“What?” she shrieked and sat up.
“Naked.”
“No,” Tessa breathed.
“True story. Had to call the cops and got a restraining order.”
“Wow, that’s crazy.”
“Yep. The second woman didn’t follow me, but she somehow traced my phone and got my address. Showed up at my house wearing only a trench coat.”
“You don’t like women showing up in a trench coat? Isn’t that sexy or something?”
“Yes, when both people are interested. But I don’t have feelings for my clients.”
“So, what did you do?” She placed her head back on my shoulder.
“Asked her to leave because I was busy, which I was.”
“With another woman?”
“No.” I chuckled. “A friend of mine from college was visiting, and we were engrossed in Call of Duty and drinking beer.”
“What happened with the woman?”
“She apologized, but I never accepted a date with her again. Not sure what happened to her after that.”
“Do you think my person is a regular?”
“Could be, or just someone who’s obsessed with watching you from afar.”
“My—”
There was a knock on the door. “Vegas Metro.”
Tessa and I both stood. She went to the door, looked through the peephole, and opened it. For the next ten or so minutes, Tessa told the two officers everything that happened, and I gave them the license plate number. We were told they’d make a report, and when it was available, we could get a copy if we wanted it. There wasn’t much they could do other than run the plates to make sure there wasn’t a warrant out for their arrest, and before they left, they told Tessa to drive to a police station if it ever happened again, but I wasn’t convinced that was the best plan. Most stations closed at five in the evening around here and weren’t open on the weekends.
After the cops left, I turned to Tessa. “I better get home so you can get some sleep before Colt wakes up. I’ll follow you home tomorrow night, and Sunday you’re going to the range with me.”
“The shooting range?”
“Yeah. Gabe and Paul teach women how to shoot guns, and we’re getting you one.”
“Seriously?”
“Abso-fucken-lutely.”
I wasn’t letting her walk alone at night without protection because when I told her I would die if anything happened to her, I fucking meant it.
And I wasn’t taking that chance.
While Colton took his afternoon nap, I took one as well. I was used to going to bed late on Fridays and Saturdays, but not close to four in the morning—except when we’d gone to L.A. And I was certain I’d only made it through the game because I was high on the adrenaline of being at a game with a hot guy.
I was still tired by the time I made it to Red Diamond. Before I got out of my car, I looked around for the black vehicle that had followed me the night before. I didn’t see it, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t looking over my shoulder as I walked in through the side employee door. When I turned the corner in the hall that went back to the dressing room, Galen stood in his usual spot where he made sure no one entered the club who didn’t go through the front door.
“Hey, Scarlett. Have a good night last night?” He was a little taller than me, had dark red hair, a trimmed beard, and green eyes. He wasn’t bad on the eyes at all.
I cocked my head slightly. “Why?”
He arched his brows. “Just making small talk like I normally do. Is that okay?”
I smiled, remembering that he did, in fact, usually ask me if my day or night was good. “Yeah, sorry. Something happened last night.”
He turned to face me head on. “What happened? Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I took a calming breath and thought of something. “Actually, are there cameras outside?”
“What? Something happened here?”
“Someone tried to follow me home last night.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah.” I sighed.
“Of course we have cameras. The monitor and recordings are in the boss’s office. You should go talk to him.”
I swallowed and nodded slightly because I didn’t really want to bother Sebastian. Plus, I wasn’t sure what I’d walk in on if I did. “Thanks.”
“No problem. What kind of car was it?”
“A black one.”
“Doesn’t narrow it down by much.” He chuckled.
“No, it doesn’t.” I shook my head. “My friend got the plates though.”
“And you called the cops?”
“Yeah.”
“Good. Go talk to the boss. Hopefully, you can get something from the police. I doubt they will follow up, but maybe, with the plates, they can at least tell you a name.”
I was hopeful they would because I didn’t want to look over my shoulder every day. I was already going to change my route home. The police had told me they’d file a report and run the plates. Stalking was a crime, but the only thing I could do would be to get a restraining order, and that was only a piece of paper. A piece of paper couldn’t physically protect me.
“Right. Well, thank you.”
“You bet. Thank you again for telling me. I’ll walk all of you ladies to your cars and make sure no one leaves behind you.”
I smiled tightly up at him. “Thank you.”
Instead of going to the dressing room, I took Galen’s advice and went up to Sebastian’s office. I figured that since it happened to me, it was happening to other girls—or would, and the boss should know about it. With each step I took up to his office, my heart pounded in my chest. What if Sommer was in there again? What if it was another girl? What if he was just busy?
When I knocked, he called out for me to come in. I opened the red door, took a deep breath, and entered.
Sebastian was alone and behind his desk that pointed toward the stage to my right. He smiled and turned to face me as I stepped inside. His dirty blond hair was styled in its usual slicked back way, and he was in a gray suit with a white button-down shirt and lavender tie. “Tessa, to what do I owe the pleasure of you coming up here?”
