Page 118 of Forbidden Protector

As Roisin rolls her eyes, her phone buzzes on the table, and she reaches over to glance at it. I watch as her bemused expression turns to one of grief.

“You okay?” I ask quietly while the others bicker amongst themselves about the timeline of Bella’s crimes.

Roisin smiles weakly. “Yeah.”

She shows me the text and my heart sinks.

AIMEE: HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROCHE! Had pancakes this morning in your honor. Hope you’re okay. Stay safe. Miss you like crazy.

“She really loves you,” I say softly.

“I know,” Roisin mumbles as she pockets her phone. “I just didn’t want to have to deal with all that today.”

I nod at this. “Okay, so whatdoyou want to do today?”

“Honestly?” She runs her hand through her red hair, pulling it back from her face. “I just want a normal-ass birthday.”

Then, an idea hits me.

“You saidOnyx,right?…I might know someone who, er… works there,” I announce loudly with a glance at Roisin, who tilts her head curiously.

Bella immediately lights up in excitement. “Do you think you could get us in?”

I merely smile in reply.

***

The queue outsideOnyxis nothing less than pretentious. As we walk by the glamazons and the men flashing multi-thousand-dollar watches, I swear I see a couple of low-level celebrities eyeing the bouncer anxiously.

But it’s not that kind of club. The Costas were always quite particular about who they let in—which perhaps only contributed to the notoriety.

When the four of us finally reach the bouncer, he doesn’t bother barring the door from us. His ginormous figure is imposing enough.

“Names?”

I step forward unperturbed. The bouncer gives me a once over as I approach, carefully sliding a crisp $100 bill into his hand.

“Buonasera amico, credo che il tuo datore di lavoro ci stia aspettando?”I say quietly in his ear, falling effortlessly into Italian.

To the bouncer’s credit, he doesn’t miss a beat.“Buonasera, signorKnight.”

The bouncer steps aside to allow the four of us through the door a moment later.

Felicity lets out a low whistle as we step by him, pointedly ignoring the jealous stares of the other line. “You really have your connections, huh?”

“One of the perks of my line of work.” I throw her a dashing smile for good measure. It would be nice if she began to trust me a little.

“Which is what exactly?” she throws back.

I’m saved from answering by the sudden onslaught of sound and color.

Stepping intoOnyxis like stepping into a dream. From floor to ceiling, the architecture, lighting, and art installations give you a thousand things to look at and a thousand places to turn. It would be overwhelming if it wasn’t so tastefully done.

Aerial dancers float above us through clouds that crackle occasionally with faux-lightning. Water cascades from behind the DJ booth, spurting up in time with his beat drops, and hundreds of people pack the floor.

Next to me, I can practically feel Roisin buzzing with excitement.

With her flaming red hair pulled back from her face with tight pins and her sleek two-piece outfit, it’s as obvious as day that this is her scene. She fits in here like she was born to dance within these walls.

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