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“I’m glad you finally took the job,” she says. “I’ve been telling Emerson to offer it to you for a while now.”
“Thank you,” I reply with a tight smile. “Where’s Beau?” I ask, looking around the club.
“He’s in time-out,” she says with a roll of her eyes.
“Uh-oh,” I reply with a wicked grin. “What did he do?”
“He likes to send me videos doing things he knows he isn’t allowed to do. So now he’s up in room twenty, waiting for me.”
There’s a blush to her cheeks, and it makes me so happy to see her so naturally acclimated to a role she once struggled with so much. It must be so fun for her to have someone so perfectly suited for her, who loves being a brat, so she can do the one thing I know she loves to do, which is tame him.
It makes me miss Clay so much it hurts. It’s like a stabbing pain between my ribs, and it makes it hard to breathe.
I stifle my discomfort as Maggie takes another sip of her wine and glances around the room. “Although to be honest, if I really wanted to punish him, I should have made him mingle at this party with his dad and Charlie.”
She laughs, and I force myself to laugh along, although I’m still swallowing down pain and regret because even now, as I look around, I don’t see the two people I want to see more than anything.
“Well, I better go put him out of his misery,” she says. Then she touches my arm with a warm smile. “It is so nice to see you, Eden. We should keep in touch more.”
“We should,” I reply before pulling her in for another hug. “It is so nice to see you.”
When she pulls away, I stifle the tears that want to fall, and I wave at her as she makes her way toward the stairs that lead to the VIP rooms. I watch her, seething with jealousy. If I hadn’t messed things up with Clay the first time, would we have ever gotten to that point she and Beau are at? No. I would have never swallowed my pride and opened up without Jade there to encourage me to. I’d still be hiding him in my room, trying to live two lives at once.
Now I have nothing more than some memories and the hard truth in the form of a text message from her. And that’s all I deserve. Two people wanted to love me and give me more than most ever get in their lifetimes, and I pushed them away because I was scared. The secrets were a thinly veiled excuse for my own insecurities getting in the way of true happiness.
I’d saylive and learn,but I know better. Love like that doesn’t come around twice in a lifetime. The three of us were a perfectly timed enigma, and even if I wanted to wait for it to happen again, I know I’ll never feel as safe or as accepted as I was with them.
Just then, there’s a voice at the front of the room, and we all turn to see Emerson standing on the stage with a microphone in his hand.
“Good evening, guests,” he says with a charming smile. “I’d like to thank you all for coming out tonight to celebrate three years at the Salacious Players’ Club.”
Everyone claps, and a few people cheer. When Emerson’s eyes land on my face, my cheeks grow hot, and I know what’s coming.
“It’s been three amazing years, and I owe a great deal to my team here at the club. But we are celebrating more than just the anniversary of our opening. We are also celebrating a new addition to that team.”
I force myself to smile, and I feel Ronan winking at me from across the room.
“Eden St. Claire has been with us at the club since the very first day. She helped inspire so much of what we do but also what we strive to be. She helped shape our mission of equality and empowerment and has worked tirelessly as Madame Kink to help protect that mission.”
When the crowd cheers this time, I feel my eyes prick with tears.
“Quite literally, Salacious Players’ Club would not be what it is without her.”
They begin cheering again, and I quickly wipe the inside corners of my eyes to keep from crying.
“We are beyond grateful that she has accepted a position on our management team, so please join me in welcoming Eden to the stage.”
The crowd cheers wildly, but I stand frozen in my spot.
I don’t know if I can do this. I can’t get up there and give that speech if the people who I wanted to give it to are not here.
Looking up, my eyes find Charlie standing near the stage, and I remember fondly the meek and nervous girl who looked to me for guidance three years ago. I see Mia clapping next to her and remember the tour I gave her on her first trip to the club. For three years, I’ve been here helping these other women find love, but mostly themselves.
It’s not about me.
Blinking away my tears, I set my glass down on the bar and walk toward the stage. Emerson smiles at me as I take the microphone, and I decide to speak from the heart.
“Thank you,” I stammer into the mic. “I want to thank Emerson and his team—Garrett, Hunter, and Maggie for inviting me to be a part of this amazing club—”
