Stay A Little Longer (Kadia Club Nights Book 2)

by Nicole York

  Her father followed. “We’re not done with this conversation until I say we’re done.”

  “I’m not a child anymore, Daddy. That’s not how this works. You don’t get to make these kinds of decisions for me.” She hurried down the stairs with one hand hovering over the railing all the way down to the foyer.

  Wayne was right there on her heels. “I make the decisions that are best for this family. The men who work at Kadia are criminals, Cameron. Look me in the eyes and tell me this man doesn’t have a record. Tell me he’s clean.”

  “He was a cop!” Cameron rounded on her father.

  Wayne’s eyes flicked back and forth between hers. “One good deed does not make up for the bad ones.”

  Cameron rolled her eyes. She was done listening to this.

  Margaret, who had been in the kitchen, came around the corner with a cup of tea. She wore long flowing pants in powder pink and a white blouse. A string of pearls sat around her throat and dripped from her ears. “What’s all this fuss about?”

  “It’s nothing,” Cameron said.

  Wayne spoke up. “Our daughter is dating the likes of a criminal from that Kadia place in the city.”

  Margaret’s brows drew together. “Kadia? The nightclub?”

  “That’s the one,” Wayne said. “And she has it in her head that she’s in love with this man.”

  “How much of my conversation were you eavesdropping on?” Cameron asked.

  Wayne lifted his chin. “I heard what I needed to know. That this thing between you and this man has gone on long enough. You’re through with him. Do you understand me? Cut him loose and focus on your work. You’ve made commitments, Cameron. Now is not the time to let yourself wander off course all for a dog in a—”

  “Say one more bad thing about him and I’m leaving,” Cameron said evenly.

  Margaret moved closer and blew on the steam wafting up from her tea. “I’m sure we can all be reasonable about this, sweetheart,” she said softly to her daughter. “Please understand where your father is coming from. He is only trying to protect you. And Wayne? Maybe before we go on the attack, we hear Cameron out. We can’t paint everyone with the same brush. Maybe this man isn’t who you think he is. Cameron is a good judge of character. She’s not reckless.”

  “It doesn’t matter how cautious she’s being,” Wayne growled. “Kadia is a seedy place. Any man who works there is by default a seedy man. Does he know about the drugs that move through that place, Cameron?”

  Cameron didn’t say a word.

  “Does he know about the ties to organized crime?” Wayne persisted. “Because I do. And by default, so would he. If he works there, he knows all the nitty-gritty that goes on behind the scenes. He knows it, and he’s either complicit, or he’s an active participant. Which is it, Cameron?”

  Cameron resented the way her throat tightened up. “Please stop.”

  Wayne pulled away from Margaret when she reached out to lay a hand on his elbow. “Has he offered you drugs?” Wayne pushed. “Has he tried to warp you into thinking like them? Like animals?”

  “Daddy, enough!”

  “I will not have a member of this family manipulated by a Goddamn fucking criminal,” Wayne hissed. “You will put an end to this right now, Cameron. Or I will.”

  Cameron searched his eyes for traces of a lie and found nothing.

  He meant it. He intended to end things between her and Cole one way or another.

  “Why do you have to take this away from me?” Cameron whispered.

  Wayne reached for her, but she stepped back. He let his hand fall to his side. “Because it is a father’s duty to protect his daughter. Even if she hates him for it.”

  “You’re not protecting me from anything,” Cameron said. “All you’re doing is ruining something that makes me happy because you don’t understand it.”

  Her father shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’ve known this man for a month. You’re being dramatic. You can find a better man at any of the events we go to over the year. Men with money and promise and bright futures. Men who can take care of you.”

  “I don’t need to be taken care of!”

  Margaret stepped between the pair of them. “Now, now. Let’s catch our breath. Cameron, I think your father has a right to be concerned. What he says about Kadia is true. You cannot afford to get your name tied up in a business like that, especially not with the shelter project moving ahead so rapidly. This could sabotage your work. It could drown you in red tape.”

