CHAPTER FOUR
“Good morning,” Megan said, popping her head into Tristan’s office. “You wanted to see me?”
“Yes,” he responded, smiling. “Come in and sit down.”
She sat across from him and set her note pad down on her legs.
“It is Friday, which means you have been with us here at Crawford Advertising for a week now. I presume it has been going well for you?”
“Yes, it has. I love what I am doing.”
“You are definitely dedicated and I see a vast improvement in your work ethics as well as your appearance already. I believe you will be a positive asset to our company.”
He made her feel worthwhile and like she could actually make a difference. It wasn’t something she was used to feeling. “I would like to offer you a work contract.”
“Yeah?” she asked, smiling from ear to ear.
“Yes,” he said, somewhat agreeing with her and somewhat correcting her choice of words. He slid the three-page contract toward her and leaned back in his chair.
She picked it up and started reading through it. She skimmed through the rest, deciding it really didn’t matter what it said. She really had nothing to lose and everything to gain by accepting the job. She picks up the pen on the desk and signs her name to the bottom.
“Wonderful,” he said, standing up out of his chair. He leaned forward and shook her hand. “Welcome to the company. We should celebrate.”
Megan was giddy, feeling like she was finally part of something bigger than she had ever been a part of before.
“Let me take you to dinner this evening.”
Megan remembered how jealous Jensen was when he thought they were on a date for their first lunch together and it made her uneasy. Besides, she didn’t want to make another mistake by getting too personally attached to the boss again.
“I would love that but…I…have plans this evening. I promised my roommate that I would go to this art exhibit with her.” It sounded good. Everyone knew how important art exhibits were to those who had a personal connection with them.
Tristan set his jaw and looked at her. She knew it wasn’t what he wanted to hear. “Very well then,” he said. “Enjoy your weekend. I will see you bright and early Monday morning.”
“Thank you.” She hesitated, wanting to say something to make it better, but for a lack of knowing what to say, she turned slowly and walked out of his office.
“Lorena!” Megan burst through the door of their apartment and almost collided with her roommate.
“What? What’s wrong?” she asked, grabbing Megan’s arms to steady her.
“Nothing, nothing at all. I got the job. I signed the contract today.”
Lorena hugged her, “Congratulations! That’s wonderful. So, now what? Perks, bennies, moolah?”
“All of it. Plus, I will get to travel.”
“We have to celebrate, and I know just the place.”
“Where?”
“You need to have some fun so, there is this funky little night club down town that I am going to introduce you to and you are going to love it.”
“I don’t know about that.”
“Well, I do.” She grabbed Megan’s hands and pulled her toward her bedroom. “Let’s go raid your closet.”
They pulled almost everything Megan had that was club worthy, out on her bed and paired dresses with shoes, with jewelry, with accessories. When Lorena spotted this very bright electric blue dress she squealed and lunged for it.
“This one! It’s perfect.”
Megan crinkled up her nose. “I never liked that one. It’s too short and…”
“And perfect.” She ran toward the bedroom door. “I have the perfect shoes!”
She disappeared for a minute then returned holding a pair of silver sequined stilettos and a black leather jacket. “You can borrow these but I want them back as soon as you are done luring in all of the guys tonight.” She giggled as she wrapped the jacket around Megan and leaned back to check out how well it fit her.
“You think so? Do you think I can pull it off?”
“Girl, with your body? You are going to rock it.”
Megan pulled her hair out of the well put together bun she wore at the office and her dark brown hair flowed down over her shoulders.
“You are gorgeous,” said Lorena, running her fingers through Megan’s hair. “They are going to love you.”
After Megan squeezed into the dress, she helped Lorena with her make up. “I think this color makes your eyes pop.”
Lorena looked in the mirror. “Oooh, yes. I like that. You’re a genius.”
When she was finished, Lorena helped Megan with more curls in her hair and some killer burgundy lipstick. Megan didn’t care for the color, but it made her feel dangerous and spontaneous.
After they were all put together, they took selfies together and had some camera fun in front of the full length mirror before heading out for the night.
“What club should we go to?” asked Megan scrolling through the internet for some places nearby. “There’s one called Café de Paris on Coventry Street?”
“Ew, too burlesque for me. No, I have this place. Elite, guest list only, but,” she smiled. “I know one of the bouncers very well and he will get us in.” Megan put her phone away and let Lorena lead the way.
When they got to the night club, the taxi dropped them off out front where a long line of people stood, waiting to get in. Megan felt outrageously dressed until she saw the others in line. She was actually dressed quite conservatively compared to some of the outrageous outfits the others put together.
Instead of going to the end of the line, Lorena looked around toward the entrance until she spotted a large burly man standing behind the door, just inside. She smiled and grabbed Megan’s arm and running up to the entrance.
“Back of the line ladies,” said the man at the door.
