“Hey.” I called over to Elliot as soon as I got to the bar. There was no one else around as the rest of the patrons preferred to be waited on hand and foot.
Elliot moved up the bar towards me and smiled warmly before straightening his back. He looked like a model with his classic good looks and smart suit, but he didn’t seem like his fun loving usual self tonight. “Hi, Fallon. What can I get for you?”
“Just a Pepsi with ice and lemon, thanks El.”
He bustled around the bar before placing the drink in front of me with a smile and a flourish. As he nodded and moved away, I narrowed my eyes a little. He always stuck around for a chat, especially on a relatively quiet night like tonight. “Are you okay?”
He glanced back in my direction and a small smile as he cleaned the already immaculate bar area. “The boss is in tonight. We’re all on our best behaviour.”
“Ah, so you’re all trying to make a good impression on him?”
“Something like that.”
“Is he really that much of an ass?” I could imagine so, owning a place like this.
Elliot sidled up closer to me and whispered, “He fired Helen. She just ran out of here crying.”
“Shit. What happened?” I couldn’t say I was too surprised. Helen seemed like a bit of a crafty cow to me.
“I’ve no idea, but we’re all on guard in case he calls anyone else in. I can’t afford to lose this job.”
“Well, you don’t need to worry, El. You do a great job here.”
“Thanks, babe.”
I’d always liked Elliot. He had gone to the same school as me until his parents lost all of their money and had to pull him out. When he started working here, I knew it was hard on him, serving the same people he used to be friends with, especially some of the not so nice ones.
“It’s true. You take pride in your work.” I nodded towards the bar area that was sparkling. “And anyway, you don’t need this place. It needs you.”
“Make sure you tell him that if you see him.” Elliot winked as he moved down the bar to take another order from one of the servers.
Grabbing my drink, I made my way back over to the table. Olivia had still not arrived, obviously choosing to be fashionably late with the rest of her uptight friends, and Taylor was nowhere in sight. That wasn’t much of a surprise to me. She was a girl determined to find herself a man, not that she was particularly bothered if he was a rich dude, but that would be a bonus.
Taylor wasn’t a shallow girl, she was just looking for Mr Right. Everywhere she went, Taylor was always on the look-out for a potential husband. For as long as I can remember, all she ever wanted out of life was the perfect marriage like her parents had, and then lots of babies. I couldn’t fault her for that. It sounded pretty damn perfect to me, too.
She hadn’t had an easy time of it. Taylor was a sucker for love and when she fell, she fell hard. Unfortunately, the person she had chosen to fall for was a complete ass and had messed her around big style. And even more unfortunate was who he chose to cheat on her with. That’s right, ladies and gentlemen, Charlie the Cheat went one step further and had an affair with Taylor’s sister.
For anyone else, it would have probably ruined their view on love, but not Taylor. She was the eternal cock-eyed optimist. Hence why she was out and about on the look-out tonight.
It just seemed like a whole lot of hassle to me, though. Taylor never stopped looking for the perfect guy but I was more of the opinion that love would find you when you were least expecting it. Not that I was going to burst her bubble and tell Taylor that.
“Your friend is over on the dancefloor.”
I looked up to see a man who appeared a few years older than me, probably early thirties, grinning down at me. He had on a suit that probably cost more than most people would make in a year, custom made shoes and thinning hair. He looked like the stereotypical insurance or banking kind of guy or something equally as boring.
“Thanks.” I glanced over at the dancefloor and saw her slow dancing with some random guy, his hand planted firmly on her ass. At least she had a big smile on her face.
“Would you like to join me for a drink?”
I held up my glass, “Thanks, but I’m fine.” There was something about him that I just disliked on first impression and I didn’t want to encourage him any further.
“Come on. You don’t want to be sat here all alone while your friend is out there having a good time.”
“I said, I’m fine.”
“I’m sure we could have some fun. Order in some champagne…”
“Look, can’t you take a hint?” I narrowed my eyes at him. I knew exactly what type of guy he was, using his money to attract girls. Well, he was shit out of luck with me. For one, my family had more money that he could ever dream of, and for two, no amount of money could ever make him seem attractive to me.
He made a snorting sound and I could have sworn that he muttered ‘bitch’ under his breath as he stormed away. Not that it bothered me. I was just glad he was out of my face. I didn’t care what he thought of me.
Watching Taylor out on the dancefloor, in a way I wished I could enjoy this club the way she did. I couldn’t ever seem to relax when I was in there and certainly wouldn’t give the men the time of day. Taylor loved coming here, drinking herself stupid and dancing the night away while I sat on the side-lines, sulking.
That was when I realised I was just as snobby as the rest of them. They seemed to rate people on the amount of money they made, and I rated them negatively dependent on the amount of money they had. Why hadn’t I ever realised that before?
“Ms Winterly?”
I glanced up to see the beautiful waitress from earlier. “Yes, that’s me.”
“I’ve been asked to inform you that your party has arrived.”
“Thank you.” I was pleased that I managed to reply without groaning. I had hoped for a little more time before Olivia got here, but I was clearly out of luck.