  Cameron massaged her temples with her fingertips and shook her head. “I don’t want to listen to this anymore.”

  Margaret cleared her throat. “I’m not finished. Wayne, your daughter has a right to be defensive. We don’t know this man. What’s his name? Cole?”

  Cameron nodded.

  Her mother continued. “For all we know, he’s one of the good ones there.”

  “There are no good ones there,” Wayne growled. “They are lowlifes. Scum. They deal in drugs and violence. Cameron, you will not set foot back on that property. Do you understand me?”

  Cameron’s eyes burned as she held back tears. “You do not get to tell me where I can and cannot go.”

  “Yes, I can,” Wayne said. “For your own safety, I forbid you from going anywhere near Kadia or this bodyguard of yours.”

  The tears escaped. Cameron sniffled and wiped them furiously away. She glared at her father through blurry eyes. “I’m not seventeen anymore, Daddy.” With that, she spun on her heel, marched out into the driveway, and flagged down one of their drivers.

  Wayne and Margaret followed her out. Her father barked at her to ask her where she was going.

  “To clear my head,” Cameron snapped at him as she got in the back seat of one of the Jaguars.

  “If you go to that nightclub…” Wayne warned.

  She leaned over to pull the door closed. “Like I said, I’m not seventeen anymore. I can go where I want and keep company with who I want. You can worry about me, Daddy but you can’t tell me what to do anymore. I wouldn’t put our family in harm’s way. I wouldn’t take risks. I trust him. He won’t hurt me. He’d never hurt me.”

  Cameron slammed the door closed and didn’t turn to look back as the driver pulled away, leaving her father behind, glowing red from the taillights.

  And his own rage.

  28

  Cole

  Cole and Marcus drew up to the far corner of the bar closest to the emergency exit. They’d made two full laps of the club and come up empty on finding Zak. The Russian was nowhere to be found.

  “Maybe he’s up in one of the private rooms?” Cole suggested. It was the only place he could think Zak might be that they hadn’t already checked.

  “Not Zak’s style,” Marcus said.

  “Even if he went in there alone?”

  Marcus shot Cole a steady look. “Perhaps.”

  “Worth looking maybe?”

  Marcus flagged Keesha down. She handed the drink she was mixing off to Dean, who took over, and she made her way to the far end of the bar, tucking a strand of red hair behind her ear as she came. When she reached the two men, she leaned up against the bar. “What is it, boys? We’re busy tonight and Dean can’t work this bar solo.”

  “Have you seen Zak?” Marcus called over the music.

  “Not for an hour or so,” Keesha said.

  They gave Cole some hope. “But you have seen him?”

  “Of course,” she said. Her eyes narrowed. “Is something wrong? Is he in trouble?”

  Marcus ran a hand over his bald head. “We’re not sure, baby. But we’re going to find out. If you see him, tell him I’m looking for him.”

  “Make him stay put,” Cole added. “We’ll come meet him at the bar if you get him to stick around.”

  Keesha nodded. Her expression told Cole she was going to take this as seriously as he was. That was a good sign. Something was amiss and now was not the time to let Zak’s strange behavior
slip through the cracks.

  “He’s been acting off for days,” Keesha said. Her gaze flicked to Marcus. “If he refuses to stick around, what do I do?”

  Marcus nodded at Dean. “Send Dean after him. We just need him to stick around long enough so we can talk to him. Dean’s got some pretty slick moves. He could take Zak one on one.”

  Keesha licked her lips. “I don’t like this, Marcus.”

  “Neither do I, baby. But sometimes we gotta do what we don’t want to. Zak needs our help. We won’t leave him hanging.”

  She lifted her chin and nodded. “All right.”

  They were about to turn from the bar to head up to the third floor to check out the private rooms when someone caught hold of Cole’s elbow and turned him around.

  Cole spun and found himself looking down into Cameron’s beautiful big brown eyes. They were filled with tears.

  “Cameron,” he said, searching her for any trace of injury. There was none. “What happened? Are you all right?”

