13
EDEN
“WHAT IS THIS?” I asked, holding the top Jena handed me with two fingers as if it were something disgusting.
My eyes skimmed the slinky material.
It was practically sheer.
“It’s the new uniform. Change your clothes and let’s get on the floor. Our shift’s already started,” Jena answered.
She was already dressed, and when I took a minute to look at the full uniform on her, my stomach dipped in panic.
The skirt was gold and super short. Like almost-see-her-vagina short. I could see her body through the sheer black top, which had golden flecks in it that shined under the overhead lighting.
It was completely see-through.
The only reason I couldn’t see her breasts was because there was a tiny green vest over them. So small that it barely covered her girls. As in, I could see side boob and top boob and bottom boob. Basically, her nipples were all it covered.
Gross.
On the back of the vest were the words Empire Sevens. The front had no adornments besides the single gold button between her breasts that held the garment together.
No.
Never.
“Did Kennedy make us wear this?” I asked, appalled.
No way would Kennedy be okay with these uniforms.
I couldn’t do it.
I wouldn’t do it.
It was too skimpy.
Too sexy.
Too everything I didn’t feel comfortable wearing.
I didn’t bother changing. Instead, I waited until Jena left the locker room, and then I made my way to Kennedy’s office.
“Come in,” she called out when I tapped on her office door.
She was sitting behind her desk, as usual, her head down as she pored over a thick pile of documents on her desk. When she looked up, she had a cute thin pair of glasses sitting on the bridge of her nose.
“Hey, babe, what’s up?” She smiled.
Closing the door behind me, I held up the uniform and frowned.
The smile on her face fell away, and she shook her head. “Oh. Yeah. Those disgusting things. I’m sorry, Eden, but it’s Vegas.”
My mouth popped open. “But seriously? I could almost see Jena’s nipples through this thing.”
She slid her glasses from her face and massaged the bridge of her nose. “It’s what Zander and Kade want. As much as I wanted to fight them on this, there are bigger fights that need fighting. I’m sorry, hon, but it’s the uniform, and this is the job. As much as I hate it, everyone has to wear it.”
I nodded, biting my bottom lip.
Part of me wanted to walk out and never return. The thought of walking around the floor and serving drinks mostly naked nauseated me. But the other part of me—the part that wanted to eat and maybe one day have her own place—knew Kennedy was right.
I didn’t have a choice.
After dressing in the locker room, I went to work, struggling not to cover myself as I worked. Instead, I tried to hide behind my tray as much as possible without spilling my drinks.
Two hours later, I had almost forgotten what I was wearing. We were swamped, and the customers kept coming. The sounds of slots filled the room. Drink orders were being shouted, and I was moving as fast as I could, making sure the drinks were served, and the customers were happy.
It was the group of men at table seven that reminded me I was working half naked.
“Damn, baby, you have an amazing body,” the tallest of the group said as I set their drinks on the table.
I knew he was the tallest because even though they were sitting, his head was still at least a foot higher than the others.
I didn’t respond to his compliment.
Instead, I smiled and nodded, remembering how visible my nakedness was and wondering if the new uniform had anything to do with the massive tips I had been getting over the past couple of hours.
Reaching across the table, I cleared the empty bottles, piling them on top of my tray to make room for the new drinks.
“You guys need anything else?” I asked.
They all burst into laughter, making me stiffen with discomfort.
“Oh, yeah. Looking at your uniform is giving me all kinds of needs,” another guy at the table said through his laughter.
Quickly, I turned, ready to flee their gawking eyes and lewd comments, but instead of walking away, I walked straight into a warm, broad masculine chest.
The smell of his cologne filled my senses, making me dizzy with delight. His large hand wrapped around the top of my arm to keep me steady, and I shivered at his touch.
“Gentlemen,” he muttered above my head to the men at table seven behind me. “A little respect goes a long way. Treat the waitresses here at Empire Sevens with any disrespect, and I’ll make sure you never step foot in my establishment again.”
I stood there, face to face with his massive chest as I listened to the conversation they had around me.
“Sorry, Mr. Hale, we were just fucking around.”
I wasn’t sure who spoke to Zander, but it was apparent I wouldn’t have to worry about the men at table seven again.
The rest of the night followed the flow.
