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Jonas breezes onwards, but I can’t fight the bad feeling that keeps growing inside me. Sure, they might let me in. But am I going to stick out like a sore thumb? Am I going to be completely obviously set apart from everyone else, because I can’t afford to eat there under normal circumstances?
“Here we are,” Jonas says proudly, and I can only look up in horror.
He seems to be leading me towards a glass-fronted restaurant which is fronted by a suited doorman and a throng mostly consisting of people in evening wear.
Oh, God. Me and my cheap white sundress are going to stand out not like a sore thumb – like something even more obvious than that.
But Jonas just strides forward with confidence, and it’s all I can do to follow him. I trail in his wake feeling a bit like his pet, holding my breath and waiting for the moment when I’m told I have to stay outside. Especially given what appears to be a line of people behind a red velvet rope, waiting for the opportunity to get in and get a table. They look like every single one of them could afford to buy my parents’ house and all the contents just with what they have in their back pockets.
This is going to be bad. Probably the most humiliating thing I’ve ever experienced.
“Hello, Roman,” Jonas says cheerfully, walking right up to the man standing just inside the door and ignoring all of the people in line. My eyes are wide as I follow him to the doors. This is getting worse by the minute. When they see us cutting the line, and then me having to leave, people are going to laugh and point.
“Is my table ready?” Jones asks.
“Yes, sir,” Roman says officiously, turning and then taking me in with a degree of hesitation. “Mr. Fairchild, I was under the impression that all of your guests were already seated.”
“Ah, yes, they probably are,” Jonas says, turning to sweep me forward with his arm as if by afterthought. “The thing is, Roman if you could save us just a small table for one – that would be incredibly helpful. This is a personal family friend of mine, Savannah. She’s come all the way from Texas, and she’s my guest for the week. It’s a little unexpected, so we’ve not had time to plan ahead. Do you think you might be able to accommodate us? I didn’t want to leave her at home all alone when I’m supposed to be showing her the best that Vegas has to offer.”
Roman’s expression is doubtful as he listens, but he brightens up a little at the implication that the restaurant is the best in Las Vegas. “Well, certainly, Mr. Fairchild, I will see what we can do. I’m sure there is a way to shuffle the reservations a little and find a space for Miss Savannah.”
“Thank you ever so much, Roman,” Jonas says, beaming. I almost see Roman melt under the power of his smile. “That really is kind of you. See, Savannah, what did I tell you? The most accommodating staff anywhere in the city.”
I follow him wordlessly, mostly because I can’t think of a single thing to say about anything that just happened. I can’t believe it. He actually got me in.
But the amazement is short-lived because soon I realize even if we’re both in the same restaurant, this is where he leaves me. And I’ve got to sit in this swanky restaurant on my own, looking like an outsider, and eat a whole meal without him.
Chapter Seven
Jonas
A wave of greetings meets me as I stroll up to my usual table, seeing everyone already seated. They’ve already ordered their drinks, and started on them too, by the merry expressions that turn towards me. Well, I was late. I suppose I can’t particularly blame them for that.
“Hello, everyone,” I say, waving them off as I take my seat, sitting with my view turned toward the restaurant floor. From here, I can see everything – including Roman leading Savannah to a table at the side of the room and handing her a menu. “I apologize for the wait. I trust the location made up for it?”
“Most certainly, Jonas,” one of them, a German investment banker who has his fingers in all kinds of pies, tells me. He’s holding up a glass of red wine to punctuate his words. “You do know the best spots.”
“I do,” I smile. I wasn’t just blowing steam up Roman’s ass earlier. This is one of the best places in the whole of Vegas, and I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else if I had the choice. “Now, has everyone decided what they’re going to eat?”
I lead the table in my natural way, first focusing on hospitality so that the business doesn’t feel like such a chore. We talk and laugh together, and I’m fully engaged in all of it but the whole time, there is part of my attention that rests elsewhere.