“I just want to say hello to my friend,” she said pointing to the burly man inside the door. The bouncer turned around and looked.
“Joey?”
Lorena nodded.
“Hey, Joey,” he shouted. “Someone here to see you.”
The burly man came out and looked at Lorena. She thrust her hip out and licked her lips. “Hey, Joey. How have you been?”
The man seemed to melt in his place when he saw her. “Lorena, hi. I’m doing good. Just working tonight.” His voice sounded like a lumberjack but with a boyish lilt to it.
“Do you have to work all night?” She batted her eyes and flirted her ass off.
“I do, but I can still hang out. Wanna come in?”
“As long as my girlfriend can join us.” She linked her arm into Megan’s and pulled her forward.
The man’s smile broadened. “I don’t see a problem with that.” He tapped the bouncer’s shoulder and he moved aside, allowing Lorena and Megan access to the entrance. A few groaned in the line but Lorena ignored them.”
“How much to get in?” she asked, grabbing for her purse. Joey put his hand on hers and lowered it back down to her side.
“It’s on me, ladies. Just enjoy your pretty little selves.”
“Find me later,” she said, running her finger down his chest and almost kissing him. She went toward the doors and smiled. “See? Easy peasy.”
“Are you really friends with that guy?” Megan asked, looking back at him.
“More like friends with benefits.” She ran into her and laughed as she went inside. Megan followed her into the building and was immediately consumed with flashing lights and a loud thumping beat that caught her foot and made her tap along. They moved up to the bar and managed to find a place they could weasel their way into.
“What are you thirsty for?” shouted Lorena.
“That tequila shot you gave me the other day was really good,” she shouted back.
“Get a few, I’ll find a table.”
Megan nodded and waited for the bartender. She ordered a tray of tequila shots complete with lime wedges and salt and paid for them. She grabbed the tray and found Lorena sitting at a small table for two.
The girls picked up a shot glass and held them up in the air.
“To your new career. May you profit fundamentally from it and climb the corporate ladder to success.”
“Here, here! And…here’s to being single!”
“Yeah! Fuck men!”
“Woo!” They clinked their glasses together and downed them. They shoved the lime in their mouths and Megan started to laugh. “We forgot the salt.”
It took them a while to finish their shots but when they did, they headed to the dance floor to have some fun. Each song sounded a lot like the last one, but they all had an amazing beat. As the tequila started working its magic, Megan let loose and danced song after song after song. They turned heads and that fueled Megan. She felt sexy and was having more fun than she ever remembered having.
“I have to get some water!” she shouted to Lorena.
“What?”
Megan motioned her hand to her mouth and Lorena nodded. “Get me one too! I’ll meet you at the table!” she said pointing in that direction.
Megan nodded and made her way to the bar. She found an empty stool and sat down as she fanned herself. Her body continued to move and she smiled as she looked around the room. She was having a great time even though the tequila was hitting her a little harder than she had expected.
“Hi!” Megan shouted when the bartender got her attention. “Two waters please.”
He handed her a bottle of champagne instead, and pointed to the end of the bar. “This was ordered for you by the man at the end!” he shouted.
“Oh,” she said smiling. She leaned forward and when she saw Jensen smiling back at her, her heart flipped. “Tell him thank you very much!” She grabbed the bottle and two glasses from the bar and left. “Doesn’t surprise me,” she mumbled as she located Lorena on her way back to the table. She grabbed Lorena’s arm and leaned in toward her. She held the bottle up and shouted, “It’s from my ex!”
Lorena’s mouth dropped open. “He’s here?” She looked around as if she would have known who it was if she saw him. Megan pointed at him as she leaned toward her. “Dark hair, maroon shirt, black pants.”
“Yum! He’s gorgeous. Good eye candy.”
“Yeah, that’s about all though.”
“Really?” Lorena teased.
Megan giggled. “No.” She popped the top and poured the glasses full.
Lorena took a sip and her eyes widened. “O Dios mío. ¡esto es increíble!”
“That good, huh?”
“Try it!”
Megan sipped hers and let the sweet bubbles consume her senses. “Wow, it is good. And, if I know Jensen, it is not cheap.” They clinked their glasses together. “Here’s to expensive champagne and a good buzz!” They giggled like school girls and drank them down.
A new beat began and Megan wiggled in her chair. “I love this song!” She started singing the words when Lorena took her glass and set it down, dragging her off her chair toward the dance floor.
They danced together, and she twirled around and around having the time of her life. The alcohol made her a little dizzy and she almost toppled over but she regained herself and turned toward Lorena to continue dancing. Jensen stood in front of her, dancing and smiling at her. She wasn’t surprised to see him and her body didn’t react like it usually did in his presence. She wanted to believe it was because she was over him, but she knew it was just the alcohol.