Standing up, I motioned for Taylor, but she was oblivious as she danced with the guy she had just met. Huffing to myself, I walked out onto the dancefloor and tapped her on the shoulder.
“Oh, hey” She beamed a smile at the man she was wrapped around, “This is my best friend, Fallon.”
“Hello, Fallon.” He said in a deep voice, but kept his eyes glued to Taylor. I could see why she would like him, all tall, dark and handsome. He seemed like the kind of man who looked after himself with his cleanly shaven face and smelling of expensive aftershave.
I gave him a quick smile before turning back to her, “They’re here. Are you coming to sit down?” She looked torn, wanting to be my rock for the evening and wanting to stay with this guy. I made it easy for her. “Why don’t you come and find us after the song has finished?”
Taylor looked at me in relief, “Are you sure?”
“Of course.” I gave her a pointed look to tell her not to be too long before turning to make my way over to where my sister was holding court.
Olivia was sitting in the centre of her friends, already engaging in wedding talk. Sitting down, she graced me with a quick wave before launching back into the discussion about wedding preparations. I couldn’t follow it at all. Her words were blending into a haze of peach and ivory themes that I had no interest in.
This wedding was going to be a huge event. My mother had been waiting for the day that she could go all out for one of her daughters. And that was another reason I was a big disappointment to her. None of my relationships measured up to her standards or lasted long enough for her to start in on the preparations. My younger sister had beaten me to it, much to my mother’s delight. Olivia would be much easier to bend to her will.
Even before Alex had asked Olivia to marry him, she and my mother had already been talking dresses and flowers, just in case. With him coming from such a good family with tons of money and a respectable background, Olivia got her claws into him quickly and deeply. She was a beautiful woman and knew how to wrap a m
an around her little finger so Alex wasn’t complaining.
It had worked for her, too. Alex had popped the question and the wheels for the wedding of the century were set into motion. Did he know what he was letting himself in for?
I really wished I hadn’t come tonight. I couldn’t blame Taylor for getting up close and personal with Mr Banker on the dancefloor. That was sure to be much more enjoyable than the torture of listening to this crap at Olivia’s table. But she was my wing-woman. She was supposed to be looking out for me and saving me from this boredom.
Olivia’s closest friends were getting into the swing of the evening, throwing around wedding suggestions and sipping at their champagne. They were all eager to tell Olivia their ideas, hoping that she’d take one of them and give them some credit. I really couldn’t see that happening.
Honestly, I still had no idea why I had been roped into coming here. Olivia wasn’t stupid. She would knew that, although I was really happy for her, I wasn’t into the whole wedding thing. Even if I had some ideas for her, it would be pointless as they wouldn’t be taken into account. My mother and Olivia had every single detail locked down already, so in my mind, this evening was pointless.
But, this was going to be the first of many. My sister was going to milk this for all it was worth. She was sat there at the table, looking like a princess with her cascading blonde hair, surrounded by her adoring minions. There was no way she was going to tell them all that she didn’t need their help and lose out on all this attention.
I was happy for her, really I was. Alex was a good guy and she could do a lot worse than him, but was all this really necessary? Shouldn’t a wedding be all about the vows and promising to love and to cherish the man that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with? Who really cared about the flowers and the cake? To me, I would rather run off and get married on a beach than to have to go through all this malarkey.
“What about roses? You could have the colour to match the theme.” Mia piped up. She had been a close friend of Olivia’s since they were small and was desperately hoping to be asked to be a bridesmaid. I wasn’t holding my breath for her on that one. Mia was a petite brunette with the most exquisite figure and Olivia wouldn’t want anyone that stunning taking any lime light away from her at her own wedding.
“Oh, yes. Roses! They are so romantic, so traditional.” One of the others gushed, followed by the rest of the girls’ encouragement.
Olivia shook her head with a look of disgust. “Roses are so common.” And the girls’ chirped in with yet another round of agreement, contradicting themselves within mere seconds.
What a bunch of sheep. I had to chuckle to myself. It was like my sister was Queen Bee and they were all her loyal followers. Everything and anything she said, they agreed with, even if it went against what they thought and felt.
Zoning out, I had no interest in what they were saying. As I said, it didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things anyway. Olivia already knew exactly what she wanted and nothing they could do or say would sway her. All I had to do tonight was nod along politely and pretend that I gave a crap about it all.
Taylor still hadn’t come over and I was going to give her a smack upside the head when I got hold of her. She was supposed to be here as moral support for me, not cosying up with some random dude on the dancefloor. Not that I could blame her. If I had the choice, I would have been on the dancefloor with a hottie rather than sat here, bored to tears. But that wasn’t the point. She should be bored to tears with me.
Just as I was thinking of ways to slowly torture her, Taylor came bouncing over to the table, looking flushed. “I’m so sorry, Fallon.” She grinned, not looking the least bit sorry.
“You’re lucky. I was going through torture techniques in my head and I just got to plucking your eye out with a rusty spoon.”
“Ew!” Taylor turned her nose up and I laughed.
“So, who was he?”
