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No more excuses, no more sitting back and accepting. She’d avoided rocking the boat for long enough. She’d become complacent just going through her daily routine. Throwingherself into her business and raising Portia, avoiding conflict, telling herself she didn’t deserve more. Then Nick appeared with a lifeline and she realized she’d been drowning in her own apathy.
Tonight when Johnny came home she’d confront him about the future of their relationship. What started out as a means to an end had outlived its usefulness. He’d certainly secured his image and for all she knew maybe he was looking for a way out too. Only one way to find out.
An hour later, Nick was still in his office. Samson left to do his rounds of the club, check on the waitstaff and the bartenders. He handled the staff with a combination of respect and honesty with a few ounces of fear cause nobody wanted to be around when Samson lost his cool.
A sharp knock, then Jax ambled through the door. “Everything all right, boss?”
Back at the Oasis in Brooklyn Jax served as muscle when things got crazy, and they got crazy a lot. He knew Nick’s moods almost as well as Samson.
“Sure.”
“You coming out on the floor tonight?”
“Maybe later.” Nick pointed to his empty desk. “I got a few things to take care of first.”
Jax’s stoic expression never faltered, and if he caught onto Nick’s lame excuse he didn’t let on. The door closed behind Jax and Nick rested his head in his hands. He could tell himself and Samson all the bullshit he wanted, but the bottom line was there would be no way he could exist in Vegas with Cheryl and not seeher again. One way or another he’d get to the bottom of whatever she was hiding.
A knock on the door drew him away from his thoughts. “Yeah.” Nick didn’t look up expecting Jax again.
“I thought you’d be out on the floor.”
Nick’s head jerked up at the familiar voice. Just when he thought the fuckin’ night couldn’t get any worse.
Nick straightened in his chair. “What the hell are you doin’ here?”
“Nice to see you too.” Frank crossed the room stopping three feet from the front of his desk, his eyes never leaving Nick’s.
Nick’s phone buzzed on his desk and he swiped at it then put it to his ear. “Yeah?”
“Just saw Frank getting on the elevator to the offices,” Jax barked through the phone.
“You’re about a minute too late.” Nick swiped the call away and laid his phone face down on his desk.
Frank jerked his thumb to the two-way window overlooking the club. “Looks like you got a full house.”
“Yeah.” Nick measured his breathing.
“You always knew how to bring in the crowds. Always had a knack for knowing what the people wanted.”
“You haven’t been in Vegas for six months, so cut the bullshit and spit out the reason you’re standing in my office.”
“Only one thing I was never able to teach you—subtlety.”
The two men stared at each other, Nick refusing to look away first. This was his office and Frank was a visitor at best, an intruder at worst.
“I understand you and Cheryl have seen each other. I also understand you hired her escort services for Wicked.”
Holy fuck, did he know they slept together? Or was he just fishing.
“Yeah.” He wasn’t gonna give him anymore information than necessary.
“It’s completely business then?”
“I dealt with her partner, Isabelle.” Nick slowly released his held breath. Frank didn’t know shit.
“Ahhh, Izzy. She has a very interesting backstory.”
Leave it to Frank to know the woman’s history. All the better to control people.
