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I frown, irritated by her chatter. “Huh?”
She jumps down and turns, indicating for me to fasten her bra. “Tell me what you like, and I’ll accommodate.” Usually, girls go out back to dress again, but I fasten her bra and she spins to face me, taking hold of my tie again. “I’m eager to please you,” she whispers. Her eyes twinkle under the bright lights and her perfectly plump pink lips are natural, a rare sight these days. I pinch her chin gently between my thumb and finger, contemplating whether I should throw the rules out the window for one night and make use of the table I’ve got booked in just under an hour.
I sigh. “Tempting,” I murmur. “Very tempting.”
“But you’ve got other things on your mind?” comes Rosey’s voice from behind me. I glance over my shoulder. “It’s the best excuse without upsetting her.”
“Who said I was going to upset her?” I ask, releasing Alex and turning to face Rosey.
She shrugs. “It sounded like you were about to let her down.”
“You’re the let-down among us,” I point out. Reaching behind me, I find Alex’s hand and tug her to stand beside me. “Have a good evening, Red.”
“I’m disappointed,” Rosey says, following us towards the backstage door.
I sigh. “Why’s that?”
“I thought you’d fight harder,” she muses, tipping her head to one side. “Turns out I was right.” And then she spins on her heel and walks away.
“What was that about?” asks Alex, as I stare after Rosey. “Who is she?”
I shake my head, bringing myself back into the room. “What?”
“Is she an ex or something?”
I laugh. “No. I don’t have an ex. Relationships aren’t my thing.” I drop her hand, and she’s disappointed. “Thanks for the dance, Alex.”
I’m in the office when Arthur comes in. “I’m taking Meli home,” he announces.
“Okay. Catch you tomorrow?”
“What did you want Rosey for anyway?” he asks, and I look up at him blankly. “You said earlier she was supposed to be with you. How come?”
“Just a work thing.”
“Anything I can help with?”
I shake my head. “No, I’ve got it all under control.”
“I know she’s a bit of a handful,” he says, backing out the office, “but she’s good at what she does.”
I grin. “Don’t let her hear you say that, she’ll get a big head.”
Half an hour passes, and I consider locking up the office and heading home when Rosey saunters in with a large paper bag. I eye her suspiciously as she locks the door and heads towards me. “Dinner,” she says, holding the bag up.
I lean back in the chair, watching as she places the bag on the desk and proceeds to unpack the food. When she’s done, she wipes her hands down her jeans. “What is this exactly?” I ask, exasperated by her behaviour.
“It’s dinner,” she says, dragging a chair from the edge of the room over to my desk and seating herself. “I got burgers because everyone loves a burger, and you don’t look like a vegetarian, so I—” I hold my hand up to stop her talking, and she bites her lip. “You’re not a veggie, are you?”
“I meant, why have you gotten us dinner?”
She frowns. “I thought you might be hungry.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I booked us dinner, remember?”
“I told you not to,” she mutters.
I slam my hands on the desk, tired of her games. “Well, I did book it, Rosey. A table at an exclusive restaurant that’s damn hard to book on short notice. I sent a fucking car to collect you and, guess what, you weren’t there.”
