CHAPTER 32
RICHIE
ONE WEEK LATER
My rumbling stomach forced me from bed. I’d been camped out in my room for days, only coming out to eat and then stumbling back to my bedroom in a daze of misery and failure. I’d ignored all the guy’s attempts to cheer me up. I’d quit my job, because what was the point in going anymore?
There was no future there.
There was nothing left for me there but the painful reminder that I’d never be more than what I was now. Luckily, I had that savings to fall back on. After returning the money to the guys, I put mine back under my mattress and decided it would have to be enough to get me through for a while until I sorted out what the hell I was going to do with my life.
I thought about leaving.
Starting over somewhere else.
This city was a nightmare anyway, crawling with traffic jams and most days it felt like I was living in hell itself. If I wasn’t tied to Cowboys anymore, then there was nothing left to keep me here.
I thought of Phoenix, but it was just as hot as here, if not worse.
Maybe Maui, somewhere tropical…
Someplace warm, for sure. Someplace near the ocean, without a doubt.
I even though of the East Coast — New York, Miami maybe?
Anywhere but here sounded pretty good to me.
The problem was I didn’t really know how to do anything except entertain or run a club. My contacts were limited and the thought of having to prove myself somewhere else was daunting as fuck and only made me want to crawl under the covers even more.
All I could hope for was that the cloud would lift eventually and I find some answers.
In the meantime, I did everything I could to avoid my roommates and their pitiful stares, so I only came out to eat when I knew they’d left, when the house had fallen silent for long enough to let me know I was alone. The thought of facing anyone was enough to make my stomach churn.
I was standing in the middle of the kitchen, shoving a slice of frozen pizza in my mouth when the doorbell rang. I stared at the door like a deer caught in headlights, chewing slowly.
Ignoring it, I turned back to the fridge and pulled out a jug of milk to wash the pizza down. The bell sounded again and still, I continued to ignore it. Whoever it was would leave eventually.
A moment later, an envelope came flying under the door, sliding across the foyer floor. From where I was in the kitchen, I saw it had my name on it. I walked over and picked it up, a faint scent of familiar perfume filling my nostrils.
My cock twitched as I opened it.
I swallowed hard when I saw it was from Tillie. If I’m being honest, a big part of my misery stemmed from the necessity to let her go.
I missed her. Her smile, her kiss, her laughter, this perfume…
Bringing the envelope to my nose, I sniffed again, a slow smile spreading across my face as I pulled out the letter and opened it.
Richie,
I’ve enclosed a round trip plane ticket to Los Angeles that leaves in exactly three hours. Please get on the flight and I’ll explain more when you get here.
The driver is waiting to take to you the airport and another will pick you up from LAX.
I know this is an odd request. Just give me twenty-four hours.
Trust me?
Love,
Tillie
I opened the door with a bewildered look on my face, and sure enough, a limo stood waiting on the street in front of my house. A man in a black suit and hat nodded solemnly.
“Mr. King?”
“Yes?”
“Ms. Thorne requests your presence. Will you come with me? I can wait while you pack a bag.”
I stared at him, my head spinning, my heart pounding like a drum in my chest. What was Tillie up to?
Suddenly, I realized I really didn’t care. I just wanted to see her, I wanted to explain everything, to let her know that my actions had nothing at all to do with her.
“Give me fifteen minutes,” I said.
“Absolutely, Mr. King. Take your time.”
***
When I departed the plane in LA, I spotted a man holding a sign with my name on it. I walked up to him and he nodded.
“Mr. King?”
“That’s me.”
“Ms. Thorne is expecting you. Right this way, sir.”
I threw my backpack over my shoulder and followed him to another waiting car, thinking about Tillie the whole time. This whole VIP treatment was a little much. I easily could have taken a cab or rented my own car, but I went with it, although I couldn’t help but wonder if this was the way Tillie always traveled.
She was obviously well-off, and with a fancy Hollywood producer for an ex-husband, she wasn’t hurting for money. I’d tried not to think about it too much when I was with her, because I knew I’d never be able to compare. Hell, that’s why it hurt so bad when I realized I’d never get that fucking loan. That’s why I stood her up, because I’d never be the kind of man she needed, or be able to provide her with the kind of luxury she was probably used to.
The thing is, she didn’t act like most people with money did.
Not once did she put on any kind of airs; she was nothing but down-to-earth and easy-going. That’s what I liked the most about her.
As we drove through the streets of Los Angeles, the palm trees swaying in the breeze, the buildings I’ve seen a million times in movies flying past the window, my nerves began to get the best of me.
I’d rehearsed on the plane what I would say when I saw Tillie. How I would explain myself. How I’d apologize like crazy and hope she’d forgive me. In the back of the limo, I took a deep breath, trying to calm my trembling hands.
After half an hour of winding our way through traffic, the driver pulled off onto a deserted gravel driveway that led into a cove of trees at the base of a rocky cliff that jutted up into the Hollywood Hills. I wrinkled my brow in confusion, having expected to be dropped off at Tillie’s house.
At the end of the driveway, the car stopped in front of an abandoned building that looked like it used to be a diner or something, with a small group of smaller outbuildings surrounding the back of it in the shape of a horseshoe.
The whole place was dusty and dirty, with broken windows and junk piled up outside.
“What the hell?” I asked the driver as he opened my door. “I thought you were taking me to Tillie?”
“Yes, sir,” he nodded. “Right this way, sir.”