“Ah.” I rubbed the back of my neck nervously. “I was wondering if I could look at the security feed from last night.”
He set the pen he was holding down and leaned forward. “Why do you need to do that?”
“I—”
“Come in and close the door.”
I still stood a few steps inside the office, so I took a deep breath and shut the door before walking to a chair in front of his dark wood desk. Before I sat down, I paused, wondering if it was the one he sat in when Sommer was on her knees. Without too much hesitation, I sat on the edge of the chair.
“So, what’s going on?” he asked, resting on his elbows on the top of his desk.
I proceeded to tell him everything. “… and I hope that maybe the cameras will show me their face.”
“Good thinking. The cameras are on a three day cycle, so it should be here.” He pressed a button as he turned around in his chair, and a screen rose from a credenza behind him. I watched as he pulled a keyboard and mouse from a drawer and then typed some things on the keyboard and moved the mouse around, bringing up a color feed. “You left at what time last night?”
“Well, it was two this morning.”
“Right.” He pressed some buttons, and after a few moments, I saw myself exit the door.
“Do you see the black car?” Sebastian pulled up another view, this one of the parking lot and not the employee door. He rewound the feed until we saw the black car pull into the space. “He pulled up a little after nine.”
“Nine?”
“Yep.”
“And it’s a guy?”
“Well …” He zoomed in with the mouse, and I stood, getting closer so I could see better. “Yeah, it looks like a guy. Does he look familiar to you?”
I bent and got right in front of the monitor. The
screen wasn’t clear since it was dark with only the parking lot lights casting a glow. The guy in the car didn’t look familiar at all, though it could be anyone because it was too grainy to discern any features. I sighed. “No. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him before.”
Sebastian turned his head toward me, and I looked down into his dark blue eyes. “Are you sure?”
I stood and stepped back. “I think so.”
“Okay, I’ll tell all my bouncers to keep an eye out for this car, and I’ll talk to Honey so she can talk to all the girls.”
“Thank you, Mr. Delarosa.” My gaze moved to his desk, and I noticed there was a stack of money on the wood top and several small empty plastic bags with a red diamond printed on it. I had no idea what they were for because I’d never seen them before.
“Please, call me Sebastian.”
My hand rested on the credenza as I turned my head and smiled slightly. “Okay.”
He reached out and placed his hand on top of mine. “If you ever need anything else, please don’t hesitate to come to me.”
A feeling of uneasiness washed over me, and I wanted to pull my hand away, but I resisted so that I wasn’t rude to my boss. “Thank you. I will.”
Sebastian removed his hand and turned his chair back to his desk, looking at a desk calendar. I started to turn to leave, but he spoke again, and I stopped. “Remind me again what days you work.”
“Wednesday and Thursday days, and Friday and Saturday nights.”
“That’s right. Are you up for making extra money?” He looked up at me.
My stomach dropped into the pit of my stomach. “Um—”
“It’s not what you’re thinking.”
“It’s not?” I asked, my brows furrowed in confusion. I wasn’t sure if he remembered that I’d seen him getting his dick sucked a few months ago.
He leaned back in his chair. “Monday, I’m going to the fight at the arena, and I want you on my arm.”
I balked. “What?”
He grinned. “This town is small, Tessa, and if I show up alone, I won’t hear the end of it from my friends.”
“Really?” He nodded. “Why me?”
“Why not you?”
I leaned my hip on the credenza, needing something to hold me up because he was talking about being one on one. One on one with my boss. Alone. “Because …” I hesitated, not sure if I should bring up the Sommer situation or not.
“Do you want me to invite someone else?”
Yes. “I—”
He stood and moved in front of me, touching my hand again. I stared up into his eyes. He wasn’t a bad looking guy, but he was my boss. Wasn’t there a law or something? Probably not, but it was still weird to me.
“I’ll pay you a grand.”
My mouth fell open. “A grand?”
“Plus your ticket for the fight, of course.”
An extra thousand dollars was tempting. I could put it away for a rainy day. “Why me?” I asked again. I didn’t understand why he was asking me and not Sommer.
“Are you not grateful for the extra money?”
“It’s not that. I’m just confused why you’d choose me and not one of the other girls.”
He grinned and leaned a hip on the credenza, matching me, except he crossed his arms over his chest as though to get comfortable. “I’m going to be honest with you, Tessa. My friends are ruthless. They’ll flirt and try to get in your pants.”
“And you think I’d be okay with that?”
He smiled and shook his head. “No. That’s exactly why I want it to be you and not someone else. I’ve already made the mistake of bringing the … easier girls, and while I don’t want you to go home with me, I don’t want you to go home with anyone else.”
My mouth hit the floor again. “What?”
“You know how it is for bachelor parties—”
“This is for a bachelor party?”
“No. It’s to be my arm candy, but I need someone who won’t run their mouth about what happens here at Red Diamond.”
“I don’t understand. What happens here at RD that I’d talk about?”