  She sniffled, shook her head, and wiped mascara away from under her eyes. “My father found out about us.”

  Cole didn’t see what the big deal was. So what if her father knew the pair of them were sort of an item? She was a grown-ass woman. “Cameron, I can’t do this right now. We have—”

  “Please,” she whimpered, her fingers tightening in the fabric of his jacket. “I need you, Cole.”

  Marcus stifled a groan and tipped his head back. His eyes scanned the second and third floor. “Make this shit quick, Cole.”

  Cole pulled Cameron to the side.

  Her eyes searched his face and her forehead creased with concern. “Is something wrong?”

  He cupped her face in his hands. “Cameron, listen to me. Now isn’t a good time. I’m sorry. But I need you to wait for me. Can you do that?”

  “Wait for you? Why? What’s happening? Are you okay?” Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks.

  Cole wiped the tears away with his thumbs and gave her a warm smile. “I’m fine. I promise. But there are people depending on me to protect them and I need to do my job right now. As soon as everything is under control, I’ll come find you. Keesha can take you to the back room. You can sit with the girls, have a drink, and relax. Hopefully, this won’t take long. But if it does, you’ll be in good hands. Just don’t mind all the sequins and nudity. Can you do that for me? Can you wait?”

  Cameron swallowed hard and nodded. “Yes. I can do that.”

  “Good girl.” Cole straightened and waved Keesha over.

  Keesha marched around the bar with a scowl. “What now, Cole?”

  “Can you take Cameron to the back room with the girls? She’s having a rough night and I just want her off the floor while we track Zak down.”

  Keesha nodded. As soon as she turned to Cameron, her scowl melted away and she smiled. “Come on, Cole’s girl. I’ll get you a drink and a comfortable chair. We’ll let the boys do their thing. Okay?”

  Cameron nodded shakily.

  Cole watched as Keesha wrapped an arm around Cameron’s shoulders and walked her into the crowd. They vanished and Cole took a deep breath.

  Of course, tonight was the night that Cameron came to him in tears. Why did shit always go down like that? Whenever one person needed him, someone else did too. Even if Zak was specifically avoiding them, that didn’t mean he didn’t need them.

  Hell, if anything, it made Cole think the Russian might be in an even more dire situation than he initially thought.

  He caught Marcus staring at him.

  “What?” Cole asked sharply.

  Marcus smirked. “Nothing.”

  “That smug look on your face suggests otherwise.”

  Marcus chuckled deeply. “You got yourself caught up with a woman from the right side of the tracks who thinks you’re going to solve her problems, not make them worse. How delusional.”

  “Hey,” Cole warned, “she’s not—”

  “Relax, fucker. I’m just saying. You’re going to have your hands full with that one.”

  “Is that such a bad thing? Keesha keeps you on your toes.”

  “Touché.” Marcus popped Cole in the shoulder. “Come on. We have shit to do. Try Zak’s cell. If he’s left the club, he might hear it ring.”

  Cole did as he was told and dialed Zak while he and Marcus moved through the club to continue their search. He called him four times. Zak never answered.

  “I’m starting to get a bad fucking feeling,” Cole said as he and Marcus pounded on the private-room doors on the third floor. Each couple they disrupted answered the door disheveled and sweaty. He moved down the line to the last door and pounded hard. “A really bad fucking feeling.”

  Marcus stood behind him, his eyes roaming over the crowd. He made an uneasy sound in the back of his throat that Cole took as agreement.

  The door swung open.

  It wasn’t Zak.

  Instead, a young man with sweat-soaked blond hair stood on the other side. He looked at Cole and wiped sweat out of his eyes. “Can I help you?”

  “How many of you are in there?” Cole asked.

  The man opened the door a bit farther. Two half-naked women wiggled their fingers in dainty hellos at Cole and descended into a fit of giggles. “Just the three of us,” the man said. “Did we break any rules?”

  Cole sighed. “No, as you were.”

  He and Marcus turned from the doors and did another lap of the third floor before making their way down to the second.

