High Stakes (The Kingdom Book 2)

by Groom, Nikki

  “Please tell me, Lotts …” I whisper.

  “I can’t. Spike will go postal. It’s stupid anyway …”

  “Well, maybe just tell me first then we can work out what to do, together.”

  She sucks in a huge breath, trying to compose herself and steady her uneven breaths.

  “My boss was pissed that I ruined the customer’s nice pants, and caused a scene. He hauled me into his office and sat me in the hard plastic chair, in front of his fucking ridiculous executive desk. I mean he’s a restaurant manager, not a CEO, Asshole.”

  I raise my brows pointedly at her, knowing she’s veering off track in the conversation to avoid getting to the part that’s getting to her the most.

  “So, he just basically tore a strip off me. Which I suppose, I was half expecting. I know I shouldn’t have done it. I was expecting my knuckles to be wrapped. Then he said I had two choices. He’d pay me what I was owed and I could walk, or …” She swallows hard.

  “Or what?”

  “Or he’d let me keep my job if …” she looks up at me through helpless eyes. Tears still clinging to her lashes. “If I slept with him.”

  “He WHAT?” I yell. “Did he touch you?

  Lottie doesn’t answer straight away, so I push further, “Lottie. Did he touch you? Tell me what that fucker did? I swear, I’ll take a rusty fucking knife to his balls …”

  “He just …”

  “He what, Lottie?” I say impatiently. I can feel my temper rising and the tone of my voice matches it. I’ve not ever seen my best friend like this and I don’t like it one bit. I want my strong, determined Lottie back.

  “He cornered me. He tried to kiss me and when I refused he grabbed me.” Lottie starts to cry again and my blood boils at the situation she was in. I know the feeling of not being able to escape. I know it all too well, and I know that Lottie only experienced a fraction of it but it’s no less scary, and she should never have had to feel that kind of fear from a man.

  “Where did he grab you? Did he touch you?” I hear the frantic tone in my voice and realize it’s not helping Lottie calm down. So, I take a deep breath and take her hand to lead her into the bedroom. I sit us on the edge of the bed and turn my body toward her.

  “Lottie? Babe, you need to get it all out and tell me what happened.” I say softly, “I know it hurts right now, but we will sort it out and make it better for you. I promise.” I wait patiently for her answer and hold her hand tightly.

  She steadies her breathing and then starts to talk, “I tried to talk to him, but he wasn’t having any of it. When I tried to leave, he backed me into the corner and pinned me with his body. He started to get all feely, then he was rough. I didn’t know what to do, so I kneed him. I’ve never done that before and after seeing you do it in the club, it was the first thing that came to me.” She smiles a little half smile, and I smile back knowing I might have helped in some way.

  “I guess he thought I would just open my legs and beg for my job back. He called me all sorts of names. Nothing I haven’t been called before, but he said them with such venom. No one has ever treated me that way before … like I was … he made me feel like a whore.”

  “Oh, babe. You know karma will make his cock turn green and fall off, right?”

  She huffs out a small laugh, her lips twitching at the corners but it doesn’t last long. “I hope so.”

  I hear talking outside of the bedroom and then Denham appears in the doorway, his broad shoulders and wide chest filling the space. The anxiety I was feeling at Lottie’s predicament seems to diminish somewhat just by knowing he’s there, and I’m not really sure why, or how.

  “Alright?” he asks me directly with a deep frown.

  Lottie snaps her head up at the sound of his voice and immediately pulls herself together the best she can. I know what she’s doing. She’s trying to put on a front. It was hard enough for her to let me see her feeling so down.

  “Hi, D man. Yes. Everything is fine. Just fine,” she says unconvincingly. She stands abruptly, runs a hand through her crazy hair and makes her way to the doorway. It’s only about five strides and when she reaches Denham, he doesn’t let her pass. It’s a questionable move. One that could go either way, especially the way Lottie’s emotions are at the moment.

  “Excuse me, please,” she chirps, very unconvincingly, plastering a huge fake smile on her face.

  “Nope,” he answers, casually.

  I watch as her shoulders drop. “Please, D. I’m not in the mood, okay?”

