Page 67 of Ruined
CHAPTER 18
Lucas
The Dahlia District was never my scene. Buying the time of gorgeous, intelligent women was an attractive offer, but it didn’t give me the privacy and distance I valued. I tolerated it only for Haley.
Now that she trusted me enough to meet me outside of the club, how long would it take to convince her to take my offer to help with her debt? I needed to get her out of there, and she needed it too. If I could convince her to charge me an amount that would pay for her debts in a matter of days rather than weeks, perhaps that would be an acceptable option for us both. She would have the dignity of knowing that she had worked off her debt like her contract stated, and therefore wasn’t indebted to someone else. And I would have the peace of mind knowing that she was no longer stuck in this purgatorial place.
I wanted more than a transactional relationship with her. Whether that meant friendship or a romantic connection, that was up to her. But if she wanted nothing to do with her life at the Dahlia District once she was free, including me with it, then I would have to honor that decision. It killed me to know that it was a path that she could take. To never look back. Leaving everyone behind. Including me.
But it was one path of many options. I couldn’t dwell on the possibilities. Until then, I would find myself here. Sitting at the bar. Thinking about how much better it would be if we were at my house on the coast of Sage City. Even the penthouse at the hotel was better than this. More freedom. Less charade. Less spectacle of men showing off in front of others. Like Aldrich.
Lately, Aldrich preferred the company of Mel, but now, after I looked around, I realized every server was sitting with him. Every server, except for Haley.
Aldrich pulled one of the servers into his lap and tossed her onto her stomach. “It’s my birthday,” he shouted. “Take my beatings.”
“It was your birthday last week,” another server said.
“Don’t correct me, or I’ll cut you.”
The group hushed. I assumed he meant decreasing his pay for their time, but the word choice of ‘cutting’ was ominous. Haley had said that he had cut her before, physically giving her a wound. Against her will. She had been reluctant to tell the full story, but the look on her face wasn’t something I would forget.
“Easy there, birthday boy,” a server said, forcing a laugh. “We’re playing with you.”
“I’m not interested inplay.”
An eruption of manufactured giggles sounded, a laugh track custom-made for Aldrich. Haley was still missing. It wasn’t late for her, but with all of the other servers entertaining Aldrich already, her lack of presence was painfully obvious.
A few other members were sprawled throughout the building, all of us twiddling our damn thumbs while we waited. We were pathetic creatures, waiting for our servers to come and save us. Dreaming of the day we could be their saviors. It was hard not to despise myself, for what I had become for her.
I recognized a few of the members, and knew that each of their favorites was gathered around Aldrich. What was Aldrich doing?
“Now we just need Haley,” a woman’s voice said.
“Bring up that stupid bitch again and I will backhand you,” Aldrich warned.
“You mean my ass, right?”
“Don’t question me.”
It dawned on me, then. The number of servers. The endless line of waitresses bringing rounds of drinks. Proclaiming it was his birthday,hisday. One last bang. A party to span a lifetime. Aldrich was the kind of man who would receive a perilous diagnosis and chose to go out his way, with as many drugs, bottles of alcohol, and women as possible. So what bad news had he received? Why was he driven to party this hard?
Haley stepped out of the Greenhouse, and the entire building hushed once again. Noticing the attention, Haley looked around, trying to figure out what was going on.
“You know what to do,” Aldrich said.
No one moved. Haley eyed the large group, then stepped forward, her movements jerky.
“What’s the party for?” Haley asked.
“His birth—”
“Shut up,” Aldrich hissed.
She stood there, facing the group. The servers surrounded Aldrich like a pack of violent lionesses, ready to defend their king. Like Haley was an enemy that had stumbled into their territory.
“Haley,” I said, calling her over. She started walking my way.
“Don’t just sit here,” Aldrich said. He smacked his own face. “Do you mean to tell me thatnoneof you are willing to do what needs to be done?”