Men hitting on me.
Talking about my body.
Making me feel like a piece of meat on display.
Several times, I considered walking out. Once, I went to the back door and thought about fleeing back to Kennedy’s condo to take a breather, but I didn’t.
I held my head high, and I did my job. I needed the paycheck, and I wasn’t about to be the one woman to complain even if I already had to Kennedy.
It was Vegas.
That was what Kennedy told me.
And she was right.
Vegas was gaudy and sexual. It was sinful and dark. And if I wanted to be a part of the town and work in its industries, I had to do just that. Even if it was against my morals a tiny bit.
I was a beggar.
And beggars couldn’t be choosy.
When my shift was finally over, my feet were throbbing, my back was stiff and sore, and I had a headache the size of Nevada.
All I wanted to do was go to the locker room, change my clothes, and go home, but that would not happen. As soon as I rounded the corner on my way to the locker room, I ran into Zander once again.
The hallway outside the locker room was quiet, which was strange since it was rare to find a silent moment at Empire Sevens.
“Your shift is over?” he asked, shocking me.
Zander hadn’t said many things to me, but when he did, it wasn’t usually very civil, and it was always bossy.
I nodded, crossing my arms over my chest since I was acutely aware that my vest had shifted a bit while I helped clean the bar.
“Yeah. I’m just headed to get changed, and then I’m going home.”
His emerald eyes moved over my face as if he was assessing me, and then they dipped, landing on my crossed arms and staying there as if he was able to see through my arms and straight through my vest.
“The new uniform,” he started as his eyes finally moved away from my chest and back to my face. “Do you like it?”
I huffed. “Do you want to hear the truth, or do you want to hear whatever will let me keep my job?”
At that, he chuckled, yet again shocking me.
“I’ve always been fond of the truth.”
I swallowed, shifting on my sore feet to take the weight off my right and put it on my left.
“Honestly, I don’t like wearing it.”
His brow lifted. “And why is that?”
“I don’t like the way it makes me feel.”
He moved closer, the scent of his cologne swirling around me. “And how does it make you feel?”
My eyes flickered to his, holding his green gems with mine. “It makes me feel cheap. The men, they …”
An angry flash moved over his expression. “The men what? Did they touch you?”
I looked away again, tightening my arms in front of me. “No, but they look at me like I’m nothing. They look at me like I’m just a body for them to stare at. It makes me feel small and disgusting.”
“Yet you continued to work all night and wear the uniform feeling that way?”
I shrugged, my eyes finding a spot other than his face to concentrate on. “It’s not like I had a choice.”
Again, he moved closer, and if I wasn’t mistaken, he breathed me in just a bit. “You always have a choice.”
“Not always.”
He continued to inch closer, his chest brushing against mine and sending my senses into overdrive.
“Sir?” I queried. “What’s happening right now?”
I kept my eyes on his ample chest, not sure what else to look at and utterly unsure of what was happening.
A whispered growl sounded from above me—manly and aggressive—and something inside me began to melt toward him.
“Eden,” he whispered.
It was so faint I almost didn’t hear it. Had he not been so close I know I wouldn’t have.
I didn’t respond.
“So you hate the uniforms?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“And if we keep them, what will you do? Quit?”
“I can’t. I need this job.”
“It seems we have a bit of a problem then. What do you suggest we do?”
“I don’t like the way they make me feel. I think we should get rid of them and go back to the old uniforms,” I said honestly.
He had asked for my opinion, and I was giving it to him.
I looked up at his face just in time to see a darkness move over his expression.
“I don’t like the way you make me feel. Should I get rid of you, as well?”
“What do you mean? I don’t do anything to you.”
He chuckled, but there was no humor in the sound. “You do more than you know.”
“Whatever,” I said, moving to go around him. “I don’t have to put up with this.”
He stopped me, his fingers digging slightly into my arm. Not enough to hurt me, but enough to make me stay.
“You being here is making me very uncomfortable.”
I had no idea what he was talking about.
I just knew being this close to him was making me uncomfortable, too. Not in a painful way, but in a way that confused my body.
I wanted to run away from him. He was demanding, dark, and menacing, yet the need to close the distance between us and feel his heat and fuel the fear in the pit of my stomach was there.