  “No, that’s not okay. For your face to be smeared with makeup and your eyes to be so puffy with tears, I’d say there’s something wrong. Now …” He crosses his arms before continuing and it makes his already wide shoulders even wider so he really fills the doorway. “If someone’s upset you, I want to know about it. If someone has hurt you, I want to know about it and I’m not moving until you tell me. So if you’re going to be all stubborn you had better get comfortable, because it’s going to be a long night.”

  “Lottie, just tell him,” I sigh.

  “Arianna, whose side are you on? I can’t tell him, because he will tell Spike. Then there will be a whole heap of mess that I was trying to avoid, thank you very much.” She looks at me with a scowl and I know she’s trying her hardest to protect her fierce reputation.

  “Lottie,” Denham says quietly, resting a hand on her shoulder. “You don’t have to tell me, but you’re like a little sister to me, and if you really were my sister, I’d be sorting it out, wouldn’t I?”

  Lottie just shrugs like a child. “So …”

  “I got fired from my job today.”

  “And …”

  “And, what? That’s it … I liked my job,” she says, her feet fidgeting while she’s telling such an unconvincing lie.

  “No, you didn’t. You fucking hated your job. What else happened to get you in this state, and make you so afraid of Spike knowing?”

  “My boss hit on me,” she says in a small voice.

  “Lottie, you and I both know that’s bullshit. You do not get upset just because someone hits on you. You get hit on ten times a day, and normally you’d brush it off as easy as breathing. What did he do? Did he hurt you?” Denham asks, starting to get impatient because he knows there’s something more to this story.

  Lottie can’t answer him with words. She gives a small nod, and lets out a sob, which starts her crying again. Her boss must have really done something awful for her to be like this. Lottie is one of the strongest people I know, and this is a side of her I’ve never seen before.

  “Come here.”

  Denham pulls her into his chest and strokes her head, letting her cry and get it all out. Her mascara tears are staining his light blue dress shirt, but he doesn’t even notice, and if he does notice, he doesn’t care. When her sobs subside, he releases his arms from around her and holds her face gently in his hands. He has to crouch to get eye level with her, as there is at least a foot difference in height between them.

  “I won’t make you tell me exactly what happened. I know it must be bad for you to be like this.”

  Lottie doesn’t find her voice, but she lifts the corner of her short-sleeved shirt to reveal red marks that are already starting to turn into a purple bruise. They are finger marks. I gasp and Denham’s expression turns thunderous. Damn that motherfucker. He really did hurt her. Not only physically, he made her feel scared, and he stole some of that bright light that Lottie always has. Denham takes a deep breath, gathering his composure, kisses her forehead, and strides over to me, holding out his upturned palm. I place my hand in his. He pulls me close and entwines his fingers together in the small of my back. I snuggle into his neck, amazed at just how well we fit. Like missing puzzle pieces.

  He nuzzles into my hair and takes a deep breath. “So, I want you girls to stay here. Call down for more to drink. Food if you like. Caviar, champagne, whatever the fuck you want. And I’ll be back in an hour. Okay?” I can tell he’s trying to kee
p his patience in check, but his words are clipped, and I know it’s really hard for him to contain the temper that’s dangerously bubbling beneath the surface.

  “Where are you going?”

  He leans in to whisper in my ear, “I’m going to sort out this mess, I know she doesn’t want me to, but what he’s done to her, he’s not getting away with.”

  He gives me a chaste kiss on my lips, before loosening his arms from around me and taking my hand. He kisses each of my fingertips before letting go and marching purposefully out of the room. He kisses his mom, who has come in from the balcony, on the cheek as he walks past her, and she looks at him a little perplexed.

  “Girls, can one of you fill me in?” Dana questions.

  Lottie looks to me, and I raise my brows to give her the opportunity to tell Dana what’s going on. She gives a small shake of her head, and the pleading look in her eyes tell me she can’t voice it all again. I really feel for her in that moment. I know how she feels. I’ve been there a thousand times and every time felt as bad as the first. The difference was, I was never brave enough to tell anyone, until now.

