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~ Darren ~
Past
“What the hell is that thing?” asks Kimberly Park, an ex-lover of mine who’s now dating my cousin’s friend.
Olga, a Russian blond bombshell, joins her at the balcony railing. “That is the ugliest sweater I have ever seen.”
“So gross,” Kimberly concurs before turning to where I’m sitting on a chaise lounge. “You should have your manager take care of this. You don’t want people thinking the club’s rep is going downhill. Don’t you have important company coming tonight?”
I rub my temple, unsure I’m up for a night of Kimberly’s nitpicking. It’s been a rough day with a close friend of mine getting arrested this morning on racketeering charges, and Lee Hao Young, an Operations Officer—also known as a Vanguard, and ranked just below the Dragon Master of the Jing San Triad—is in town from China and coming to The Lotus.
Plus, it’s hard for me to imagine how Kimberly and Olga could get so worked up. Anyone lucky enough to be allowed into my club dresses to impress. And while not everyone can look as hot as Kimberly and Olga, both lingerie models, no one can look that bad.
But I stand corrected.
After joining the women at the railing, I see in an instant what they’re talking about. The taupe-colored sweater the woman at the bar is wearing is the ugliest sweater. I look around for Cheryl, my manager, but don’t find her.
“And what’s with the snow boots?” Kimberly shivers in disgust. “How did she get past your bouncers? Is this a joke? Where’s Cheryl? Isn’t your important company going to be here soon?”
“I’ll take care of it,” I tell her, “though it’s not like you’re going to go blind from looking at someone who’s only half as hot as you.”
“A half?”
“He means a tenth,” Olga supplies.
“What she said,” I say as I head down the stairs.
Kimberly might be right about this patron being a joke of some kind. I’d put my money on Ronald Ho. Like me, Ronald is twenty-eight years old, but he stopped maturing emotionally at thirteen. He said he was going to get me good after I neglected to get him tickets for the playoffs at Levi’s Stadium. Except pulling a joke on a night when Lee Hao Young is going to be here is taking things too far.
On the ground floor, I’m stopped by patrons who want to talk to me: Jack Chiu, a lieutenant and one of our fixers in the SFPD; Marsha Holmes, a woman who handles my overseas accounts; and Adam Feinstein, a criminal lawyer whom many of my relatives keep on retainer. After telling each of them to schedule something with my manager/personal assistant, I check the time on my Audemars Piguet. Lee Hao Young could be here any minute.
“Hi,” I say to the ugly-sweater woman.
“Hi,” she responds, her eyes brightening for a second before giving me a wary look as if I might be some predator.
She can’t possibly think I’m trying to pick up on her? I stand next to her at the bar and nod at Felipe, the bartender.
“What’s the game?” I ask, noticing there’s a second drink near her. Mojito with extra mint. Ronald’s favorite.
She gives me a strange look “Excuse me?”
“Does Ron have a photographer planted in here?”
She frowns. “I’m sorry, you have me mixed up with someone else.”
She’s good. Much better than the actor Ronald hired to pretend to be an ex-lover of JD’s to scare the shit out of the woman JD managed to steal away from Ronald at a party last year.
“You can give it up,” I tell her. “Ron knows I don’t allow any photos to be taken at The Lotus, so you can just pack it up and call it a night.”
She looks at me like I’ve got a screw loose and glances around the club, probably looking for Ronald.
I lean in toward her. “Look, I admit it’s funny. Kind of. The outfit’s a real winner. I couldn’t have picked out better. Kimberly’s worried she’s going blind just looking at the sweater.”
The young woman’s eyes widen. She glances over at Felipe as if seeking help, but he goes back to wiping the counter.
“Did you come over here just to insult me?” she asks. Even in the dark, I can see her cheeks turning color. She’s actually much better looking up close. It’s the frumpy clothes that make her look less than impressive. “What kind of an asshole are you?”
Now I’m starting to get a little impatient. “The kind of asshole who doesn’t put up with shit like this. I’ve got important company coming tonight.”
