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1
ELISE
When I walked in the door, I almost didn’t recognize him.
His plump face was black and purple, and there were dried cuts on his skin. His nose looked out of place, like someone had cracked the bone and pushed it to the left.
He turned in his chair to regard me. “It’s as bad as it looks.”
I took the seat beside him and let my eyes roam over his face. “Did Kyle do this to you…?”
He gave a sigh. “I warned you.”
“Jerome, I’m so sorry…” At the end of the day, I had rights. If I didn’t want to sleep with someone, I didn’t have to. This type of retribution was totally unnecessary.
“Grave is paying us extra, so I guess that makes it worth it.” He grabbed the envelope and handed it to me.
I let it hang in the air between us, too guilty to take it. “You think that’s the end of Kyle?”
“I don’t know,” he said with a sigh. “There’s not much left to say.”
I took the envelope of cash and stuffed it into my pocket.
“He’ll get over it eventually. The second he sees some other hot thang, he’ll forget all about you.”
“I hope so.”
“So, what is it with Grave?”
“What do you mean?”
“Is this the beginning of your retirement?”
I held his gaze while I experienced all those flashbacks. “I’m not sure. All I know is, I don’t want to fuck another client when I already have a client I like. Get paid to do what you love, and you never work again, right?”
“What’s different about Grave than the other ones? He’s a good-looking guy, but he’s not the only one.”
“I don’t know… Not sure I can explain it.”
Jerome studied me for a while. “Well, let me know when you’re ready for another client. For now, I’ll just keep collecting the payments.”
* * *
I had just stepped outside when I came face-to-face with the man I didn’t want to see.
In a three-piece suit with the glint of arrogance in his eyes, he didn’t seem surprised to see me. As if one of his men had informed him of my arrival at the bar so he could run down here to face me.
I knew this encounter was inevitable, so I held my stance and faced him with a straight spine.
His eyes swept across my face as he took in my appearance. “I’m sorry about Jerome.”
“No, you aren’t.” I stepped around and moved to the street where a car was waiting.
Of course, he chased after me. “We had a deal, Elise.”
“Deals come and go. Get over it.” I opened the back door.
He slammed his hand on the door and forced it shut. He crowded into me, coming so close his body nearly touched mine. “I’ll pay double his rate.”
