complaining about it at my job for the past year.

“Why are you making that face? Did the bartender make your drink wrong?”

She shifts her gaze to look over my shoulder, guilt filling her expression. I turn around to see Alex standing right behind me with that same look of hurt in his eyes that he had when I told him off at the studio.

“I’ll be sure to ask everyone in the kitchen at CK if they hate me when I get back to work,” he says with a smile I can tell isn’t genuine. “Maybe half, but I can’t be that big a dick to haveeveryone hate me. Then again, knowing my family owns the restaurant might skew the results a bit.”

Instantly, I feel like shit. Like the worst person in the world. I had no idea he was standing right there and could hear every word I was saying. Why the hell didn’t Sadie give me a sign that he was behind me?

I open my mouth to say something, not sure how to apologize since what I said is absolutely what I feel, but he turns and walks away. I look back at Sadie and see embarrassment written all over her face.

“You should say you’re sorry, Kat. I know you don’t like him, but nobody deserves to hear someone say all those things like you said.”

“The guy rubbed it in my face that he didn’t have to audition for the show, Sadie. Now I have to be nice to him?”

“Fine. Don’t apologize. He deserved all you said and probably more.”

Her words come out all choppy, a sure sign she doesn’t mean what she’s saying. I didn’t intend for him to hear all of that. I was just blowing off steam. I didn’t think anyone but Sadie would hear me.

I cover my face with my hands as guilt washes over me. “I really am a horrible person. I don’t know why. I don’t want to be. It just happens.”

Sadie touches my shoulder. “Then just apologize. I’m sure he’s right outside. He and Cade just left a few seconds ago.”

“Probably because of what I said. God, I was so mean, wasn’t I?”

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