What was I feeling?
I didn’t understand it, but in a way, it felt like I wanted him.
His eyes grazed my expression, and his hold loosened on my arm.
“If I make you so uncomfortable, and if you’re so unhappy with my performance, then why don’t you fire me?”
“Believe me, I wish I could.”
“What’s stopping you? Fire me if that’s what you want. Either fire me or leave me the hell alone and let me do my job.”
“Kennedy’s very important to Empire Sevens, and unfortunately, you’re important to Kennedy. Otherwise, I would have fired your ass the first time I saw you.”
“So Kennedy is the only reason you haven’t let me go?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t understand. Why do you hate me so much? You don’t even know me.”
“And I don’t have any plans to get to know you. There is no point since, sooner or later, you will quit. I’ll do whatever it takes to get you to quit.”
“This is ridiculous. What’s your problem?” I asked, completely confused.
“You’re my problem. You put me under a lot of stress. What do you plan on doing about the stress you’re putting on me?” he asked, confusing me even more.
Then he turned a bit, forcing me to turn, as well, and I found my back against the wall. He moved closer, his body brushing against mine and making my pulse jump.
His chin brushed my hair as he tilted his head down just so that his mouth was close to my ear.
“Call me sir again,” he demanded in a whisper.
His breath brushed my cheek, and I shivered. No one had ever made me feel so strange … so different … so needy.
I licked my lips, feeling as though all the moisture in my body had headed south.
“I …” I started, ready to say something sarcastic and push him away, but before I could, he moved closer, shattering my thoughts and sending my body into hyperawareness.
He was hard.
Rock hard.
I had next to no experience with men, but even I understood what was happening.
Usually, a man getting hard disgusted me. Then again, all I had to compare it to was Allen walking around the trailer in his underwear.
This wasn’t like that.
Zander was no Allen.
He was so much more.
He moved his hips, brushing his hardness against my stomach and letting me know what I was doing to him.
It was a turn-on.
“Better yet,” he said, leaning in so close his lips brushed against my ear. “Call me Zander.”
My breath echoed around me, sounding louder than it ever had. For the first time in my life, I was aware of things like the depth of my breaths, the tingling in my breasts, and the wetness in my panties. The tiny nub between my legs throbbed, begging me to move closer and rub against him.
He leaned back, his eyes moving over my face as he waited for me to do as he asked. Again, I licked my lips, and his eyes dropped to my mouth.
Reaching up, he brushed his thumb over my bottom lip, pulling it down and separating my lips
“Zander,” he said. “I want to hear my name on your sweet lips.”
I swallowed, suddenly wanting nothing more than to please him. So I opened my mouth and let his name roll across my tongue.
“Zander.”
He closed his eyes, his body leaning into mine as he pressed his hardness against me.
Without thinking about it, I reached up and ran my fingers up his back, pulling him to me. A sound I had never made before pressed against the back of my teeth and broke through my lips.
He moved in again, his lips brushing my ear once again before dropping to the side of my neck.
My fingers moved up, getting lost in the thick, dark waves of his hair, prompting him to growl against my blazing skin.
Fire.
I was on fire and burning from the inside out. My body shivered, and everything tingled from a blaze I knew only Zander Hale could extinguish.
“Your mouth’s so sweet when you say my name. It makes me want to slide my cock between your plump lips. Would you let me do that, angel? Would you like to taste me?”
I should have been appalled.
He was my boss. And an asshole to boot, but the way he was speaking to me was turning me on. At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to taste him and all that he was.
I nodded, nibbling my lip nervously.
Leaning his head back, he closed his eyes and hissed as if he was in pain.
“Fuck,” he blurted out before looking down into my eyes. “I bet you’re soaked. So fucking wet for me. I would have no problem gliding into your tight little cunt right now.”
Then he backed away with a look of absolute anguish on his face. He reached up and ran his thick fingers through his dark wavy hair before he tugged a bit on the ends.
“What the fuck am I doing?” he asked himself.
And then he turned and walked away from me, leaving me pressed against the wall with weak legs, a racing heart, and a need I had never felt before.
I wanted Zander Hale, and I knew that was something that could never happen.
He was my boss.
The man who signed my paycheck.
Yet my body didn’t seem to understand he was completely off limits.