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“You free for lunch?” He grins.
“Sure.” I stack the paperwork. “My eyes could use a break from this anyway.”
We walk to the restaurant, where we’ll undoubtedly have one of the best meals I’ve ever eaten. That isn’t saying much, though, since my idea of a good meal is day-old mac and cheese straight from the fridge.
“How’s your day been?” he asks.
“Long but quiet.”
Mary has me working from five in the morning until two in the afternoon when she comes in. Usually when I tag Mary out, our guests are clearing out and things remain relatively peaceful until she returns, which I’m sure is intentional. She leaves me a laundry list of things to do and always seems surprised when she returns to find everything finished.
The work is tedious, but I enjoy it. I feel productive, like I’m actually contributing to something. Working at the diner was hard on my body but easy on my mind. I was bored and felt replaceable. While I wouldn’t say I’m invaluable to the brothel, I use my brain, and people rely on me. I’m proud of myself.
“In this line of work, quiet is a good thing.”
He’s right about that. Nothing crazy has happened while I’ve been on duty, but I’ve heard enough stories to know that’s not always the case.
“Very true.”
The waitress seats us at the booth in the corner that’s become our table. We’ve shared at least one meal a day every day this week, all at Rigger’s request. Colin sticks to his usual prime rib burger with steak fries, but I’m on a mission to try each item on the menu, and today, it’s the steak tartare.
Colin gapes at me after the waitress leaves to put in our order. “Do you know what steak tartare is?”
My cheeks heat. “No.”
“It’s raw ground beef.”
Too stubborn to admit that it doesn’t sound appetizing to me at all, I just smile. “Yum.”
“You’re something else.” He shakes his head.
“I’ll never get the chance to eat all this fancy food again.”
All humor disappears as he leans into me. “You can have it for the rest of your life if you want. This job isn’t temporary.”
This is a common fight we have. He desperately tries to create a future for me at the brothel, and I remind him I’m out the door as soon as possible.
“I really don’t want to argue about this again. Can’t we just enjoy our meal?”
“Fine,” he says, though he’s not happy about it.
We’re interrupted when Lucky approaches our table.
“Scooch over, fucker.” He shoves Colin, who slides into the corner of the booth. His knees touch mine, and I get a jolt of something I don’t recognize. It happens each time we come into contact. I try to convince myself it’s forbidden and wrong, but if I’m honest, I like it.
“Shit, man. This is a private lunch,” Colin says.
“Ignore him. He’s cranky today.” I throw him a side-eye.
“He’s always a little bitch when it comes to you.” Lucky grins.
“Watch it, fucker, or I’ll make you help the maids clean rooms today.”
Lucky’s eyes widen with excitement. “Speaking of rooms, Betty is in the Nature Room right now with this huge ass motherfucker who’s wearing a legit animal skin jumpsuit thing. You know, like the Flintstones?”
“The brothel isn’t your personal porn,” Colin reminds him.
“Dude, there’s a window for a reason. Those guests want to be watched. Matter of fact, he paid extra for an audience, so a few of the girls are getting tossed some cash to stand there and touch each other while they watch.” He tosses his arms along the back of the bench. “This place is fuckin’ amazing.”
