Page 14 of Filthy Liar

I followed Diesel out the back through the long corridors of drunk men and half-naked women, ignoring the girls that tried to stop me to talk. I’d spent some time here in the past, but I hadn’t indulged in the women’s services in a while.

A familiar face appeared from one of the rooms, and I smiled. “Peaches.”

She smiled back, seeing that I was with Diesel and knew I was busy. “Hey, Ander. Good to see you’re not dead.”

“Yet,” Diesel said clearly over his shoulder as he kept walking ahead.

“Are you sticking around after?” she asked with amusement, giving my bicep a gentle squeeze, but she let go when I pulled back a little, her eyes softening. “Just business today then?”

“Yeah, I won’t be hanging around once I’m done. I have a girlfriend. Well, I think I do,” I mumbled with a frown, and she took a step back. Peaches was good at her job, but I liked her because she could read the room easily and was never pushy. I’d hired her for a few hours in the past and usually just let her nap in one of the private rooms. The girl worked too much, but I’d slept with her a few times too.

The last thing I needed was Raven thinking I’d been in here fucking one of the girls from the whorehouse.

I pulled a grand worth of hundred dollar bills from my wallet and handed it to her, her eyes widening. “What’s this for?”

“You and the girls. Keep it for yourself or split it, I don’t care. You look tired. Take a day off or something,” I said firmly, noticing that Diesel had stopped to watch us. “I need to go. Look after yourself.”

“I will, and thank you. Don’t get killed,” she teased as she clutched the bills with appreciation, telling me how badly she’d needed it.

Archer and Lexi paid all their girls really well, but they couldn’t control the tips. Slow nights for the club meant low pay for the girls. Some of them worked at Devil’s Dungeon as entertainment and bar staff for the Devils sometimes too when they needed extra cash, so if my bills made a difference, I’d help.

Diesel eyed me as I joined him by the back entrance, security letting us out into the back alley.

“That was nice of you,” he said once we were alone, and I shrugged as I lit a cigarette.

“She’s a nice girl and she works her ass off. I don’t think she takes a day off.”

“Odd of you to give a fuck about hookers and strippers.”

“Odd of you not to,” I threw back unfazed, leaning against the wall. “I thought you were the nice one?”

“What idiot told you that?” he smirked, crossing his arms. “Of course I care about the girls. Most of them are our employees too, and a lot of them are the same age as my kids. I’m just surprised that you care about their well-being. Indulge in them often? Is she your favorite?”

He was taunting me, trying to get me to react or lie. He knew I’d spent time here before, I hadn’t kept it a secret.

Besides, Riley was usually the one with me, so he would’ve been very aware that I’d been hanging out in the strip club.

“Are you judging me? You know Riley’s fucked more of the girls here than I have,” I chuckled, blowing smoke away from him. “Peaches has always been good to me in here, and she respects people with girlfriends. I drank here when I was with Blake, and Peaches never disrespected that. I like her, and she works hard. She deserves a little helping hand.”

“Would Raven like you being in here?”

“Raven knows?—”

“Raven’s only just learning what relationships, love, and trust are like,” he cut in, not angrily, just bluntly. “I’d bet money on her being insecure about herself because she’s always been one of the boys. You tell her you’ve been here so she doesn’t think you were hiding it, and you make sure she never has to worry about comparing herself to other girls around you.”

I blinked at him, not expecting that response. “You think that?”

“I haven’t had many girlfriends in my life, only two,” he said, surprising me even more. “Sasha was a tornado who was afraid of nothing until crew life destroyed her, and Rory’s like mother nature herself. You never know what you’re getting with her. Both girls though? They never needed to doubt me. I will always love Sasha, Rory knows that, and every year on Sasha’s birthday, Rory sits with me by her grave and we talk about her.”

“Sasha must have been a kid. You’ve been with Rory forever,” I stated, making him snort.

“I’m eight years older than Rory. It felt like I’d lived a whole other life before being with her. Rory was a traumatized seventeen-year-old when she first stumbled into our lives. She didn’t trust easily, and it took a lot to earn that trust. Me and her formed a friendship fast, and she always knew she could turn to me. Did I fuck things up a few times? Absolutely. Humans make mistakes. Cheating isn’t a mistake though, it’s a choice,” he said sharply, a smirk tugging at my mouth as I smoked.

“You think I need to hire pussy when I’m lonely? C’mon, Diesel. I’d rather go without than do that to anyone. Never cheated on Blake, and I sure as fuck wouldn’t cheat on Raven. Is there a lesson in your story or are you wanting to have a deep and meaningful psychology session with me?”

“The moral of the story is that if you treat Raven right, you’ll watch her grow into a fierce, loyal woman like how I got to experience with Rory. Be her strength, her home, and for the love of God, don’t fucking lie to her again. The last thing that girl needs is a mafia prince in her life,” he replied, his voice softening. “But I have a feeling you’re not exactly happy to be a mafia prince, and you don’t want that life for her either. I need you to be selfless here, Ander. If you can’t get out, I want you to leave her behind.”

“I’m not leaving Raven behind,” I scoffed, flicking what was left of my cigarette away.

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