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“Itwon’t happen again.”Francescastared at the ground, fighting back tears, butIcouldn’t focus on her dilemma, not with my brain power already at capacity. “P-please don’t mention this toMr.Maxwell.Ineed this job.”
“Onlyon one condition.Don’ttell himIknow he owns this club, andI’llkeep this between us.”
Theyexchanged a confused look but didn’t argue.Theyweren’t worried about customer service but rather about losing their jobs.Meanwhile,Iwas only concerned about one thing.Ihad to get to the bottom of this before my mind fizzed out again.Itwasn’t a coincidence thatSophiechose the same clubDamonowned, a fact he had conveniently omitted.
WithDamon’sjacket in hand,Ipushed past them and hobbled to the correctVIPbathroom this time.Iglance at our table from a distance.Good.Hewas still gone.
Ilocked the door of the lush bathroom with scented diffusers at every corner.Anotherswinging door separated the hallway from the two stalls on the other side.Thesmall lounge area in the hallway was meant to give off a luxurious vibe, a place for women to wait or touch up their makeup.Witha couch, a tiny coffee table in the middle, and a soft white rug covering the area, it exceeded the expectations of a club bathroom.
Grabbinghold of my uncomfortable black boots,Ipulled them off and parked my butt on the couch.Myfeet sang at the sweet freedom, my toes wiggling inside my socks.Whoevercreated heels did it to torture women.
Feelingsomewhat sane without those monstrosities on my feet,Iwent throughDamon’sjacket pockets, turning them inside out and dumping the contents onto the table.
Wadsof cash from our winnings fell on the marble table with a thud, butIstuffed it back into the pockets.Itwasn’t the only item to emerge.AniPhone fell out, thoughIsuccinctly rememberedDamontaking his phone, along with some folded-up stapled papers and a piece of stock paper.Thepaper floated lazily onto the rug, resting face down.Ibelieved it was a picture.
Whatphoto could have been so important thatDamonalways carried it?
Hunchingover,Igrabbed the picture and turned it over, only to be graced by my own face.ThepictureIhad been searching for, the reasonIleft home and burned all my bridges, stared back at me.
ChapterTwenty-Five
POPPY
Icouldn't tearmy eyes away from the photo.Ineeded to snap out of it.ThiswasDamon’sclub, and he could hunt me down at any moment.Glancingover my shoulders periodically to ensure the bathroom door was still locked,Isorted through the rest of the items.
Igrabbed the iPhone that fell out and turned it on.Therewas no passcode, but according to the wallpaper, the phone belonged toSophie.Aplethora of texts popped onto the screen.Thenew messages were from me, asking for her status.Myold texts were replied to with ambiguous wording.Thenondescript language was intentional so thatIcouldn’t pick up on the voice behind the messages, and the personality could fly under the radar.
DamonusedSophie’sphone to ask me to meet inLasVegas.Whenit didn’t work, he manipulated me into sharing my triggers and used them to orchestrate a rift between me andMom.Damonknew the fight would’ve made me act irrational enough to leave my impenetrable fortress and swooped in to save me from the very situation he created, acting like a damn knight in shining armor.
Everydetail of this trip was meticulously planned becauseDamonplotted against me.Heplayed me like a marionette.Theworst part was that he proved my family right despite how vehementlyIdefended him.
Iexperienced numerous disappointments in life, but this gut punch landed the hardest.Alarmingred flags had piled up againstDamonthroughout the day, butIignored it.Iplaced him under the good guy category becauseIdesperately needed a hero.Hisdeviation from the role was a more significant betrayal than anything else.Theperson who was supposed to be an idealist had shown his fangs, like everyone else.
Whata rookie mistake.Theincriminating evidence had blown up in my face.IfDamonpurposely lured me out of a safe zone and isolated me from my family, it was because he intended to do something they'd prevent him from accomplishing.
Withoutthinking,Igrabbed the papers, unsure what to search for.WhatIdidn’t expect to find was an application for a marriage license.Itwas filled out with both of our names and information.
Icouldn’t believeZanewas right.Whatelse wasDamoncapable of if he had been lying to me thus far?Didhe plan to marry me for my inheritance, then kill me as suggested by my family?
Itwas challenging to process the abrupt stream of information while my mind was scattered.Thatwas when the last betrayal hit me like a train.Despitemy vigilance to avoid such a predicament,Damondrugged me.Mymind was slipping, refusing to play ball.
Iexposed my vulnerabilities to another person for the first time in years.Ididn’t cherish losing my inhibitions in the company of others but trustedDamonnot to take advantage.Inturn, he betrayed my trust, slicing right through me with a knife.Thesmall amount of warmth he had invoked in my ice-cold heart withered away at the thought.
Withcathartic solace,Igrabbed the edge of the couch and stood to height.Ididn't have time to lick my wounds.Ineeded to get the hell out of here.
Rummagingthrough his jacket,Igrabbed my cardholder, some of the cash winnings, and the photoDamonhad stolen.Istuffed them into my bra.Mybags were inDamon’scar, butIdidn’t care.Hecould keep them as a parting gift.
Itucked my shoes under my arms.I’drun better in my socks than in those torturous heels.Icould put the boots on onceIwas inside a cab to the airport.
“Poppy!”Thedoor banged behind me,Damon’svoice wafting through.Hesounded wild instead of his usually leveled tone.Hemust’ve lost his shit at my prolonged absence and askedFrancescaor the bouncer for my whereabouts.
Theevidence ofDamon’scrimes lay in plain sight on the table.So,Icouldn’t open the door and pretend to make nice until another opportunity to run presented itself.He’dimmediately realizeIhad unearthed too much.Iignored the call, scouting the bathroom for an escape route.AsIsearched,Icarelessly shovedDamon’sthings inside his jacket and threw it haphazardly on the couch.He’dstill realize the truth becauseIwasn’t in the headspace to put things back in the correct order, but at least this would buy me time if he barged in here.
Myeyes landed on the air vent in the ceiling.Iwas small enough to crawl through it.Climbingonto the sofa,Ireached up and tapped until the lid popped open.
“Poppy, open this door.”Theshouting intensified, and my mind went momentarily blank again.Damnit.
Islapped my right cheek.Hard.Wakeup,Poppy.Roofiedor not,Igot myself into this mess.Itwas time to crawl out of it, literally and figuratively.