He wrapped his arms around her hips and swayed in unison with her. She felt the rhythm and started moving seductively to the beat, against his body. She pushed into him as he held her arms up in the air, his fingertips gliding down the backs of her arms and down her body. She felt like Baby in Dirty Dancing as she moved against his body through the end of the song. She turned to thank him for the champagne, putting her mouth inches from his ear. She wanted so badly to kiss his neck. She took a breath and yelled, “Thanks for the bubbly. It was quite nice of you.” He nodded. “Are you stalking me again? I don’t imagine a guy like you in a place like this too often. Aren’t you kind of old to be in here?” she teased.
“I didn’t know you were here, scouts honor,” he said holding his hand up.
“Then what are you doing here?”
“I own part of this club and I’m helping out my friend, Elle. She is trying to expand her chain of night clubs.”
“Ah,” she mouthed as she nodded her head. She kept dancing with him, feeling a little guilty thinking he was stalking her.
He leaned in to continue conversation, but Lorena interrupted them. “I am going to dance with my new friend,” she said pointing at their table. Megan looked over the crowd and saw a guy sitting there, alone.
Megan nodded and linked her arm into Lorena’s. “This is Jensen, my ex boyfriend,” she said in her ear.
Lorena was stunned by his attractive features and just smiled at him, which was odd for her. She usually always had something to say.
Jensen smirked at her reaction and escorted them back to their table. When they got back, Lorena looked the crowd over for her friend. “Where the hell did he go? He was just here. I told him I would only be a minute.”
“Maybe he had to pee,” Megan said.
Lorena pulled her phone out and looked at the palm of her hand. She texted the number and waited. Megan and Jensen sat at the table and she took another sip of her champagne smiling at him.
“Yep, he is at the bathrooms,” she said, reading the return text. “Be right back,” she said winking at Megan.
“Have a good time blowing his mind!” she shouted as Lorena waltzed away.
She watched her roommate dance away, happy with life and with herself. Megan secretly wished she could be that carefree.
“I like your friend,” Jensen said.
“She is my roommate.”
“How is that going for you?”
“It’s great! I have never been happier.”
“Where are you living now?”
“Wow,” Megan said, propping her head up with her hands. “I’m surprised that with your excellent security team that you don’t already know that.”
“I guess they are slipping,” he said with a smile.
“I’m in Paddington, close to Hyde Park. It’s nice, economical.”
“I know where it is. What building?”
“12 London Street.”
She wasn’t sure why she told him her address, but she did, and it felt good. She finished the champagne in her glass and grabbed the bottle for a refill.
“I am going to grab a drink and I am going to get you a bottle of water.”
“Thank you, yes. Water would be good.”
“Are you okay for a few minutes?”
“Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be okay?”
“I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere.” He stared into her eyes and put his hand around her arm when he spoke. She nodded humbly, remembering how he made her feel when they were intimate. His control, his dominance, something about it was comforting to her and made her feel safe.
She sat at the table and tried to look around, her head feeling the dizzy effects of too much alcohol. She looked at the table and counted the number of drinks in her head. A few shots of tequila and a few glasses of champagne shouldn’t have had such an effect on her.
She grabbed her purse and staggered toward the dance floor. She figured if she danced enough, it might sober her up. When she reached the dance floor, she felt the familiar beat of the music and moved her body accordingly. Her moves were much more provocative and sexual which caused several men close by to turn and watch. Two guys started dancing close to her, groping her and touching her inappropriately. They sandwiched her in between them while they grinded their groins against them. She tried to move away from them but they fenced her in with their arms while their hands touched her and felt her up.
“Please, don’t,” she begged, but the music was much too loud for them to hear her even if they wanted to. She felt a hand between her legs and she tried pushing it away as another hand slid up underneath her dress to her ass. She was about to grab him by his ponytail when she felt the man in front of her leave her quickly. When she looked up toward him, she saw Jensen. He was moving quickly toward the other guy who still had his hands on her and he didn’t look happy at all. He grabbed the guy and flung him on top of the first guy who lay on the floor in front of her. He leaned down and grabbed the pony tail of one of the guys, jerking his head back and screaming something about touching her again and finding their own dicks in their hands when he was through. He grabbed Megan and escorted her off the dance floor.
She started giggling after tripping over nothing at all. She tried looking at Jensen but saw two of him. “Were you…jealous that I was dancing….”
“No, I was not jealous. You clearly did not have control of the situation. Do you know how dangerous that is?”
She tried to respond but her lips weren’t working and her body began to do the same. “What the hell….” She looked over at Jensen and got angry. “Stop touching me,” she slurred.
“Megan? Are you okay?”
“I would be if you left me the fuck alone. Why do you keep grabbing me?” Her words were barely audible.
“I’m not even touching you. Are you sure you are okay?”
She opened her mouth to respond but felt her body go completely numb and the world around her went black.
Jensen caught her just before her head hit the floor. “Shit!” He picked her lifeless body up and carried her out of there.