  “Uh … Lottie had some trouble at work is all, and Denham has some more things to do. He won’t be long. He said to order whatever we would like. Did you find more Prosecco in the fridge, Lottie?” I prompt. I know she knows Denham is sorting it out. He’s probably filled Spike in, well, as much as he can right now, and I imagine they are on their way to see Lottie’s ex-boss as we speak. But I don’t want her worrying about it, and Dana and I will need to keep her occupied for however long it takes for them to get back here.

  “Uh, earth to Lottie … Come on, chica, let’s drink.” I link my arm in hers, and she puts on a brave face and strides off in the direction of the fridge mumbling aggravated words under her breath.

  “How fucking dare he … I mean, all I did was throw a drink over an asshole customer. It probably deserved getting fired over, actually. I understand that. But, who does he think he is? Putting his hands all over me. How fucking dare he, Ari!” I almost run to keep up with her, and I’m pleased that she’s starting to feel the anger; it means she’s getting past the deep emotional stuff. She stops at the fridge and flings open the door, it reaches maximum extension and bounces back, making jars and bottles stored in the door knock together and rattle. “Ugh, I feel so fucking stupid. Fuck, fuck, fuck. I am not a weak fucking pussy that will let a dickweed like him push me around.”

  “Lottie, it’s …”

  “Don’t! Don’t tell me it’s perfectly normal to feel scared or cry like a baby. It might be normal for every other woman on this earth, but not me. I’m not a fucking pussy, Arianna. I am Charlotte fucking Miller. I might be small, but I am a fierce, fiery redhead and I will not be pushed around.” Her voice is getting louder and I know we are finding our way back to the Lottie we all know. “I can’t believe I let someone make me feel like that. I might be small in stature but I am not going to be made to feel little and worthless and scared. Damn, stupid fucker made me feel scared. How dare he, Ari! In fact, I’m going to show that sleazy bastard what it’s like to hurt.” She points her index finger at nothing in particular, before popping the cap on a bottle of beer and slamming the bottle down on the countertop. She takes a huge breath and throws her head back. That right there, was therapy. The beer that has been shaken and slammed, pushes up through the neck of the bottle, spraying all over the countertop and Lottie too. I clamp my lips between my teeth to keep from laughing, and Lottie looks between Dana and I, and starts to laugh. Dana follows and before long, we are all belly laughing. Dana crosses the room, and pulls Lottie in for a tight hug, kissing the top of her head.

  “Aw, girls. What are we going to do? Arianna, come here …” she beckons. Dana wraps one arm around Lottie’s shoulder, and one around mine. “Now, I think we should take my boy up on his offer … let’s get some more to drink, and something to eat if you’re planning on drinking a lot, Lottie.”

  Lottie’s mouth falls open and she feigns shock “Me? Why do you aim that statement at me?”

  Dana just raises a brow, and goes back into the lounge to call for more Prosecco.

  “Come on babe, let’s drink and forget!” I say, holding out my hand for Lottie to take. She gives me a smile, although I know it’s pained for her. She’s a tough cookie, we all know that. But, everyone has a weak point, an Achilles heel. And Lottie’s ex-boss hit it today. I think it frightened her, as she never likes to seem weak or helpless, but it only served to remind her that she’s only human. I hope it also reminds her, that she has fabulous people around her that care deeply.

  Two bottles of chilled Prosecco are delivered, and we almost manage a whole one before the boys come back. I think we succeeded in keeping Lottie’s mind off things, but I was totally aware of the time, and they had been gone for about an hour. When they stride through the door, Lottie’s face pales. Spike walks toward her with a casual air about him, and Denham goes to the fridge, grabs two bottles of beer, and pops the caps. Spike reaches into his back pocket and pulls out a thick wad of bills, then, standing behind the couch, he drops them into Lottie’s lap. He bends over the leather back of the couch and drapes his arms around Lottie’s neck pulling her tight to him and whispering something in her ear. She smiles and he kisses her cheek, before taking a beer from Denham as he walks past. They chink the necks of their bottles, grin, wink and sit next to Lottie and I respectively. We all look at each other with confusion on our faces, perplexed at their nonchalance.

  “Do you boys want to tell us what’s going on?” I ask.