Taylor grinned, looking smitten. “He’s two years older than me, owns his own business and is single!”
“Single? Well, that’s something.” I laughed. It wasn’t funny though. She’d found out that one of her ex’s was actually married after seeing him for three months. Needless to say, it knocked her confidence around men for a while. It was good to see her getting back out there and trusting her instincts.
“He gave me his number.” She whispered, looking thrilled.
“So, you’re going to see him again?”
“Hopefully.” She crossed her fingers and giggled before throwing a glance over at the other girls around the table. “So, anything good happening here?”
“Same old, same old.” I rolled my eyes.
Taylor sat up a little straighter and looked behind me, nodding and smiling. Looking behind me, I saw the guy she had been dancing with beckoning her over. “Go ahead.” I laughed.
“Are you sure? I don’t think I should leave you with these vultures.”
“I’ll be fine.” I shooed her off and it didn’t take too much for her to be running off to see the man she had taken a liking to.
“Fallon? Fallon?”
“Sorry?” I looked around, seeing everyone at the table staring at me. I guess I had zoned out a little too far that time.
“We were talking about the bridesmaid dresses. I would have thought that would have been important to you.” Olivia glared in my direction.
I could honestly say I really didn’t care as long as she didn’t put me in anything too hideous. Still, for the sake of keeping the peace, I turned to my sister with what I hoped was a look of enthusiasm on my face and asked, “So, what do you have planned for the dresses, Olivia?”
“Well, there is the most wonderful designer,” She started to dig around in her dainty clutch bag and making a small triumphant sound as she found what she was looking for. Olivia quickly clicked through the pictures on her phone, turning the screen towards me so I could check out her choices.
I could feeling myself actually smiling as I let out a sigh of relief. The photo on her phone showed a very flattering column design with floating panels. I had imagined that she and my mother would have gone for some over-the-top kind of frills and everything else I would hate, so this was a very pleasant surprise. “That’s gorgeous, Liv.”
She frowned a little at my use of her nickname, one that I had called her since we were little kids. She soon enough took a disliking to it as we got older, preferring the regal sound of her full name. But, I thought it suited her, softening the hard edges.
Olivia shook her head slightly, as if ridding herself of the name I’d used and smiled widely as she settled back in to talk wedding plans. “I’ll be having each of my bridesmaids in varying shades of lilac.”
The rest of the girls gushed and swooned but all I could think was yuk. Lilac? And she thought that roses were common at a wedding. Everyone had lilac or shades of pink at their weddings. But, hey, it could be worse. I had to count my blessings.
“So, when are we going to be hearing wedding bells from you, Fallon?” Maisie asked. She had been a friend of my sister’s since school, sharing a common love of money and shopping. She was a snob of the highest degree and we had never really got on well.
Before I could say anything, Olivia’s sarcastic laughter tinkled out across the table. “Fallon doesn’t believe in marriage. Not the traditional kind, anyway.”
I rolled my eyes at her words. That was another bone of contention that my mother had against my job. She thought I was married to my career, so much so that I would never let a man into my life fully because of it. She was talking utter bullshit. I could easily juggle a man and my job, I just chose not to at the moment.
“Maybe it’s because no one wants to marry her.” One of the others sniggered.
I didn’t even bother looking around to see who had said that scathing remark because honestly, I didn’t care enough. I couldn’t give a toss what this lot thought of me. These were just the type of girls I had encountered my whole
like, looking down their noses at anyone who didn’t follow the only path that they deemed right.
Sipping at my iced water, they soon enough moved the conversation away from my lack of love life back to Olivia’s wedding plans. Thank God for that.
“I’m going to the bathroom.” I nodded over to Olivia who barely glanced in my direction as she launched into yet another discussion about table decorations or something equally as mind numbing.
The club was relatively quiet, but it always was compared to other night clubs. You had to have a shit tonne of money to get in here, ensuring an elite clientele. This was the ultimate VIP experience. I had to shake my head and smile when I saw Taylor still out on the dance floor, champagne in one hand and a different man in the other. Clearly, she was moving on.
The bathrooms were bigger in Decadence than most people’s houses. There was a small sitting area, which was something I could never understand. I had come across this a lot when I was growing up and going to galas and balls with my family. The attendant was sat there with a pile of fluffy towels, a fresh one for each woman that came in to use the facilities. What was wrong with good old paper towels, eh? Behind her was an array of perfume bottles, including one of my favourites that I happened to be wearing tonight so I happily took a couple of spritz before leaving the rest room.
“Oh! Sorry!” I apologised immediately as I walked out of the door and collided with a solid chest.
“Not a problem, darlin’.”
Looking up in surprise, I saw a huge hulk of a man in front of me. There was something different about him to the rest of the men that came in here. He looked simply delicious in his suit which clung to his body in the most mouth-watering way possible.
It was his eyes that drew me in. I had always been a sucker for a beautiful pair of eyes and his were winners. Dark green ringed with lashes that any woman would have given her right arm for, their depth was enough to pull you in and leave you drowning.
Dominic (Saint Brothers #1) Page 5