“Just say yes, Tessa. I’ve always told you that if you ever need anything to come to me. That goes for your safety. I want to protect you, and I want to give you money to spend a few hours with me so I can brag to my friends that you’re mine.”
“But I’m not yours,” I corrected.
“They won’t know that.”
“So, I’ll be like an escort?”
His grin widened. “If that makes you feel better about this. I’m just looking to hire you to be on my arm. That’s it.”
“Okay,” I agreed. I was going to treat it as though it was a bachelor party, but this time, I wouldn’t have to take my top off or grind on someone’s lap. I hoped.
“Thank you.” He turned to the stack of cash on his desk. I watched as he pulled out a few hundred dollar bills and then handed them to me. “You’ll need to get a nice dress to wear. Our seats are ringside.”
“Wow, really?”
Sebastian smiled. “I only sit in the best seats, Tessa.”
“I had the wrong idea about boxing,” I admitted. I’d assumed people went in jeans and a nice shirt with heels.
“It will be the funnest way you’ve ever made a grand.”
True to his word, Vinny was waiting for me when I got off at two. He’d texted to say he was coming and would meet me in the parking lot, but he didn’t want to freak me out when I saw a man standing by the door. I’d told Galen my friend was coming and to not think he was my stalker, so when I walked outside, I saw Galen and Vinny laughing and talking like they were best friends. Vinny stopped talking and immediately turned his gaze toward me and smiled. My belly dipped. I’d never get tired of the way he made me feel when he looked at me.
“Hey,” I greeted Vinny as I stopped in front of him.
“Hey, Candy.” He immediately wrapped his arms around my back and pulled me to him for a hug. He’d said I smelled like cotton candy, but he equally smelled good—like citrus, mint, and a hint of lavender, which calmed me. He smelled like my Vinny.
“Ready to go?” I asked.
We broke apart. “Yep, but first …” He dug his wallet out of his back pocket and pulled a business card out. Handing it to Galen, he said, “Call my boss, Mark, and tell him I gave you my card to look into setting up a meeting with him.”
Galen took the card and smiled. “I will. Thanks, man.”
“No problem.”
“Keep our girl safe,” Galen said.
“Always.” Vinny wrapped an arm around me and started for my car.
“You gave Galen your card to become an escort?”
“Yeah. He was out here when I arrived, so I introduced myself, and we started shooting the shit. Told him about S&R and he was interested.”
“Dang. You work at a place a little over a year, thinking you know everything, and then everything starts to change.”
“What do you mean?”
We stopped in front of my car. “Well, it seems everyone’s going to be an escort now.”
His brows arched. “Really?”
“Well, kinda. My boss asked me to be his date for some boxing match on Monday. Said he’ll pay me a grand.”
“Holy shit.”
“I know. I’m not sure why he asked me to do it.”
“Because you’re awesome.”
I laughed, throwing my head back. “He actually said it was because I don’t have a big mouth.”
“Really? What does that mean?”
“I have no idea. He said something about not talking about what happens here at RD.”
“He just wants to date you.”
“I don’t think so.”
He cocked his head to the side as if to imply I was oblivious to the obvious. “Are you sure?”
“Why would he want to date me?”
Vinny reached up and brushed my hair behind my ear. “Because you’re beautiful, Tess.”
I stared up into his chocolate eyes. “What are we doing, Vin?”
He stared back, not saying anything for a few moments. “I don’t know, but I don’t want it to stop.”
“Me either,” I admitted.
He grinned. “Good. Now, let’s get you home so tomorrow you can be awake and ready to shoot shit.”
I chuckled. “You make it sound so fun.”
“It should be. I heard it’s a high you’ve never been on.”
Vinny followed me home, walked me to my door, and kissed the top of my head before leaving. It was the first time his lips had touched me, and it wasn’t even on my skin. I had to admit it was sweet. And the way he turned, one last time, to see I was watching him leave, made me think that he was trying to be a gentleman and take whatever we were doing slowly. There was just something in the way he looked back at me that gave me that feeling—or I hoped that was the reason. I really needed to talk to him, but not at two o’clock in the morning.
“That boy has it bad for you,” Sophia stated as she came up behind me just as Vinny was out of sight.
“What makes you say that?” I asked.
“A boy who walks you to the door wants more than in your pants.”
I snorted, not believing that had come from her mouth. “I think he wants that too, but I wouldn’t be the only woman.”
“He told me he was an escort, and while I’m not fully certain what that means, a man in love will do anything for the woman he loves.”
“Even quit a job?”
“Even quit a job if it meant being with the one who’s captured his heart.”
“I don’t think he loves me.”
She frowned slightly, a look of sorrow on her face. “Then I don’t think either one of you knows what love truly is.”
The next morning, I thought about what Sophia said as I got ready to go to the shooting range. When I was in high school, I thought I was in love, but that was short lived. Like a lot of high school boys, he cheated on me with my then best friend. I’d never trusted anyone since because, despite my father being a good guy, that boy left a mark on my heart early on. Except now, I trusted Vinny.
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