  Dana stays quiet, but wears a proud smile at the men her boys have grown into.

  “Nothing to say,” Denham answers. “Lottie’s boss fucked up, didn’t he? He paid. End of.” He shrugs.

  “Denham! What did you do?” Lottie asks worriedly.

  “Nothing that asshole didn’t deserve. I don’t think he will be grabbing anyone for a while, and after that, he will hurt even if he thinks about it.” Denham seems pleased with himself, and Spike is totally comfortable with whatever went down. After all, he was protecting his girl. Neither of them have marks on their knuckles or anywhere else that I can see, and knowing these two, they just roughed him up a bit, and scared him enough to never do it again.

  “And where did all this money come from?” Lottie questions. “There’s got to be over a thousand bucks here,” she says flicking the corner of the bills.

  “Two actually. Two grand, no questions. It’s wages you would have had, had you not been forced from your job. Now you can chill for a few weeks, and maybe find a job that you actually want to be doing,” Spike answers, casually taking a long swig from his bottle.

  “For fuck’s sake, I’m not a—”

  “I know, I know. You’re not a charity case. You want to find your own way. Lottie, will you just take the fucking money and enjoy it? You fucking earned this after what that prick did to you today, so just stop trying to be all big and ferocious, and drink up.”

  That’s the most I’ve ever seen anyone, other than Lottie’s parents, argue back at her. Spike is trying to act all cool, but you can tell that he’s slightly tense just waiting for Lottie’s reaction to his little speech. But, she shocks everyone and doesn’t say a thing. She reaches forward, dropping the cash on the table and picks up her glass.

  “Thank you,” she mumbles before taking several very big gulps of Prosecco.

  Spike relaxes and kisses her cheek. The mood around the room is lightened, and it’s Dana that breaks the quiet.

  “Well, I’m going to leave you kids to it.” She stands and comes to rest a hand on Denham’s shoulder.

  “You won’t stay for supper, mom?” he asks. “Where’s Tara today anyway?”

  “No, I’m out with the girls for cocktails tonight, thank you darling. She’s out with a boyfriend. I don’t know if he’s a boy ‘friend’ or a boyfriend. I don’t like to ask too many questions.”

  “You should ask. I would,” Denh
am replies sharply, taking a swig of his beer.

  “Yes, I know you would. But she’s not a little girl anymore, and she needs to find her own way. I’m sure there will be plenty of mistakes and heartbreak, but it’s nothing that either of you boys haven’t done.” She looks between them pointedly, and neither of them has anything else to say. “Now, I have to get going.” Dana picks up her purse, and both the men stand to give her a peck on the cheek.

  “Jack will take you home, Mom,” Denham says.

  “Oh no, it’s fine, I’ll walk.”

  “Jack will take you home. He will be waiting in the foyer by the time you get downstairs,” he insists kindly but firmly, and it’s clear that there’s no room for negotiations.

  “If it makes you happy, Denham.” Dana relents with a roll of her eyes, and an affectionate smile. It’s very clear that Denham feels the need to look over everyone like the head of the family. It’s endearing but also a little heartbreaking that he doesn’t still have his dad around to do that. It’s a heavy weight to carry on his shoulders.

  I stand to say goodbye to Dana, and she pulls me in for a hug.

  “Now, you make sure you rest up and I’ll be in to see you, and the latest delivery at the boutique, sometime this week.”

  She hugs Lottie, and tells her to call if she needs her. I feel like there’s a mother/daughter friendship going on between those them, and knowing that Lottie’s not very close to her own mother, I’m pleased that she has someone in her life that can be a mother figure and a friend to her.

  “We need to go, too,” Spike says. He drops his bottle on to the coffee table and takes Lottie’s hand. “Ready?”

  “Where are we going?” she asks.

  “Home to my place. Would you rather go to yours instead?”

  “No, I’d rather stay here. Arianna has nicer Prosecco than us, and I am enjoying her company,” she says indignantly with a deep frown on her face and I swear I saw her foot twitch, getting ready to stomp it with a tantrum. I glance at Denham, who’s smirking at them. They are like a comedy duo act, and actually if they do stay, I could watch them all night.