  “This doesn’t make sense,” Cole said. “Zak wouldn’t leave without tipping anyone off.”

  “Unless he was leaving against his will,” Marcus grumbled.

  Cole didn’t like the sound of that.

  They lapped the second floor and moved down to the first.

  There, at the bottom of the stairs, they bumped into Vance. The other bodyguard had been on the prowl for Zak as well.

  “Anything?” Marcus asked.

  Vance shook his head. “No, but there’s someone here looking for Cole.”

  Cole frowned. Who’d be there looking for him at that hour? And at Kadia. “Who is it?”

  “Wayne White,” Vance said.

  Cole massaged his temple. “Fuck me.”

  Marcus clapped him on the shoulder. “That’s his daughter’s job.”

  Vance rubbed the back of his neck so he could look at the floor and hide his smile.

  “What the hell does he want?” Cole asked.

  “I don’t know, man,” Vance said, “but he looks like he’s on the warpath.”

  Cole sighed.

  There was no way this wasn’t related to Cameron coming into the club in tears. Her father finding out about the two of them seeing each other clearly hadn’t gone over well at the White estate. If her father was furious and here to scold him about dating his daughter, Mr. White was going to be disappointed. Cole had no intention of ending things with Cameron because her daddy was bent out of shape over who she chose to share a bed with.

  The problem was he didn’t have time for this shit tonight.

  “Can you delay him?” Cole asked.

  “Not likely,” Vance said. “He’s too famous, man. We could kick him out?”

  “No,” Marcus said with a growl. “The bastard will draw too much attention to the club. Cole, handle this shit. Quickly.”

  Cole nodded. “Sorry, boss.”

  Vance nudged Cole’s shoulder. “Here he comes. Pompous bastard. I told him to stay put and wait.”

  Cole sighed and watched as Mr. White strode through the crowd. “He’s not used to being told what to do apparently. I’ll handle this.”

  “Good luck,” Vance muttered, moving to stand beside Marcus.

  The boss cracked his knuckles. “Why do people insist on treating my club like their own fucking soap opera?”

  29

  Cameron

  A girl with the perkiest tits Cameron had ever seen sat down on a stool in front of her. Cameron had taken up resi
dence on the sofa in the dressing room. It was a forest green velvet sofa, adorned in fluffy indigo pillows, and the corner in which she sat was perfect for hiding her face from the dancers while she tried not to cry.

  The dancer in front of her on the stool crossed one leg over the other and gave Cameron a sympathetic smile. “Rough day, babe?”

  Cameron wiped under her eyes for the thousandth time that night and nodded. “You could say that.”

  The dressing room smelled like vanilla and cotton-candy body spray. Cameron was reminded of her high-school days and wondered why the scent was so similar. Maybe this was how the girls kept things smelling fresh between their sets. She could only imagine how sweaty things got up on those platforms under the bright lights. The girls would dance for sometimes forty-five minutes at a time and they left it all up on the stage. At least they did if they wanted to earn some good money.

  The air had a chalky humidity to it, and as Cameron watched the other women getting ready, she put two and two together. All the powder they were patting on their faces with beauty sponges and fluffy brushes explained that.

  It was warm, too. Almost uncomfortably so.

  Cameron shifted on the sofa and tried not to think about how badly she wanted a glass of water.

  The dancer with the perky boobs reached out and put a hand on Cameron’s knee. “Want to talk about it? I just finished a set and I don’t have to go back out there for another half hour. And to be honest, girl problems always help me check out of work mode. While I’m out there, it’s all sex and cock and taking money from rich pricks. In here? I like to be reminded that I’m a person.”

  Cameron tried to smile and failed. “I had a fight with my father.”

  The dancer nodded like she’d heard this story a thousand times. Considering what she did for a living, maybe she had. “That’s rough. We always want our fathers to understand us, don’t we?”

  “He’s just so damn stubborn,” Cameron vented. “He thinks he knows what’s best for me. And maybe sometimes he’s right, but—”