At midnight, Gwen and I are outside the club waiting for Jack. As usual, when you’re looking for him, he’s nowhere to be found. I set my sights on the front door, in hopes of catching a glimpse of the bouncer if he is here tonight. To both my relief and disappointment, there is no sign of him. I have no idea how I will react if I see him again and I have no desire for Jack to be present if and when that happens.
Over half an hour later, Jack comes waltzing up to us without a care in the world. “Thanks for keeping us waiting jerk. Oh, I mean Jack,” Gwen greets him.
“Whoa, what’s with all the hostility? It’s nice to see you too Gwen,” he smiles at her, baring too many teeth for it to be considered friendly.
“Let’s just get this over with already,” I interrupt their tete a tete. “I don’t want to be around you any longer than necessary.”
Jack takes the lead and approaches the door, speakng to the bouncer on duty. Gwen and I stay put watching him flounder miserably. We laugh, enjoying the show, watching him fall flat on his face. He stalks back over to us, only to advise that the bouncer denied him an audience with the owner who is busy and won’t be seeing anyone without an appointment.
“Amateur. This is why you should leave such things to the pros,” Gwen taunts him.
“Oh, you think you can do better? Why don’t you show me how it’s done then?” Stepping aside, Jack clears Gwen’s path, inviting her to make an attempt.
“My pleasure. Watch and learn, loser.” Gwen slinks towards the bouncer. Within minutes, she is waiving us over to join her so we can all go inside. I don’t bother hiding the satisfied smirk on my face when I brush past Jack. He grumbles, but follows behind me, not happy to have been proven wrong so easily.
Once inside, Gwen informs us that the owner’s name is Julian Belo. This time I take the lead. I approach the bar and ask the bartender where I might find this Julian Belo.
“I think he went into his office. Hold on, let me call and check for you,” he offers without much prompting. Lowering his voice, he turns his back towards us before speaking into the phone, “Hey boss, there’s some hot chick out here looking for you.”
From the other end of the line, I can hear the response, “Who is she? Did she say what she wants?”
“No boss. Hold on, let me find out.” Lowering the phone, he turns his attention towards me. “What exactly do you want to talk to him about?”
“I have a business proposition for him. All I ask is for five minutes of his time.”
He relays my message, then listens for further instruction. When he hangs up, he directs us to the office located at the back of the club. We maneuver through the crowd and down a dimly lit, narrow hallway. At the end of the hall, past the restrooms on our right, is a door facing us with the words ‘Manager’s office’ printed on the smoky window. I give the door three hard knocks on the wooden frame, making sure to be heard above the sound of the music. After a moment, the door opens and standing in front of me is the bouncer, my dance partner from the week before.
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Lila's Choice
VampireThe first book in the Eye of the Vampire Series. Lila must choose between two men. One man offers her everything she's ever wanted in a partner and the other everything she never knew she did. Complicating matters further, Lila must deal with her je...