I followed him as he walked up to the door of the place and I noticed the locks were busted as he pushed open the door.
He gestured inside.
“Tillie’s in there?” I asked, suspiciously.
“Please wait inside, Mr. King,” he nodded, solemnly. I shook my head, unsure if I should go in, contemplating if I was being set up somehow.
‘Trust me,’ her note read, I remembered. I was already here, I didn’t have much of a choice at this point. And besides, I wanted to see Tillie, plus the curiosity was killing me.
I nodded and stepped through the door and into the dark building.
After a moment, my eyes adjusted to the darkness. The driver walked out, leaving me alone in the cavernous space. In the middle was a u-shaped bar with broken bar stools lining the edges. Against the walls by the windows sat a series of old vinyl covered booths, almost all of them torn, their dirty white padding poking through like exposed flesh.
I shook my head, completely confused.
There must be some mistake.
I turned to walk out, convinced I was in the wrong place, just as the door opened again, and Tillie walked through.
“Tillie!”
“Hi, Richie,” she smiled. “Thank you for coming.”
“Tillie, I’m so sorry,” I began, the words rushing out of me like a dam had broken. “I shouldn’t have stood you up. I was looking forward to our evening, but then, everything just went to shit and I —.”
“I know. Daine told me everything.”
“He did?” I asked. “I didn’t know…”
“It’s okay,” she said. “I accept your apology, Richie, I understand. I’m just glad you trusted me enough to come here tonight.”
“Right,” I nodded, looking around with bewilderment. “And why are we here? What the hell is this place?”
“Hear me out, okay?” she asked, beaming up at me.
“Of course,” I nodded, waiting, my eyes drinking in the gorgeous vision of her. If I wasn’t so intrigued, I’d have pulled her into my arms and kissed her right then.
“I know we barely know each other, Richie,” she began. “But I connected with you in a way that I never have with anyone else.”
“Me, too,” I whispered.
“Good,” she nodded. “So maybe this next part won’t seem so strange to you. You know I’m recently divorced. But what you may not realize is the extent to which I let myself go while I was married. I gave everything to my husband, all the parts of me that made me who I was, gave up all my dreams, to the point that when he left, there was nothing left, I was practically dead inside.”
She walked closer, the perfume I’d become so fond of lingering in the air.
“You helped me open up, Richie. You helped me come back to life.”
“Oh, Tillie,” I said, shaking my head. “That was all you. I was just along for the ride.”
“You showed me what it meant to have fun again, to feel alive again, Richie.”
“It was my pleasure, trust me,” I replied.
“I know you wanted to buy Cowboys and you couldn’t. But I’m hoping I can offer you something better.”
“I don’t understand.”
She sighed, before a huge smile spread across her face.
“You’re standing in it.”
“What?”
“This used to be a nightclub and inn, but it’s been deserted for a decade. The outbuildings were little bungalows that people rented by the night. Back in it’s day, it was a bustling little place, full of life. I think it has a lot of potential, don’t you?”
“Potential for what?”
“A new club. Our club.”
“Tillie…” I said, shaking my head.
“I have some ideas, in fact, I have a lot of ideas, they won’t stop coming, honestly,” she continued. “First, a complete remodel. The place has good bones, but it needs a ton of help. It shouldn’t take long, though, a few months tops. And once it’s successful and we’re on our feet, we can even think about expanding.”
“We? Tillie, what in the world are you talking about?”
“I bought it, Richie!” she said. “This whole place. It’s mine now. Ours, if you’re willing.”
“Ours?”
“I want you to be my business partner, Richie. Let’s open our own strip club! You can have complete creative control, of course, because you know what works and what doesn’t. But the sky’s the limit! We can really make something of this place. We can make a future. We’re both in transition. Let’s seize the opportunity and do something fun. I have the money. I have the motivation. And so do you. Let me help.”
“Business partner?”
“Yes,” she nodded, excitedly.
“Wow, Tillie…” I whispered.
“But I’m not finished, there’s more” she said. “I fell in love with Daine and Blaze and Fox. I want you all to move here, to work here, and we can hire others, too, of course. I have a huge, beautiful, empty house not far from here. I want you all to move in with me, free of charge! I mean, you’ll have your own bedroom of course, I’m not moving that fast,” she laughed.
“Tillie, this is very generous of you,” I replied, shaking my head.
“Doesn’t it sound great? We can be a family at home, and I can handle all the finances, you guys can dance, or do whatever job you prefer. Maybe you just want to run the place, it’s up to you. You get to call the shots, Richie.”
“You bought this place for me?” I asked, the reality of what she was saying finally sinking in.
“I did.”
I shook my head, looking around, trying to do the math in my head. This was prime Hollywood real estate, there’s no way in hell this place was cheap.
It was too much.
It was so damned sweet, and my heart was breaking from the kindness she was offering, but it was way too much to accept.
“Tillie,” I said, resisting the urge to pull her into my arms. This wasn’t the time for that. “I can’t believe you did this. It’s amazing, it really is, and I think this officially makes you the nicest person I’ve ever known.”
She smiled and shrugged.
“I just think it could be a really great adventure for us all and I truly believe it’ll be very successful. We can build up the hype, make it luxurious and fun and unique. I think in no time at all it could really be a destination spot. There’s a lot of money to be made, Richie. Let’s do it together.”
I took a deep breath, ignoring the crack in my heart as I let the next words slide from my tongue.
“I’m sorry, Tillie. I can’t do it. I just can’t.”